About Us

Hartwen started with a Jack Russell who would not sit still.

He belongs to a good friend of mine, the kind of person who has loved Jack Russells all his life. We were driving together, and a few minutes in, his dog decided he had had enough of the back seat. Over the seat, into the footwell, back up again, never still for more than a moment.

Nothing happened that day. But it was the moment I understood how easily something could. A driver half-turned in his seat, a hand reaching back at every roundabout, eyes off the road for a second too long. A dog loose in a car is not just an inconvenience. It is a distraction you cannot afford.

So I offered to help my friend sort it out. That turned out to be harder than it sounded. What we found was either engineered and expensive, or cheap and flimsy, and almost none of it looked like something you would want in your house. Hartwen is what came out of that search.

Adrian Mandru, who runs Hartwen, holding Cora, a small mixed-breed dog belonging to a friend, in a garden Adrian, who runs Hartwen, with Cora — a friend’s dog.

Our Mission

To help dogs travel calmly and settle easily, and to make that a little simpler for the people who drive them, with a small range of well-chosen things, described honestly and sized properly before you buy.

Our Vision

A dog shop you can trust on the details: where the measurements are real, the delivery times are the real ones, and nobody promises you something a product cannot do.

What We Sell

Mostly car seats, travel beds and mats for small and medium dogs, the size of that Jack Russell, plus a few things for bigger dogs who will never fit in a car seat. The range is small, and it grows slowly on purpose. We only add a product once we can tell you properly what it is, what size of dog it suits and what it will not do.

Sized by Dog, Not by Guesswork

Buying the wrong size is the most common mistake in this category. Every product page gives the measurements and the size or weight of dog it suits. If you are unsure, email us your dog’s breed and weight and we will tell you which to choose, even if the answer is that we do not have the right one.

Where Our Products Come From

We choose every product in our range and work with manufacturing partners overseas, which is how we keep a car seat under £100 rather than over £300. Orders ship from our overseas fulfilment centre and reach most UK addresses in 6–11 business days. We would rather tell you that here than surprise you after you have paid.

What We Do Not Claim

Our car seats and travel beds help keep a dog settled and in one place on a journey. They are not crash-tested safety restraints, and we make no claim that they protect a dog in a collision. If certified crash protection is what you need, buy from a brand that has paid for that testing. Our beds and mats are comfortable and easy to clean; they are not medical products. For anything to do with your dog’s health, ask your vet.

Who Runs Hartwen

Hartwen is an online shop run by Adrian Mandru. Our UK correspondence and returns address is 16 Balham Hill, London SW12 9DY. Please email us before sending anything there, including returns. There is a real person at the email address below, and we answer within a day on weekdays.