Bark Buckle UP Top Dog Photo Contest WINNERS

Bark Buckle UP®, creator of the annual TOP DOG awards, is excited to announce this year's TOP DOG photo contest winners, sponsored by the New York International Auto Show. More then ONE Million votes were tallied in the first 72 hours.

The public was invited upload a picture of their pet with their car for a chance to win great prizes from QPG Sherpa, the leader in pet safety and travel products and accessories. Judges from the New York Auto Show, Bark Buckle UP's founder Christina Selter "Pet Safety Lady", Rescue Ink, car experts from AutoTrader.com, and the entertaining host Brian Balthazar selected the three finalists and the TOP DOG.

The winners were announced at the New York International Auto Show on April 26th @ 6pm from in Rescue Ink booth. With no purchase necessary to win, winners received essential pet travel and safety gear from QPG Sherpa including: Sherpa's Pet Trading®, Fox & Hounds™, Cloak & Dawggie®, GoDog™, Luna Brite™, Dog Mountain™, Pez® for Pets and Woof Wear Organics®.

Bark Buckle UP® founder Christina Selter “Pet Safety Lady” will showcased the pet gear from QPG Sherpa, TravelStix and Travel Calm spray during the dog demo media day LIVE from the AutoTrader booth. "These products are functional and designed to make car travel safer, more comfortable and convenient for pets and their owners", said Christina Selter.

Dahn Dahn Dahn Daaaa and the winners are:

Peanut Wins Small TOP DOGPeanut is a tiny Chihuahua from Islip NY and loves her Nissan Sentra and rides safe in his doggie booster seat buckled up every time. "We thank-you! and paws up to my fellow winners! it's true that I have been putting peanut,my chihuahua, in a seat belt and harness for all of his 4 years of life. He now sits safely in a booster seat and is able to see out the window! To me this is so important that I keep another seat hooked up for my grand doggie too. Nothing is cuter then looking in the mirror and seeing their little heads and knowing I am keeping them from harm. thank-you again!" said Peanuts owner Nancy Buckler.

Jenny Wins Medium TOP DOG and Grand PrizeJenny is a Rescue from North Shore Special she is a great Terrier mix lives with her forever family in Garden City NY and rides safe in her Doggie Carrier in her Ford Mustang! "Jenny is just thrilled to have been chosen! Congratulations to all of the other contestants. She loves her blue box and plays with it even while not in the car" said Jenny's owner JoAnn Wolf.


Mowgli Wins Large TOP DOG Mowgli is a 100 pound Golden-Ddoodle - mother Golden Retriever - dad - Standard Poodle from Woodmere NY. He loves his BMW 535 Sports Wagon with the seat extender he is more comfy. "Woohoo Thanks Guys" and Mowgli is a registered therapy dog - we volunteer twice weekly in schools as a READ dog and in assisted living facilities", said Madeline Polen Mowgli's owner.

About Top Dog Awards:
Creator of TOP DOG Awards, Bark Buckle UP® is recognized as the go-to expert and leading research team on pet travel safety. While promoting the pet safety, Bark Buckle UP founder Christina Selter has safely buckled more than 10,000 animals into vehicles, been featured 1,200 national and local newscasts, international press conferences and automobile trade show, delivered over 4,000 pet oxygen masks through her Bark 10-4 program and secured almost 3,000 animals in life vests. Using cutting-edge technology Christina taught more than 60,000 families in her pet safety classes around the country.

Pack up the Pups for some Summer Fun in the Sun

If you could ask your pet if he or she wanted to go on vacation with you or stay in a loud kennel with strange animals and caretakers, how do you think they would answer? We’re thinking “take me with you!” is the likely answer. And the good news is that keeping your pet safe and happy during your vacation is easy with just a little planning.



