Here's a real 'pet peeve' for police

Q: Is it legal to drive with small dogs or pets crawling around in your lap? -- Jerimy in Port AngelesA: Jerimy, we've all seen it before. When we're driving around, we see people's dogs climbing in cars, sitting on laps, heads out windows. You kind of take that for granted that that's what animals are supposed to do in a vehicle, but that could be further from the truth. Little dogs can cause big problems riding on people's lap. They can get between the steering wheel. They're a distraction, and it's not legal to let your pet roam free in a car. There's a big difference between you having a big dog in the back of a pickup truck that's properly secured, than a little dog inside of a car. The little dog inside of the car is way more dangerous because they're have been many accidents caused by pets that have interrupted the drivers ability to drive a car. And secondly, at about 15 miles an hour, if you get into an accident and your pet is not secured, your pets going to be severely injured or possibly killed, because there's no restraints, and he's going to fly up and hit the dashboard or whatever stops him. -- Pierce County Det. Ed Troyer