What Is the Best Car Seat Cover for Dogs?

If you have a dog and you have a car, you’ve most definitely found yourself asking the question “What is the best car seat cover for dogs?” A dog can wreak havoc on your car’s upholstery, and a quality seat protector is your best bet to keep your car from going to the dogs (I couldn’t resist 😂).

Let’s cut to the chase. I’ve tried everything from beach towels and regular blankets, to affordable seat covers with positive reviews. But when I finally sprung for the Orvis Grip-Tight® Windowed Hammock Seat Protector, I came to realize the old adage is true. You get what you pay for.

Car Seat covers before orvis

After ordering a few affordable car seat cover options, I settled on a bench seat cover (non-hammock style) with good reviews. The synthetic canvas type of material was water resistant. It also had a vinyl backing to provide some water-proofing. On the positive side, it was super easy to clean, and was head and shoulders above using a blanket that would billow in the wind with the windows down. But it wasn’t exactly soft, or comfortable. And every time my dogs shifted, it was annoyingly noisy. In due time, the backing began to disintegrate in the wash, and it was time to purchase another cover. This cycle would surely repeat itself.

Why I love the Orvis Car seat cover

As Lemon tends to try migrating to the front seat during a drive, I wanted a hammock style cover to keep her contained in the back seat. I splurged on the Orvis Grip-Tight® Windowed Hammock Seat Protector because I liked the window aspect. With the mesh opening, I could easily see the backseat, and the girls could see up front. The mesh also allows for better air flow to the back seat.

Available in multiple sizes and colors, the Orvis cover has a nice, quality weight to it. Made of quilted microfiber, it’s soft and comfortable for my dogs, and I can no longer hear their every move. While not water proof, it is water resistant. My car seats have remained clean and dry when hauling wet dogs from the pool or the beach. The cover has washed extremely well. It still looks new after two years of use, and many, many rounds in the washer. However, I do hang it to dry.

The seat protector is easy to install. It clips around the front seat head rests, as well as the rear seat head rests to create the hammock. In addition to the grippy backing that prevents the cover from moving around, it has two anchors that look like plastic handles. When the anchors are inserted between the cushions (where the seat cushion meets the back cushion), it helps to keep the cover in place should your dog step into the hanging hammock portion. Olive’s preference is to actually lay in the hammock portion. Fortunately she’s a size where this doesn’t seem to cause any slipping issues with the cover.

This is hardly a complaint, but…

After washing, I have found I need to spray the cover with an anti static spray. Otherwise, your pup may get an unpleasant electric shock when you reach to pet them at a stop light. And really, this is more for your awareness than an actual complaint.

Bottom line, if you’re looking to protect your car seats from dog hair, drool, and muddy paw prints, I highly recommend the Orvis Grip-Tight® Windowed Hammock Seat Protector. Pricey, yes, but damn near perfect!

Update: November 7, 2022

It’s been a year and half since I first published this post, and my Orvis car seat cover is still going strong! But after changing cars, I’ve added a new accessory that I love, and I want to share it with you.

After trading my Subaru Crosstrek for a Honda CR-V, I found this hammock-style cover fits my new car even better than my old car, but with one difference. Its side flaps actually hang down as intended to cover the sides of the seat. In my Subaru, I had to tuck the side flaps between the seat and the door frame. Well, having three Labradors literally FLY into the backseat, they’d often catch the now loose side flaps of the cover and flip them up.

If you struggle with a similar challenge, I have a solution! I purchased a set of fitted bed sheet suspenders, and ran one of them underneath the backseat, clipping it to the side flaps of the cover on each side. Now the cover wraps snuggly around the seat even as the girls hurtle themselves into the car.