Dog Drives Mini Cooper
By David Castro
I failed my first driving test pretty badly, I got a 59 out of a 100 and you need 70 to pass. I got my license on the second try but my poor parking skills and reckless lane changing still continues to this day.
If you find yourself in Glendale, Arizona you might want to steer clear of a blue Mini Cooper with a University of Nevada bumper sticker. Consider yourself warned.
When I found out today that you can teach a dog to drive a car my self esteem tanked. I love cars but I’m not a great driver and I am worse at parking. Unless a backup camera is available I can’t park a car in getaway position.
Porter, a rescue dog from the Auckland, New Zealand Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the driver in the video above, was given eight-weeks of driving lessons in a modified Mini Cooper. This happened in 2012 and I wish I had heard about it sooner.
‘You wouldn’t believe any dog could learn to drive a car on its own but we’ve proven through our understanding of animal psychology and our specialised training methods that intelligent creatures can adapt to the situation they’re in,” Mark Vette, the animal trainer who taught Porter how to drive.
The Mini Cooper was highly modified for the dogs and all the driving techniques are pure Porter. The SPCA put everything together to show that rescue dogs are incredible and I agree.
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“Every year, the SPCA need to find homes for hundreds of dogs like Porter – dogs who have been abused, abandoned, or just forgotten. They may be a motley bunch, but they’re all smart and they’re all lovable. So please don’t write them off. Adopt them. If we can teach one to drive, we think you’ll do just fine.” – SPCA Auckland
I also drive a Mini Cooper and I am bouncing the idea around of teaching my Siberian Husky named Bane how to drive it. She’s a sharp one, she has figured out how to open unlocked doors and responds to my command of ‘détente’ when I need to settle her down. I use détente often because she can be a handful.
But my use of détente is neither here nor there.
The work of the Auckland SPCA is incredible and highly commendable. If you can, go get yourself a loyal companion and adopt a dog. They’re loving, true and as the video shows they’re very solid behind the wheel.