In New Jersey, there's a bill on the table that would make it a crime to let your dog ride in the car without a safety harness. One local dog lover has made the cause her life’s passion.

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Lindsey Wolko’s dog Trevor is part of her family. The little dog helps make each day brighter.

“It's my family, they've seen me through some of the worst that life can bring with elderly parents and taking care of them I would come home to them every time and the would shower you with love,” Wolko said.

Wolko's dog Maggie is also a joy in her life, but a few years ago Maggie was almost killed when Wolko was in a car accident.

“It was horrific the sounds that came out of her, as a consumer I was furious,” she said.

She was furious because Maggie was wearing a safety harness—or, a seat belt for dogs.

“She went sailing in the car and what I didn't realize at the time was that the tether had wrapped around her back legs and when she went flying it stopped her and she was hogtied form the back,” Wolko said.

Maggie recovered, but Wolko shifted her focus and started independent testing of dog safety equipment with a 55 pound crash test dog. She quickly learned these products do not have to meet any safety standards before being brought to market.

“We had a 100 percent failure rate on these products to protect both the consumer and the pet,” she said.

Wolko created the non-profit "Center for Pet Safety." She hopes to soon become a certification body to give safety seals. She says it's the least she can do for these beloved members of her family.

“With my dogs, they just mean so much to me they've brought me so much joy that they deserve the work that we're doing and I feel like I'm doing something worthwhile now,” she said.