More Dog Friendly

[ColdSRT]

Working on making the new Jeep more dog friendly. I have a 1 year old and a 9 year old Aussie. They love rides and I'm not in the least bit worried about the younger one, but the rear door isn't wide enough for his ramp that helps him get in and out without hard jumps Might work with removing the limiting straps.

For now, I have two schools of thought. First is what I'm working with now by pulling the underseat storage and making the floor as flat as possible. That leaves the standoffs to cover with a folded blanket but is otherwise flat. They ride pretty low that way so the second idea is one of those dog hammocks for the seat. It would get them up higher so they could see out but they look out, but they look like one of those things that looks like a great idea but is not even close in reality. Anyone use one in a JK or JL and have any input? Thanks.

Pics for reference.

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[JeepDreams]

Following... Not sure that I'll have my pups IN the Gladiator - more likely I'll trick out the bed for them as one is hairy and the other is drooly - but I agree that the floor is level but low (mine would put their paws up on door to look out the window).

 

[NektoInPhx]

6 hours after purchase, dirty with desert pinstriping!
I too would like some information on the dog hammock. I have an 80 pound shepard. Rubicon leather is not going to like his claws. Seats folded down made him sit too high. Folded seats up, works better after using seat belts to keep seats in up position, but not enough room to turn around. He loved my 2door, since he just sat in the back.

 

[jhale1800]

Working on making the new Jeep more dog friendly. I have a 1 year old and a 9 year old Aussie. They love rides and I'm not in the least bit worried about the younger one, but the rear door isn't wide enough for his ramp that helps him get in and out without hard jumps Might work with removing the limiting straps.

For now, I have two schools of thought. First is what I'm working with now by pulling the underseat storage and making the floor as flat as possible. That leaves the standoffs to cover with a folded blanket but is otherwise flat. They ride pretty low that way so the second idea is one of those dog hammocks for the seat. It would get them up higher so they could see out but they look out, but they look like one of those things that looks like a great idea but is not even close in reality. Anyone use one in a JK or JL and have any input? Thanks.

Pics for reference.

My plan is to pull out the storage box for long drives, and fold up the seat bottom like you have done in your picture. I might add a ceiling rack above the backseat for a little more storage. Some protection for the interior door panels would be nice as well.

For short drives around town, I'll rig something up with harnesses and leashes to the trail rails in the bed. This is another option I'm considering.
http://www.xtremepetproducts.com/PickupPal.html

 

[ColdSRT]

Learned some things this weekend. First is the door panels are real soft on these. Years in the 2016 ram with the dogs and no claw marks. 5 minutes and my youngest put two holes in the rear passenger door panel. I ordered some door protectors as soon as I got home for like $30 on amazon. I will update when they arrive.

Other than not as much room, they did OK. The rear seat when folded up are really thick so turning around was more troublesome but they will likely get used to it. Loading the old dog is tough because of how wide the rear doors open. I wish they didn't have the door detent things that keep it open. You can unbolt those, pull the strap off the hook and really get some room but that's a pain. I'm going to look into removing that piece from one of the rear doors so all you have to do is unhook the strap to open the door wide.

I also will be testing the hammock shortly as my wife ordered it to try. Just showed up today. I'm not confident it will work but it wasn't much money and at least I will know. Door covers and the open floor should work fine. Not ideal but the pups will be just as happy to go.

I like the bed harness system for good weather. They would probably figure out how to tie it in knots pretty quickly. Haha.

 

[jhale1800]

Learned some things this weekend. First is the door panels are real soft on these. Years in the 2016 ram with the dogs and no claw marks. 5 minutes and my youngest put two holes in the rear passenger door panel. I ordered some door protectors as soon as I got home for like $30 on amazon. I will update when they arrive.

Other than not as much room, they did OK. The rear seat when folded up are really thick so turning around was more troublesome but they will likely get used to it. Loading the old dog is tough because of how wide the rear doors open. I wish they didn't have the door detent things that keep it open. You can unbolt those, pull the strap off the hook and really get some room but that's a pain. I'm going to look into removing that piece from one of the rear doors so all you have to do is unhook the strap to open the door wide.

