You know the one thing that would make me buy a Tesla? Dog mode!
I often go on solo road trips with my dogs, and take them with me when running errands all day. When they can’t stay home alone.
Keeping them safe in the car when we’re out and about is important.
But an electric vehicle is not practical for my lifestyle and driving habits.
As it turns out, I can use the Waggle Pet Monitor to help protect my dogs from high temperatures in the car I already own.
Not Everyone Who Leaves Their Dog in a Car is Stupid
I’ve been called stupid for leaving my dogs in the car. I’ve been called irresponsible. I’ve been told I am a bad pet parent and that I am putting my dogs in danger.
While I agree that there are irresponsible dog owners out there, we aren’t all that way.
I have zero interest in debating the issue but I will share some of the things that I do to help ensure my dogs are safe when left alone in the car and the sun is out.
Note: a lot of these things aren’t necessary if the outside temperature is below about 50 degrees and it’s cloudy
- I park in the shade when possible (tree shade or inside a covered parking garage, which is the best option because the concrete walls help the air stay cool), and put up reflective window coverings to block the sun when it’s not.
- I leave my air conditioner on by using the remote start feature so it can run while the vehicle is locked (it runs for up to 10 minutes at time and I can keep turning it back on).
- I leave a water bowl where they can access it if they need a drink.
- I use the Waggle pet temperature monitor, so I get a text notification if it starts to get too hot inside the car.
- I taped the mirror “hang tag” that came with the monitor to the dog-side window so people would know they are being taken care of inside.
What is the Waggle Temperature Monitor?
Disclaimer: I am being compensated by Waggle to share information about it with you. I don’t promote anything I don’t like or think can be useful to you, our readers, though.
The Waggle Pet Temperature Monitor is something that is primarily marketed to use inside an RV, but you can use it inside a passenger vehicle too.
You can adjust the temperature limit (it has a limit for “too cold” as well) you are comfortable with and for which you want the alert to trigger.
When you mount or hang the temperature monitor inside your car, it continuously monitors the temperature inside – sampling the air every second. If it goes over the limit you set, you’ll get a text or email alert right away.
You can also manually check the temperature in the car by opening the app (it refreshes every 15 minutes).
If you are ready to get a temperature monitor for your car, use our code WIENER50 at checkout for 50% off.
Tips for using the Waggle Pet Monitor
Here are some important notes about how to use the Waggle monitor based on my experience:
- You can choose to monitor in Fahrenheit or Celsius
- A monthly subscription through Verizon is required for the monitor to work. This subscription is necessary even if your current carrier is Verizon and is compatible with your device even if your current carrier is someone else.
- The cost of subscription is $16.60 – $29 a month depending on your billing interval and renew automatically until canceled.
- The subscription covers 500 text alerts a month (email alerts are unlimited).
- As to not waste the alerts, don’t leave the monitor in the car when it’s not needed or disable alerts in the app for the time your dogs are not in the car.
- The minimum alert frequency that you can set using the app is 30-minute intervals. If you want to set a frequency more often than this, you can reach out to customer service at [email protected] and they can adjust it for you from their end.
- If you are questioning that the temperature the monitor is reporting accurately, place a thermometer in the car for a while and then compare the two temperatures. You can calibrate the Waggle monitor up or down by 6 degrees if needed.
- If you don’t want to mount the bracket inside your car, the monitor will still work if you set it on the center console or hang it from the headrest. Just make sure it’s in a place where it’s unlikely to be sitting in the direct sun.
- In addition to temperature alerts, the Waggle devide can monitor humidity and the Pro version has GPS tracking, can alert you if your vehicle moves outside the “Geofence” virtual zone, and has an LCD display built into the monitor.
WARNING: Don’t Use the Waggle Monitor to Take Risks
One argument against using a pet temperature monitor inside a vehicle is that one will rely too much on it and put their pet in situations that are riskier than they might otherwise.
Absolutely do not do this.
The Waggle Pet Monitor is extra assurance that what you are already doing in regard to your pet’s safety is working.
It’s used as a “double check” that the temperature inside your car is not too hot.
Never leave your pet in the car if you think “physical injury or death of an animal is likely to result” or doing so will “endanger an animal’s health and safety”.
The phrases in quotes are taken from the laws that most states have against leaving your pet in a hot car.
Heatstroke is a deadly medical condition so, when in doubt, please don’t leave your dog in the car.
Final Thoughts
Owning an electric vehicle like a Tesla with a built in dog safety mode is not in our future due to how often we drive for miles and miles on backroads where there are no charging stations.
And we don’t own an RV, which is the demographic that most pet temperature monitors are marketed to.
I was excited to discover that the Waggle Temperature monitor can also be used inside a car.
While the monitor has a lower temperature reminder, and can monitor humidity, the relevant feature for me is the high temperature alert.
I take extreme precaution when leaving my dogs in the car when it’s sunny out and that won’t change just because I am using the monitor now.
However, using the Waggle Pet Temperature Monitor offers me some extra peace of mind that the actions I take to keep my car cool inside when I’m not in it are working.
It instantly triggers text/email alerts at the slightest hint of danger, ensuring my dogs are out of harm’s way.
If you are ready to get a temperature monitor for your car, use our code WIENER50 at checkout for 50% off.
Waggle Pet Monitor comes with a 21-days return policy and 1-year warranty.
Find out more about the Waggle Pet Temperature Monitor by visiting their YouTube channel or their website.
