A fabric hammock leaves a dip over the footwell. The Trailmate turns the same bench into one level platform.
Every dog hammock sags in the middle.
This one has a floor.
A rigid three-section base bridges the footwell, so your dog rides on one flat platform instead of a fabric funnel. Rated to 180 kg, waterproof 600D Oxford, fitted in about sixty seconds with no tools.
- Your dog lies down ten minutes in instead of bracing against a slope for the whole drive.Life after
- Beach and bush days end with a wipe-down, not a back seat full of sand, water and claw marks.Life after
- A rigid three-section plate bridges the footwell — there is no dip left to slide into.Why it works
- Waterproof 600D Oxford, full door flaps and a non-slip backing keep the mess and the movement contained.Why it works
- Free shipping Australia-wide
- Ships in 1 business day
- 30-night in-car trial
- Two-year stitching warranty
Fit it, drive with it, let your dog decide. If it does not fit your car or your dog is no steadier on it than on your bare back seat, send it back and we refund it. Two-year warranty on the stitching and the base.
The base. A standard hammock is a sheet of fabric hanging between two headrests, so the middle sags into the footwell and your dog spends the drive standing on a slope. The Trailmate has three rigid sections that lock across the footwell and turn the back seat into one flat platform. Everything else — the Oxford fabric, the flaps, the straps — exists to keep that platform level.
It needs a rear bench and two front headrests. SUVs, 4WDs, wagons, dual cabs and sedans are all a straight fit; small hatches are usually fine but worth measuring; two-seaters have nothing to anchor to. Tell us your make, model and year and we will give you a straight answer — including when the answer is no.
Yes. Seat-belt openings are built in so you can run a harness tether through to the buckle underneath. We strongly recommend it — a flat platform is safer than a sagging one, but a restrained dog is safer than an unrestrained one.
About sixty seconds, no tools. Straps loop over the front headrests, the base unfolds across the bench, the rear straps anchor behind the seat and the flaps tuck down each door. Removing it is faster.
Take thirty nights with it in your own car. If your dog is not steadier on it than on your bare back seat, send it back and we refund it.
Everything worth knowing before you put your dog on it
One product, built by people who kept ruining their own back seats
Trailmate Co. is an Australian kit brand with a single product. We started from the thing that annoyed us: every hammock on the market is a sheet of fabric, and a sheet of fabric cannot hold a shape. So the design brief was one line — give the dog a floor — and everything else followed from it.
We do not run a catalogue of forty accessories. We sell one hard-base hammock, in one colour, and we answer fit questions ourselves — including the times the honest answer is that it will not suit your car.
- Designed for Australian vehicles
- One part number, one colour
- Fit questions answered by us
- Two-year warranty
Six layers, and one of them is doing the real work
- 01600D Oxford clothScratch and claw resistant face
- 02PP cotton layerQuilted padding for long drives
- 03210D Oxford clothInternal structural liner
- 04Load-bearing plateThe rigid bit. Rated to 180 kg
- 05Waterproof membraneMud, rain, drool, accidents
- 06Non-slip bottomStays put when the dog moves
A hammock with a hole in it is still a hammock with a hole in it
- Middle collapses into the footwell
- Dog braces or slides on every corner
- Fabric bunches under the paws
- Doors and trim left exposed
- Rigid base bridges the footwell
- One level platform, seat back to seat edge
- Non-slip backing holds position
- Side flaps guard both doors
Sixty seconds, no tools, no swearing
01Hook the headrest straps
Two adjustable straps loop over the front headrests. Pull them tight — the whole front edge lifts into place.
02Drop the hard base in
Unfold the three rigid sections across the bench. The centre panel bridges the footwell, so there is no hole for your dog to fall into.
03Clip, tuck, load the dog
Anchor the rear straps behind the bench, tuck the side flaps down each door, thread a harness through the seat-belt openings. Done.
Will it fit your car?
It needs a rear bench and two front headrests. Beyond that, here is the honest answer for each body type.
The deep footwell in a wagon-body SUV is exactly what the hard base was built to bridge. Straps go over both front headrests, flaps drop down each door.
Unsure? Send us your make and model — we will tell you straight.
The three ways people try to solve this
| What matters | Fabric hammock | Boot liner or crate | Trailmate hard base |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surface over the footwell | Sags into a dip | No rear-seat option | Rigid, level platform |
| Weight rating | Fabric and stitching only | Not load rated | 180 kg load plate |
| Door and trim protection | Bench only | Boot walls only | Bench plus both door flaps |
| Dog can see you | Fabric wall | Out of sight behind the seats | Mesh viewing window |
| Install and removal | A minute, but re-tension often | Semi-permanent | ≈ 60 sec, no tools |
| Cleaning | Machine wash and hope | Hose out | Wipe down or hose, base removes |
Three sections, one flat platform, five parts that matter
The base is three rigid panels inside the cover. Folded, they stack flat; unfolded, they lock into a span that carries load across the bench and over the footwell instead of hanging in it. That is the entire trick — everything below just keeps it there.
- 01Mesh viewing window
- 02Storage pocket
- 03Headrest strap loop
- 04Door-guard side flap
- 05Anchor buckle straps
From the first drive to it living in the car
The surface stops moving
First thing you notice is what stops happening: no scrabbling on corners, no re-settling every time you brake.
Your dog picks a spot
Most dogs choose the centre — the part that used to be a hole — and lie down there for the rest of the trip.
The car stops being the problem
Short trips stop being a production. Beach and vet runs get loaded and cleaned in a couple of minutes.
It lives in the car
Fitted when the dog is coming, buckled flat in the boot when it is not. That is the whole routine.
Four steps to a dog that travels well
The hardware is the easy half. This is the order we recommend for the first fortnight.
- 01Fit it before the first tripInstall it while the car is parked and let your dog get in and out a few times with the doors open. No drive, no pressure.
- 02Start with a short, good driveFive minutes to somewhere they like. You are teaching the platform means good things, not just the vet.
- 03Add the harness tetherRun their harness through a seat-belt opening to the buckle underneath. Flat platform plus restraint is the safe combination.
- 04Settle into the routineKeep it fitted for the first fortnight. Once it is normal, hose it after beach days and fold it away when the seats are needed.
The rest of the detail
Still stuck on something? Tell us your car and your dog and we will give you a straight answer — including when the answer is no.
Day to day it is a wipe-down with a damp cloth — the face is waterproof 600D Oxford. After beach or mud, lift it out, hose it off and hang it to dry. The rigid sections come out so the cover is not fighting the plate while it dries.
No permanent fixings, no adhesive, no hooks biting into trim. The straps loop over the headrests and the non-slip backing holds position by friction rather than tension, so it is not pulling on your upholstery all day.
Yes — the platform is rated to 180 kg and spreads load across the bench, so two large dogs is well inside it. Tether each dog through its own seat-belt opening.
It is designed for a flat rear bench. If you regularly run a 60/40 split folded down, fit it across the upright portion and keep the folded section for gear.
The hammock with the three base sections fitted, two headrest straps, two rear anchor straps and the side flaps already attached. One part number, one colour: TM-HAMMOCK-BLK.
Free shipping Australia-wide, dispatched within one business day. Thirty nights to try it in your own car; if it is not right, send it back for a refund.
Give the dog a floor
A$189 with free shipping Australia-wide, dispatched within one business day. Thirty nights in your own car — if your dog is not steadier on it, send it back and we refund it.