In almost any city in India, it’s a usual sight to see a street or colony dog sitting comfortably on a car roof, especially during hot summer months. This sight may amuse or amaze a few. While a few car owners ignore it, for most of them it brings plenty of annoyance and frustration. And this is more so if the car is new and even more so if the car is a BMW or a Mercedes. And even if it’s not, what the heck? Cars are bought with hard earned money and who does not want their priciest possession to be spotless and gleaming?
However, not to worry! Here are seven ways to prevent street dogs from climbing on to your car roof:
1) Cover Your Car
The most cost-effective way to solve this problem is to buy a car cover. First of all it will protect your car, prevent scratches and will make it difficult for dogs to climb on to your car roof. If you can't cover the car fully, then just cover the front part so that it acts as a hindrance to the dog from climbing up.
2) Raise your wiper blades up
You can raise your car wiper blades (like the picture below) or better still, you could hang a cardboard on the blades so that the dog cannot climb up on the roof. It blocks his way to the car's roof from the bonnet, which is the place from where the dog climbs up most often.
3) Scare the dog away from the sound
You can install a motion detector with a buzzer. So whenever the dog tries to climb the car, the buzzer will refrain dog from climbing up the bonnet. This product is available online
4) Stick Plastic Films
Plastic films, like the ones used to cover books are also very useful to deter dogs from climbing on to your car roof. You can stick the plastic film on the bonnet area of your car. These films are very slippery and dogs will not be able to climb on the roof of your car. These plastic films are easily available in any stationary shop.
5) Use water as a repellent
When you catch the dog in the act, throw a mug of water on him. If you do this 3 to 4 times, the dog in all probability should stop. The dog would get startled to have a gush of water coming on him all of a sudden. But a word of caution here – please DO NOT throw hot water on the dog as it would scald him tremendously, just like it could happen to a human child.
7) Use a spray on your car or car tyres
Spraying your car especially tyres, with a smell that repels them can be very effective since dogs are very sensitive to smell. You can use a FOGG or a non-aerosol /alcohol based perfume or spray or apply vinegar on the car's wheel arches and may be a little around. The stench of these sprays stays on the car for quite some time and will help resolving the issue at hand. The use of phenol or deodorant sprays is not effective as the smell fades away easily.
While writing this article, I wondered why dogs indulge in this practice of perching themselves at a higher level like on top of a sand pile in a construction site, a parapet wall, window sill, a chair or a bed at home. Are they sunbathing, enjoying an aerial view or doing a better job of night patrolling?
Though there is no pin-pointed motivation for their sitting on car roofs, it could possibly be one or all of the reasons mentioned below:
- to get a better territorial view
- to show dominance and supremacy in the pack
- to cool down on the roof that was cooled by the air conditioner a while ago
- to get some air
- to feel safe from people and other dogs.
In case any of the readers of this blog have newer ideas about avoiding a dog to climb on to the roof of a car, please let us know in your comments or write to us at – [email protected]. Your ideas could be useful to many other people. Besides, it would be very useful to these voiceless animals who do things only on the basis of their instinct with no malice to anybody. After all, streets and colonies are their only home and we are their only hope.
*******