It doesn’t matter what your destination; the soft, sandy beaches of Florida, or the mountainous terrain of Alaska. Your pet is going to need current and accurate information on his or her ID tags. If your pet gets lost, this is what will help reunite you and them quicker. Also, you will need to have a collar or harness and a leash. For your and your pet’s protection, as well as the safety of others, most states require you to keep your pet on a 6-foot leash. The leash allows plenty of room for you and your pet to walk while also being short enough for you to gain better and quicker control if he or she decides they don’t like what’s coming near them.

And don’t forget the food! We can always stop for a cheeseburger, but feeding that to your pet isn’t the healthiest option for them (or us, really). Packing food & bottled water along with travel bowls will keep your pet full, hydrated and happy. If your trip involves hiking or camping, a backpack for your dog is a great way for them to carry their own snacks and water. We do it, so they won’t mind either.

We don’t always think about safety, but what fun is vacation without it? We make sure we pack the proper gear for ourselves. If I’m hiking, I’m wearing a safety vest and hiking boots. On hot sand, I’m wearing shoes so my feet don’t get burned. The same goes for Fido! A Pet Reflective Safety vest will help your pet to be seen by other hikers, campers or rescue workers. And don’t forget their feet, because you don’t forget to wear shoes or sandals when you leave the house. Doggie Boots help protect the pads of their feet from becoming irritated by hot sand or sharp rocks. A dog with sore feet is a very, very unhappy (and sometimes unmovable) pet.

If an accident does happen, a First Aid kit is essential when vacationing with a furry family member. Every now and then someone will end up with a scraped leg or a bee sting and if that happens to you or your pet, you’ll want to be prepared.

Some of the best vacations will include a dip in the water. Whether it’s in a pool or in the ocean, keep in mind that not all animals are great swimmers, and a personal flotation device or a pet life vest may be needed to help keep them safe. It’s also important to rinse your pet after they get out of the water. Rinsing will keep them from getting hot spots or infections. This in turn will keep their skin and fur healthier.

And finally, after a day of hiking, swimming and playing, a good night’s rest is in order. After all, we want to do it all again the next day. Bringing along your pet’s bed is a great way to keep them, and you, happy.

"Our pets are a very important member of our family, and with them riding in the car, truck, SUV, RV, boating, hiking or camping our vacations will be the most fun possible with them by our side. Have a great time!" said Pet Safety Lady founder of Bark Buckle UP.

Reality Stars Go Woofing Crazy Over Bark Buckle UP "Be Smart Ride Safe"

Pet Safety Lady filmed Reality Stars going woofing crazy over Bark Buckle UP "Be Smart Ride Safe" PSA program.

We had Christa Hastie singing a rap and dancing, X-cop Christina Coria showing how to buckle up Chopper the Biker Dog, Tyana Alvarado showing how easy to put your pet in a Sherpa carrier to buckle up and Jordan Pious the Amazing Race WINNER get just absolutely CRAZY with Spike in tow.

Reality Rally Celebrities:
Liz Cain "The Mole"
Tyana Alvarado "The Apprentice"
Christa Hastie "Survivor"
Rita Verreos "Survivor"
Jordan Pious "Amazing Race - WINNER"
Christina Coria - Lopez "Survivor"
Nate Gonzales "Survivor"
Matt Hoffman "Big Brothers"

Special Thanks:
Acura MDX
Sherpa Pet Products
Spike Taylor
Chopper the Biker Dog

Bark Buckle UP's Car the "FUR"

Paw Town, USA, April 1, 2011 – Bark Buckle UP has unleashed the new addition as the first NEW CAR manufacturer – to release the niche vehicle that will cater exclusively to a segment of the population begging for attention called the Bark Buckle UP FUR*.

FUR is Bark Buckle UP’s response to the dog call of the wild. Not dog owners, dogs. When the new C-car (for Canine) wagon debuts in 2013, it will have the distinction of being the first vehicle designed expressly for the wants and needs of four-legged creatures everywhere.

