Recently a Florida Democrat proposed a bill that would make it illegal for pet owners to drive around with their dog’s head (or any part of their body) sticking out of the car window. While that was not the only provision in this bill, it was definitely the one that drew the most ire from people. In fact, once the proposal was made, it took on a life of its own and went national.
After it became national news, people debated whether or not this was a law that they wanted to see passed. And it turns out they do not. In fact, it seems that Senator Lauren Book has received so many complaints that she has decided to drop that particular provision from the bill.
According to Fox News,
"Book reportedly said that her office has been inundated with complaints, and that some compared her to Cruella de Vil, the villain from 101 Dalmatians who kidnapped puppies in order to turn them into a fur coat."
Florida Democrat drops proposal to make it illegal for dogs to stick their heads out of car windows when driving
Honestly, we don’t see the comparison. However, we do understand why pet parents might not agree with this particular proposal. We have a dog who loves car rides. And our pup loves getting that breeze in her fur. That being said, we also understand why it’s not necessarily that safe.
We don’t necessarily want it to be illegal for our dog to stick their head out of the window. It’s not like our pup does it all the time. So knowing that, we hated the bill for what it took away from our pup, but we also understood it.
With Senator Book removing that particular provision from her bill, it is clear that in the state of Florida this will not become a law, at least right now. But it is clear that this is a bone of contention that many pet parents are not going to agree with.
Obviously there is more to this bill than just stopping dogs from sticking out of car windows. And we hope that by dropping this particular provision in the bill it will allow the rest of the important aspects of the bill to take center stage. As we explained when we first wrote that this bill was being considered,
"Other things that this particular bill would cover include banning the sale of rabbits two months out of the year, specifically in March and April around Easter. Another thing that this bill would do is create a public list of people who have been convicted of animal abuse. Finally, this bill would also prohibit people from declining their cats."
Now that the proposed law is no longer being included in this bill, Senator Book is still recommending that pet parents do what they can to protect their pets on car rides. And one of her suggestion was to get your dog a pair of doggles to protect their eyes.