Former District Resident Invents "Doggie Breeze"
With the safety of dogs in vehicles in mind, former district resident Mona B. and her husband, Gene J., have developed a product called "Doggie Breeze."Mrs. B said she and her husband first started thinking about a device to allow dogs to remain secure in a vehicle while being protected from heat exhaustion about seven years ago when they were living in British Columbia.
"One day, we went downtown with our dog. And when you're (on the street) you don't want to leave your windows down."She remarked. "That got us thinking."Then last August, the couple began to look at the idea for the invention seriously when a friend of theirs whose dog was suffering from heat exhaustion visited them.
That's when they came up with the "Doggie Breeze"-an invention specially created to increase the safety of dogs when left in parked vehicles by helping prevent heat exhaustion. Mrs. B noted its design offers easy-to-install and remove features while allowing the dog a free flow of air and unobstructed view. The dog's safety would be increased while riding in the vehicle by keeping its head and paws inside at all times, she added.
But specifics about the functional or structural details can't be released at this time because their original idea is now being made available for licensing to manufacturers interested in new product development, especially in the automotive and pet products industry, with the help of a Florida-based firm. Mrs. B said she and Mr. J have contacted ten companies regarding "Doggie Breeze". They are hoping to have the invention in full production and available to the public in the near future.
They feel there’s definitely a need out there for "Doggie Breeze,"she noted.
The couple did some research on the internet regarding canine heat exhaustion. And while they found 155,000 articles regarding incidents, none seemed to offer a solution other than "don’t leave your dog in the car."
"This idea is so needed in our society. The animals shouldn’t suffer,"stressed Mrs. B. "It’s nice to provide an option to help dog owners out. I think it will go over well.""It’s about time we had a solution to heat exhaustion,"said Mr. J. "We like people, we like dogs. The suffering should end."