"On Monday evening while driving home from shows Luke had an accident that totaled our truck. He was driving just outside of La Grande, Oregon when the driver outside real dual tire blew causing Luke to lose control. Our assistant Stephane was taken by ambulance to the local hospital for a fractured vertebrae, multiple cuts, stitches and a concussion evaluation; luckily Stephane will be ok.
Luke and first responders worked tirelessly for two hours to get to the dogs, using the jaws of life to pry open the back garage door. This was the longest 2 hours of my life waiting to hear if the dogs were alive. Miraculously the dogs were all alive and only 1 dog had a minor injury to his foot. The dogs were all in their IMPACT crates, I have no doubt that is why they are all here today. The impact crates quite simply saved their lives. These crates are amazing and I am so thankful all 9 dogs were each in one.
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I cannot thank Rick and Dinah Baggenstos enough, they emptied their 'already packed to leave for the show' truck and drove to pick up our dogs in the middle of night. Then Dinah went to pick Stephane up at the hospital while Rick calmly talked Luke through trying to salvage our personal items and dog equipment.
Basically everything is destroyed... I really can not express how thankful and grateful I am that they were both there for us (I truly feel like I won the in-law lottery but I already knew that!), love them both so much! Everyone is now home and we are trying to get back to normal after this absolutely terrifying experience.
A huge thank you to our wonderful clients for being so caring throughout this whole ordeal. We will not be going to the show this weekend, we are going to spend it together as a family and go to Teagan’s baseball tournament as this was a very strong reminder how fragile life really is and how quickly it can all change. As bad as this all is we are counting our blessings today as this could have been so much worse... stuff can be replaced, family can not be ❤️"
- Rowan Baggenstos
Here was the RV setup before the accident:
We are so grateful to hear that Luke and his assistant are okay, and that the crates did their job of protecting all 9 dogs. Thank you Luke and Rowan for choosing our product for your loved ones.
Our goal here at Impact Dog Crates is to build the safest, strongest and most secure dog crate for your four legged friend.
Car safety isn't just for people, it's for our pets too.
If you are allowing your dog to roam freely in the car, it may be time to reconsider how you transport your pup. An overwhelming 84% of dog owners drive with their pets unrestrained. Regardless of how short the ride is, you’re not just putting your unsecured pets at risk, but you’re also endangering yourself and other drivers.
Special thanks to Rowan for sharing your story!
Check out the original Facebook post here: