Dogs Locked in Hot Cars

[SeaBreeze]

I read there was a new law in Florida beginning in August that if you see a dog or child unattended in a hot car, you can contact 911 and proceed to break into the vehicle to get the dog or person out.

I never let my dog stay in the car during the hot summer months. There were times when I'd have to run in and get one or two items and be out quickly. Even in those cases all the windows would be partially open and the car would be either parked under a tree or with the sunshade up.

The rare times I did this, I was painfully aware that I had to rush to get back out to my furkid. Nowadays, I'll skip picking something up if I have my dog with me, just make another trip.

When I take my dog to the park, I carry water for him to drink and on really hot days, I also carry a squirt bottle and spritz him. Many times there's a small shallow river they can cool off in. On days that are too hot, I leave them home.

I knew one person who left a puppy in a kennel on a 70 degree day supposedly in the shade. The dog was there for several hours, it died. Did you ever know someone who had a dog or a child die in a hot car?

 

[Manatee]

I would let the first responders do the breaking into the car. If the owner comes along when you are jimmying the door, it could get ugly and physical.

In my experience fire personnel are whizzes with door locks.

 

[chic]

I've never personally known anyone whose child or dog died from being left in a hot car. That must be such a sad experience that would leave one guilty and griefstricken for a years.
Dogs like popsicles in the summertime and it's usual for me and my friends to buy one for the furbabies if the weather gets too hot and there's no water around. They just love it. I wouldn't leave a dog trapped in a car or tied outside of a store while I went in. I couldn't do that to a furbaby. They deserve better. I wouldn't break into someones car if I saw a baby or a dog but I'd get an authority figure.

 

[Debby]

Except for when we were travelling across country we never take our dog out with us. He stays at home where he's indoors and cool and he snoozes until we get home. And when we were travelling, if we did stop (for lunch), we'd only go to restaurants where we could see the truck from our seat and then we'd leave the windows cracked fairly wide, sunroof open and parked in the shade.

I can't understand why people do what they do to animals (or children) that endangers their lives when they say they love them. I'd rather Max was lonely for a couple hours than take a chance that I might get stuck 'inside' while he's waiting in the car that is heating up.

 

[Arachne]

It happens way to much here where I live this happened in my community back in 2014 it was disgusting. The poor dogs..

[video]http://globalnews.ca/news/1797929/update-dog-walker-emma-paulsen-gets-jail-time/[/video]

 

[fureverywhere]

That's been the law around here for many years. Of course it's hit or miss enforcing it. I remember when I first got Sophie I didn't know any better and left her in the car while I ran to the mail box. The window was open slightly. She panicked and managed to push down the window and chase me across a busy parking lot. Never again ya know?

But when I worked at Home Depot it used to make me mad. Those parking lots get hot, I would write plate numbers and announce it on the PA " Will the owner of an Altima plates CZY227 please come to the customer service desk?". I'd keep an eye on the car and the service desk. If the owner came to the desk I would tell them dogs are welcome in the store.

If they didn't come to the desk or leave the lot I'd turn the matter right over to security. A dog can die in minutes inside a hot car.

 

[Don M.]

If people are going to have pets, they have an obligation to treat them properly. If they get caught leaving a dog in a hot car, they should be fined a few hundred dollars...maybe that would wake them up. We don't have any pets, but the neighbors cute little beagle lives on our porch when they are gone to work. We keep a pan of fresh water for her, and if the weather is bad, I'll let her camp out in the basement garage, and let her out every couple of hours to do her business, then she comes back in until her people get home. I cannot imagine anyone treating such a nice little dog badly.

The one's that get me riled, are those who get a pet dog or cat, and after a few months decide they don't want them anymore....so they take them out into the country, and dump them. It's not uncommon, out here in the boondocks, to see a stray dog or cat that someone has dumped.

 

[Manatee]

I've never personally known anyone whose child or dog died from being left in a hot car. That must be such a sad experience that would leave one guilty and griefstricken for a years.
Dogs like popsicles in the summertime and it's usual for me and my friends to buy one for the furbabies if the weather gets too hot and there's no water around. They just love it. I wouldn't leave a dog trapped in a car or tied outside of a store while I went in. I couldn't do that to a furbaby. They deserve better. I wouldn't break into someones car if I saw a baby or a dog but I'd get an authority figure.

That has happened a number of times in the Phoenix area. It is expected to be over 100 outside every day during summer. In a car that can be 140 or more. It has happened with both infants and pets. Some people are clueless.