Shame on You!

The person who drives the blue Subaru with the Oregon license plate ZVY 292 is a truly horrible, uncaring individual. (It’s topped off by the fact that the Subaru was covered in bumper stickers telling everyone else what to do.)

We went to Target out on 98th & Halsey today and had to intervene in this situation. Two dogs were in serious distress locked in this car. The front window (which the dogs couldn’t access, plus it doesn’t do much—especially since there wasn’t a breeze). We reported this to Target security (who were quite alarmed and horrified) who paged the owner and called the authorities. By the time we returned to this car, a crowd had gathered and an older gentleman was trying to figure out how to break into the car to save the dogs.

When the family finally came out (it was at least 20 minutes, but probably more), they didn’t seem to think it was a problem to have left their pets in the car on a day in which it’s 100+ degrees (it was 103 in the parking lot—we checked). In fact, the woman yelled at us for intervening. It was amazing, she didn’t seem to think that it was a problem and lied to us, claiming she’d just been in the store “a few minutes” (it had been at least 20). (It is never, ever okay to leave your dog in the car on a hot day—even with the windows cracked.)

Obviously, we responded and, hopefully, she is now better informed. The family was very lucky that they had a small child with them, because one of the other customers (the older gentleman who was trying to break into the car) was this close to punching the guy in the face. This is a serious crime in Multnomah County and you can face charges of animal cruelty. Sarah told this woman that, and also informed her that she was setting a terrible example for her children. Sarah also let her know that she was very lucky that she’s not facing serious charges and/or that her dogs weren’t dead. The poor Labrador was soaking wet and could hardly breath. It was awful. (And, to Sarah’s credit, there was no swearing—because of the little kid—just stern words of warning.)

We just thought that everyone knew this was not okay. So, here are the facts about our best friends and heat:

• Dogs are more susceptible to heat stroke than humans are.
• Never, ever leave your dog in a parked car! Not even for a few minutes!
• Heat inside a parked car can build, in just a few short minutes, to as much as 40 degrees above the outside temperature. For instance, on an 80 F day, temperatures in a parked car can reach 120 F in as little as ten minutes, especially if the car is in the sun.
• A car can heat up to dangerous levels in minutes, potentially causing your dog heat stroke, brain damage or possibly death, even with emergency treatment.
• Leaving the windows cracked helps very little and that’s only IF there’s a breeze.
• A dog’s body heat (expired air in the dog’s breath is 102 degrees and has 100% humidity!) will act like a heater inside an enclosed space—which makes this situation even worse.
• Heat stroke is a dire emergency and one from which many pets do not recover.

Please don’t leave your dog in the car—especially in the heat. And, please, if you see a dog locked in a car (even if the window’s cracked—it does NOTHING), go into the business and find the person, call security, call the police or animal control. This is a serious emergency, which could lead to terrible suffering and death. A pet doesn’t deserve to suffer because their owners happen to be ignorant and careless. If you wouldn’t tolerate the situation if it were a child locked in the car, it’s just as serious with a pet. It’s scary to intervene in situations like this, but we both felt a lot better having done something.

~ by moonfamilyband on June 29, 2008.