DEAR ABBY LETTER
A DOG RESTRAINT CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
This was an actual letter that was written to Dear Abby in a local newspaper. Don't let this happen to you. Seat belts save lives!
A Beloved Dog Dies Needlessly inTruck Bed
Dear Abby:
I found my dog "Belle" last year at the pound. We bonded instantly and I knew I had to take her. She was sweet, funny and fearless.
I remembered the truck commercials on TV where the message was that dogs love trucks. Belle was no exception. The day I brought my used pickup, she hopped into the bed and was ready to go. Its seemed that half the vehicles I saw growing up rolled pickups with dogs always unrestrained.
At first, they were short trips to the store or on a backroad. But after a month, we got more adventurous. Sometimes Belle would get excited and leaned over and snapped at passing cars. That should have warned me, by that time I thought was funny. It never occurred to me to be concerned. Not until she fell out.
I watched in the rear view mirror as she tumbled. Bell survived the fall and started to get up, but before she could get out of the way, an oncoming car hit her.
It was stupid and it could have been prevented. A simple harness or better yet keeping my beautiful Bell in the cab would have saved her life. Now, because of the stupid macho image I had of a man, his dog, and his truck, I have lost a beloved friend. Please, Abby warn your readers that if they have a pet they love, not to allow it to ride unrestrained in a truck bed.
Signed,
Grieving in Lexington KY
Dear Grieving:
Please, accept my sympathy for the loss of your beloved pet. I am printing a reminder for the benefit of other pet owners, but I would like to extend it. I frequently see young children standing on the seats of vehicles driven by their mothers, while Mom chats away on her cellphone. I have also seen pets and people ride unrestrained in the back of open trucks. It takes only a moment for an accident to happen. These kind of accidents can be life altering or fatal. So please, folks, use a little restraint, the kind that buckles.
