Aftermath of Charleston trip

Driving home from Charleston I simply could not believe how disgusting my vehicle was. It was beyond filthy. It shouldn’t be possible for a vehicle to be that dirty.

Yellow labs shed a ridiculous amount year round but twice a year, when they change coats, they shed an almost obscene amount. I was aware they were in their shed mode and I had been brushing them a lot before leaving. The amount of the hair they dropped in the truck created a thick cream colored hair in the back where they rode and floated all over the rest of the car.

Salt water

After swims in the ocean I walked them for a long time giving them plenty of opportunity to shake the water off before loading them into the truck. It was like they saved their best shake for the truck. As soon as they leaped into the back they both would shake all over the place. Wet hair and salt water flying everywhere.

Since they lean against the backs of the front seats when they ride with their heads out the window I ended up serious salt staining on the backs of the seats. Lovely.

Sand

No way to get back to the parking area from the water without going through a considerable distance of sand. The sand on Hunting Island wasn’t too bad since it was fine and washed out fairly well. The sand at Edisto was coarse and clung to everything, especially the dogs. I had to get a towel and spend a lot of time cleaning my feet and shoes. There was nothing I could do with the dogs, so the inevitable shaking also spread sand. Since they were were wet when they got in the truck, as they dried all the sand in their fur ended up in the back of the truck.

Slobber

Slobber on the outside of the back windows. Slobber on the outside of the back windows. Slobber drips down the outside of the back doors. Slobber mixed with sand, dirt, and hair glued to the inside of the back doors. Man.

Beyond filthy.

Truck preventative measures

Since the dogs ride in my vehicle a lot I have many layers of protection in an attempt to preserve the back seat. I sewed a heavy polyester bag that encloses the seats and head rests while they’re down. I have a layer of fabric backed vinyl on the floor and under the seats before they’re folded down. Another layer of the same stuff wrapped around the seat bottoms that flip forward. There’s also a sheet in there as another protective layer. So deep down the upholstery in the back is clean. All the slop was on the protective layers.

Since I have the base Xterra that doesn’t have carpet in the cargo area, I have indoor/outdoor cut to cover the floor so the dogs have some traction. They did not like riding on the slippery plastic that allowed to gripping when I accelerated and braked. So the carpet catches most of the hair, but can be pulled out and thrown on the driveway for vacuuming and even washing if need be.

After several hours working out on the driveway the Xterra is once more fit for human habitation. I think I vacuumed an entire dog out of the carpet and seats and sucked up about a pound of sand. I took some washing, but the salt stains came out of the seat backs and the slobber scrubbed off all surfaces.

Now I have to decide if I want to let the dogs back in there…