I also will be testing the hammock shortly as my wife ordered it to try. Just showed up today. I'm not confident it will work but it wasn't much money and at least I will know. Door covers and the open floor should work fine. Not ideal but the pups will be just as happy to go.

I like the bed harness system for good weather. They would probably figure out how to tie it in knots pretty quickly. Haha.

That's good to know about the interior door panels. What door protectors did you go with?

I'm worried about the dogs tying themselves in knots as well. I think a couple of these might help keep the leashes short and in tension.
https://www.thundershirt.com/dial-a-distance-adjustable-retractable-leash.html#269=233

 

[ColdSRT]

I will link the protectors when I get them and try them out. I took a long time picking them. Just like the hammocks, there are a bunch of options and I think I picked what should work best for our rigs, but I have to be sure they are worth it before recommending them.


I did find something interesting with the rear seat headrests. I was trying to lift them to make it easier to install the hammock and the driver's side went up ok but my wife couldn't get the passenger side to budge. I tried and got just as far. Nothing. I looked at the driver's side again and noticed the seat cover did not sit flat against the cover for the head rest bars. They were being held away from the cover by what looks like the head of a cotter pin. The passenger side cover was seated properly. I stretched the cover on the drivers side to get it out from under the head of the pin and other than it being a little out of shape from being held there, it went back into position fine. Low and behold, the driver's side can't be pulled out now. Both sides of the headrest were like that on the driver's side. I'm thinking it would have been a lot nicer to have buttons like the front headrests but that has got to be Ma Mopar's way of removing the rear headrests. Since they fold, they probably didn't want to let people adjust height.

The hammock my wife ordered fits pretty well. It has good coverage and seems sturdy enough. Installs really easy and was well thought out. I like the mesh in the front center so they can make use of the rear A/C and heater. The side protectors can be zipped up to make it like a rectangle box or can be left unzipped and just hanging for more room. They cover the doors pretty well but not well enough to prevent door panel damage and the hanger is in the way for dogs that like window sill surfing.

I'm going to try it with both dogs this weekend when the other door covers come. Those will work with them riding on the floor too. If the hammock works out, it will be a combo of it and the other door protectors. I honestly think it would be great for 1-3 small dogs or 1 medium dog. The jury is still out on multiple medium dogs, especially elderly dogs. I think my older guy would be OK by himself. It's got pros and cons vs riding on the floor. They can see out much better. More of your surfaces are protected against damage and hair. They have more room from the legs up but their floor in the hammock is less firm and is tilted due to the angle of the seat bottom. My youngest was just fine in it and is ready for further testing. Haha. I can take any other pics or measurements on request.

 

[LittleRocker]

I use something like this in my backseat. https://www.amazon.com/Petego-Pet-T...1749&s=gateway&sprefix=pet+tub,aps,157&sr=8-3

It fits easy, holds the dog in, and, if yours is a shedder, also captures all the hair that otherwise will be all over the black interior. Works really well.

 

[JT614]

but the rear door isn't wide enough

My 5yo son has the same problems I understand the cost decision in keeping with the JL doors, but just think what could have been. Full size doors with easy access AND a full window to retract.

 

[Gladiator Overland]

I have researched this hard and long as I have a service animal that travels everywhere with me. Also as we really plan on Overlanding with the rig for months at a time with 2-3 dogs the stock back seat is just not an option here. At first I thought it would work but after some good hands on time for their comfort and space it isn’t going to work.

So we found out that GooseGear is making a rear seat delete for the Gladiator. Which deletes either left or right or both seats, we are going with both at this time. Which will give them loads more space. I also am going to talk to him about making a platform for the rear of the JT for the dogs with some pass through openings to allow storage. I will try to speak with him about being able to have some sort of jump seat to use when the kids join us or for an emergency..

 

[ColdSRT]

When you say making a seat delete, are they making some kind of panel or something to smooth the area where the seat was? I have seriously considered pulling the rear seats to gain room as they will be used very, very rarely. I didn't think I would need anything to replace them but I would be interested to see what they are planning.

 

[ColdSRT]

I'm still working on the door protectors. Unless you want to rely on a bunch of sticky back velcro for the whole panel, you will need something custom made or to modify an existing cover.

