Dogs in hot car

[Gizmo]

{RANT}  I get doubly incensed when inconsiderate and oblivious pet owners take their pets to inappropriate places and then end up leaving them in a car because there is no other place for them. Why do they feel they must have their dog (or whatever) with them every place they go? Or that the pet is better off in their parked car than at home or in their RV or hotel room?  {END-RANT}

I agree.  For the most part a little advanced planning and consideration for the dog's best interest is all that is required. We have found with our own dogs that while they enjoy going for rides in the truck and or car and going to and into places where dogs are permitted, they equally enjoy napping in the air conditioned rig and getting some alone time. 

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Notice I said "inappropriate places", which in my mind goes well beyond "permitted".  More than a few folks interpret the lack of a billboard-size sign prohibiting pets to mean "dogs permitted"  and drag them into places that put them at risk of physical dangers, conflicts with children or other pets, or simply in the way of others who may not share their love of furry things.  An acquaintance of mine recently toted their young dog to a wine tasting festival complete with crowds of people and bands playing.  They were amazed that the poor dog was terrified and broke loose, fleeing out into the grape groves.  It was two days later (after the festival) before a helpful winery employee was able to cajole the poor animal into coming close enough to catch. My friends still don't accept that they did anything foolish - they "never leave their dog alone at home".    In fact, they insisted that we meet at an outdoor patio restaurant so they could bring the newly-returned dog with them when they invited us to lunch.  We left our cat at home, even though she is leash-trained. 

 

[RVMommaTo6]

I paid at the pump, Amanda, and was standing right there pumping my gas the whole time! I saw a fellow kind of staring at my dog sitting in the back seat before he went in, but I didn't think anything of it. If she'd been too hot, I expect she would have stuck her head out the window. She was getting old, but I'm pretty sure she would have figured that much out...

Omg that's even worse! I thought YOU went in to pay lol, wow!

 

[RVMommaTo6]

Gary I've seen people bring dogs to fireworks, near thermal hot springs and the fragile unstable ground around them, and festivals on pavement in real hot weather. (Giving a dog water may keep them cool enough, but a dog's paws can get severely burnt on hot pavement.)

 

[Tom]

I've seen people bring dogs to fireworks...

We would never consider taking our dogs to fireworks. We consciously stay home and indoors at those holiday times. As with loud thunder, the dogs are really spooked unless/until Chris wraps them in blankets.

 

[skydivemark]

Rant! - I think it's a terrible double standard to throw someone in jail (which I completely agree with) for their dog suffering &/or dying in a hot car but when a local K-9 cop did it to his "PARTNER", all he got was a slap on the wrist.
True story in Orlando. 

 

[NY_Dutch]

Some police K-9 vehicles now have signs on the sides asking people to call 911 if the horn is beeping. The beeping signals that the inside temperature has reached a level that could endanger the K-9 trapped inside. An officer sometimes has no choice but to leave the K-9 in the unit for unknown periods of time. I'd like to see an autostart system for those situations that would also turn on the A/C, but I'm not aware of any currently on the market.

 

[SargeW]

Unfortunately that's not a guarantee of safety either. In LA which has many K9 units, it is common practice to leave the car running when the K9 is inside, and usually with the hood open as well to help prevent engine over heating. And all of the cars are outfitted with extra heavy duty alternators and cooling systems before they are put into service as K9 cars. But even with all that, it can't prevent some type of mechanical failure.

And while quite rare, it can happen.

 

[NY_Dutch]

Unfortunately that's not a guarantee of safety either. In LA which has many K9 units, it is common practice to leave the car running when the K9 is inside, and usually with the hood open as well to help prevent engine over heating. And all of the cars are outfitted with extra heavy duty alternators and cooling systems before they are put into service as K9 cars. But even with all that, it can't prevent some type of mechanical failure.

And while quite rare, it can happen.

As you said, that's no guarantee of safety either. An officer leaving the vehicle for a hot foot pursuit is not going to have time to check the A/C settings and open the hood. It's a dangerous job, and some events are not under the officers control. Fortunately, issues with K-9's left in hot cars are extremely rare.