“Bark Buckle UP understands that dogs are drooling for more canine convenience features in vehicles today,” said Christina Selter "Pet Safety Lady", Bark Buckle UP director of Canine Vehicle Design. “Dogs deserve to be comfortable and pampered as well. FUR will provide an inviting interior environment that addresses their every scratch and sniff. After all, dogs are our best friends.”

At first glance, the alliteratively named FUR looks like an ordinary station wagon. But any resemblance to a traditional vehicle stops there, and dogs are quickly picking up the scent of a product designed especially for them.

FUR, with its sheepskin-lined interior, is the first vehicle at the park with innovative My Paw Control, a kennel of convenience features that will have dogs perking their ears and pausing at dealerships to take a look.

FUR has special bacon-scented sensors in its quarter panels that cause the door to spring open when a dog leaps at them, eliminating the need for handles. A special Lift-Me-Up option package is also available for dogs with weight issues or back problems.

Innovative ingress is only the start of the smart My Paw Control that FUR will pioneer. The permanently folded back seat floor’s plush sheepskin covering contains memory foam, and is high enough so that dogs can enjoy a command view from any angle. Once ensconced in their favored position, dogs need only touch the side of the FUR with their nose or paw to open the automatic windows any time they feel the need to sniff sniff sniff. Special sensors in the interior, similar to the outside, allow for this.

Cushioned window frames make a comfortable ledge for your buddy to hang his head out all day long. The FUR even features No Drool Doors. These are special saliva containment devices on the doors so that tongues can happily hang out without drenching pooches to the rear. The seatbacks also offer Lap-N-Go dispensers that deliver ice-cold water into fixed porcelain water bowls at the tap of a paw.

Canine focus groups whined incessantly for leash and doggie bag holders, so FUR was built to those specifications with unique pockets to hold leashes securely and a bag dispenser that takes the hassle out of having to worry about cleanup.

Bark Buckle UP engineers have also come up with the innovative Sit-N-Stay parking feature for dogs that wander and can’t find their way back to the car. Sit-N-Stay sends an electronic signal within a 50-yard radius from the vehicle’s position. If a canine passenger wanders beyond the 50-yard limit, a bell rings, a friendly voice calls out “Treat!” and a morsel of food is dispensed at the rear of the vehicle. The effect is a happy – and un-lost – dog.

Under the hood, the FUR is powered by EcoPooch, a turbo-charged direct-injection engine that runs on a combination of organically treated dog waste and water. EcoPooch offers both improved fuel economy and reduced emissions, so dogs everywhere can sniff cleaner air.

With FUR, Bark Buckle UP is bringing personal mobility to the pawtips of a whole new segment of the population, and game-changing My Paw Control builds on the company’s commitment to a better world. So, sit. Stay. We are so not making this up.

About: Bark Buckle UP is recognized as the go-to expert and leading research team on pet travel safety. While promoting pet safety, Bark Buckle UP founder Christina Selter has safely buckled more than 10,000 animals into vehicles, been featured 1,200 national and local newscasts, international press conferences and automobile trade show, delivered over 4,000 pet oxygen masks through her Bark 10-4 program and secured almost 3,000 animals in life vests. Using cutting-edge technology Christina taught more than 60,000 families in her pet safety classes around the country.

As a resourceful and creative entrepreneur with a high-energy personality, Christina counts as her accomplishments:

Writer, Producer, Director of four short films

She wrote the 2002 business plan and distribution plan used by Ford Motor Co. to distribute their zero emissions which resulted in earning Ford the title as the only US car manufacturer to gain their ZEV credits prior to the January 2003

Only woman in the world to hold a NHTSA certification for VIN verification as a New US vehicle manufacturer


*Bark Buckle UP can't take credit for this amazing original article it was written for us, and was due to be released back in 2010. However it was halted by some executives and declined its airtime. We felt you deserved a good laugh. Enjoy and Happy April Fools!