The ones I picked will be a good candidate for modification yet will still need a few pieces of sticky back velcro. I was hoping for one on the bottom of the door but apparently the fixed window in the rear door is different in the JL/JT vs the JK. The modifications should be cheap at a sewing shop or damn near free if you can do it yourself.

The clips that hold it in the window are removable so you can place them where you want. They work great but won't work for the fixed window. Since part of the cover goes further towards the window, there is no way to install the clips and make it look worth a damn to add a velcro section beneath the fixed window, especially when it has to wrap around the riser between windows. Also, the universal covers are all basically the same size and are a bit too wide. Most fold that over and secure with velcro. That's cheesy so I will be having those cut to the right width and havinf the upper part by the fixed window notched so it all lays flat and looks right and is more likely to stay put. I will upload pictures soon. All said and done I stall plan to have well under $100 into the covers.

 

[JeepDreams]

I use something like this in my backseat. https://www.amazon.com/Petego-Pet-Tube-Kennel-Large/dp/B000HVV3OE/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3ECT1G9QMGYJL&keywords=pet+tube+car+kennel&qid=1561491749&s=gateway&sprefix=pet+tub,aps,157&sr=8-3

It fits easy, holds the dog in, and, if yours is a shedder, also captures all the hair that otherwise will be all over the black interior. Works really well.

Cute! But wouldn't fit my GSD or my Mastiff unfortunately!

 

[Gladiator Overland]

When you say making a seat delete, are they making some kind of panel or something to smooth the area where the seat was? I have seriously considered pulling the rear seats to gain room as they will be used very, very rarely. I didn't think I would need anything to replace them but I would be interested to see what they are planning.

I am trying to have him make a raised panel that not only has top down access doors for storage but also for other things like jack and stuff. I am. Looking at deleting the rear seat fully and utilizing the gained space for the pups. What that will end up entailing will hopefully be worked out soon. I did ask him to design something like this but also where it would wrap slightly around the center console using the full area available but allow the passenger seat to at least lay back 1/4 and bit seats allow most of their travel. I did mention some type of ability to add some type of center barrier to prevent dogs from trying to get up front as well as help protect them in an accident.

I will also need to work out what to do with the. Back wall of the interior with the seats deleted. Since I do not currently have a gladiator until they release the diesel version. I will need some help figuring this out as well as figuring out all measurements.. I will keep in mind the side door issue and attempt to work out a elegant solution to protect the doors.

Also as others have mentioned or maybe I misread this. But, figuring out some sort of storage for the back seat. Perhaps some sort of net across the top of the ceiling to be able to put jackets and other soft goods up there while traveling. Open to suggestions and can forward any information so we have an elegant solution.

 

[ColdSRT]

I am trying to have him make a raised panel that not only has top down access doors for storage but also for other things like jack and stuff. I am. Looking at deleting the rear seat fully and utilizing the gained space for the pups. What that will end up entailing will hopefully be worked out soon. I did ask him to design something like this but also where it would wrap slightly around the center console using the full area available but allow the passenger seat to at least lay back 1/4 and bit seats allow most of their travel. I did mention some type of ability to add some type of center barrier to prevent dogs from trying to get up front as well as help protect them in an accident.

I will also need to work out what to do with the. Back wall of the interior with the seats deleted. Since I do not currently have a gladiator until they release the diesel version. I will need some help figuring this out as well as figuring out all measurements.. I will keep in mind the side door issue and attempt to work out a elegant solution to protect the doors.

Also as others have mentioned or maybe I misread this. But, figuring out some sort of storage for the back seat. Perhaps some sort of net across the top of the ceiling to be able to put jackets and other soft goods up there while traveling. Open to suggestions and can forward any information so we have an elegant solution.

Sounds like you are going all out. Your dog will sure appreciate it, as will you.

The second biggest thing I notice next to room for the pups is overall storage. The locking underseat rear storage is a good option for most, but doesn't work with the dogs. Haven't found any front undersest storage options yet. The rear of our cab is different than the JL so overhead nets aren't available yet, to the best of my knowledge. That should happen pretty soon I would think. I will be looking into one when available. For now, the best we can come up with for smaller stuff is MOLLE bags on the back of the front seats.

I can try and get measurements if you need them for the build. Take care.

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