Dogs In Hot Cars – Your Calls Count
August 12th, 2010
It seems obvious… sit in a car, even on a moderately warm day, and only crack the windows one inch. Too hot! And we can wear cool clothes and sweat. Still too hot. For dogs, add to that barking, excitement and stress, and it’s even hotter. For overweight, senior, and short-nosed dogs, even more risks due to increased temperatures.
In the news daily
Pets, mostly dogs, are still dying in parked cars. So sad. Such a preventable death. I write about this every year on about.com and feel like a broken record on this subject. Getting the word out about this very common and real danger was my “Blog The Change” project for July. Dogs still die. Even if the errand is “just a few minutes.” Heatstroke can kill in minutes.
Not just cars
From this newspaper article:
“While hot cars are the most extreme mistreatment, but owners can also be cited for leaving pets tied up in the backyard without access to water or shade, or in the back of a pickup truck where the truck bed can heat up, causing second and third-degree burns on paw pads.”
Increased awareness helps
Progress seems slow, but I have seen a turn in the last few years. That turn is “bystander awareness” – people stepping up to notify store employees or animal control to report animals in distress. And animal control officials getting the word out via TV news, newspapers and radio ads. They want to be alerted.
DrV of pawcurious posted a comment on my “Blog The Change” post that included a link to the Sonoma Humane Car interior Temperature – a web site that shows the “live” temperature outside and in a car.
More people are taking action
Getting the word out has helped. My friends have called in animals that have been locked in cars. Calls that might not have been made before. More people are putting in their local animal control numbers in their cell phones. Cell phone photos help, too.
Another great resource is MyDogIsCool.com. One of my favorite sites, you will find lots of information here about just how quickly cars heat up, what you can do to help, and print out free flyers to promote awareness.
Have you helped?
I have had people say “mind your own business,” “I know what’s best for my dog,” and “it was only a few minutes, it isn’t that hot out” and more. But I’ll take that if it saves even one dog. Please share your story and tips for promoting awareness about dogs left in cars.
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One Response to “Dogs In Hot Cars – Your Calls Count”
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Janet Tobiassen Crosby DVM never planned to be a writer. She wanted to be a veterinarian from the moment she learned such a job existed - sometime during the first grade, when she accompanied her mom to the vet with a sick cat. Janet "adopted" all the neighborhood cats, and at age 11 she started training her first dog, a newly adopted rescue Collie. At age 12, she joined a dog obedience 4-H club and was active through high school as a member and as a junior leader.
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I was about to go into a store to ask an employee to call the local police about a dog in a car when the guy with his young son walked over to it. I very politely told him what I’d been about to do and why and he said he’d only been 5 minutes and I told him that I’d been waiting for at least 10. He said some other things that weren’t significant but made it obvious that he was displeased that I had the nerve to say something to him. As I was getting into my car, he said “I’ll bet you’re a card carrying member of PETA aren’t you?” I said, “Nope, I’m just concerned about dogs whose owners are too ignorant to care for them properly”, got into my car and drove off.