 

[Great Horned Owl]

On the lighter side, I have story about when (about 45 years ago), I took a dog to an inappropriate place. We took our Samoyed with us to an outdoor concert. We were laying on a blanket, and after a while, I got tired of hanging on to the leash, so looped it over my foot.

At one point during a very quiet section, the music suddenly hit a crescendo. The dog panicked, and took off running. I don't think he even noticed that I was on the other end of the leash. After he ran us through a hedge, he finally stopped. I was lucky that I had nothing worse than assorted scratches and minor bruises.

You can believe that after that incident, I always paid strict attention to the appropriateness of the location before taking Snowball along.

Joel

 

[Domo]

Sadly, you were a vandal either way (break the window or water on leather seats).
The proper response is to call a Ranger. However, providing shade (blanket/umbrealla/tarp) over the roof of the car could have been a noninvasive action while you waited for the Ranger.

Despite my statement, I commend you for taking the time and making and effort to temporarily help the animals. Again, permanent solution would have been the local authority that CAN take action to remove the pets from danger.

Again - thanks, for helping - I'll tell my dog you were a hero - she'll be grateful, also.

 

[Skookum]

I hate people who neglect pets. Dh and I are hyper-vigilant. Pavement temps (paws), ambient conditions (hypothermia, heat stress, sun exposure). If we're hot and thirsty the dog is probably experiencing it 2x. Pets are vulnerable and dependent and need extra care. It's not a hard concept to understand.

I'm terrified of leaving our dog anywhere. He's been on RV trips with us before and generally accompanies us everywhere, or we split off (i.e. one of us runs inside while the other stays with the dog in the RV or car). He'd never be left alone for a long time anywhere but for the short times when we do need to leave him in the RV, we always make sure AC is going, and we have a device that monitors and reports inside temperature, and has cellular capabilities with all kinds of alerts that it can send us if the temperature starts to change, because, stuff happens. It has its limitations but is a cool device to help monitor in those situations where we'rein range and do have to leave for a little while (but not far!).

 

[cerd]

I condone your giving the dogs some water, but beware that if you were caught, the owners could have sued you for vandalism as Domo said. If you want to play it safe, contact the ranger or law enforcement.

Like Gary, I get irritated with how many people bring their pets into various stores. Do you really need to bring your dog to pick up some drywall? The grocery store is the one that makes me livid. Get your cat away from the produce. Have you ever heard of salmonella?

 

[John From Detroit]

Well my cat stays in one of my "Cars" (The big one also known as a motor home) most all the time... But if it's hot there is air conditioning, and if it's cold heat and I try to roam where it's neither.

He does not like the car but on the rare occasion where I put 'em in the car I have forced air fans running to help him stay properly cool.  I figure if I'm not comfortable napping in the car. he won't be.

 

[skydivemark]

Some police K-9 vehicles now have signs on the sides asking people to call 911 if the horn is beeping. The beeping signals that the inside temperature has reached a level that could endanger the K-9 trapped inside. An officer sometimes has no choice but to leave the K-9 in the unit for unknown periods of time. I'd like to see an autostart system for those situations that would also turn on the A/C, but I'm not aware of any currently on the market.

The one I referred to was parked in his driveway at home after his shift ended. My opinion is; there was absolutely NO reason or excuse to leave the dog in the car.

 

[NY_Dutch]

The one I referred to was parked in his driveway at home after his shift ended. My opinion is; there was absolutely NO reason or excuse to leave the dog in the car.

I think I might have called the police and reported a dog left in a hot car at such and such address without elaborating on it in that case. Let them sort it out...

 

[ChasA]

I like Dutch's idea.

 

[skydivemark]

I think I might have called the police and reported a dog left in a hot car at such and such address without elaborating on it in that case. Let them sort it out...

If I would've seen I would've called it in.      I only saw it on the news.  It just jerked my chain to see a cop get away with something that his/her own dept recently threw someone else in jail for. That poor dog had to have suffered too much at the hands of his "supposed" best friend.

 

[mel s]

Pet Preservation through Freeze Dry Technology is one solution: http://www.perpetualpet.net/...
(And you don't have to walk them in the rain...or follow them around with a plastic bag).

 

[RVMommaTo6]

? now I've seen it all!