Unattended Pets in Vehicles Prompt Police Warning

As the temperatures climbed to the mid-90s Thursday, two women left their three dogs in their parked car for what they thought would be a brief, 10-minute coffee run at Classic Coffee.

But 10 minutes turned into half an hour, when an Animal Control officer noticed the dogs in the scorching vehicle, panting heavily and in distress.

One of the dogs vomited from extreme heat exposure, said Captain Tim Staab. The dogs were immediately retrieved from the vehicle where temperatures were a stifling 30 degrees higher. The two women were given a warning and ordered to bring the dogs to a veterinarian that day.

During a week when the weather forecast soared over 100 degrees, Glendora Police reported two other incidents where pets were left unattended in parked, hot vehicles.

On Thursday morning, a woman left her dog in a parking structure near 24-hour Fitness for an hour and a half. On Friday evening, a Citrus College student left his dog inside his parked car to run an errand in the Administration building. By the time officers responded, the dog was panting and in distress, said Staab.

In both cases, the pet owners told officers they simply lost track of time.

While all of the dogs survived, the incidents prompted Glendora Police to warn both parents and pet owners that leaving small children and pets alone in a vehicle could be perilous.

“There really is no such thing as, ‘I’m just going to be a minute,’ when you’re dealing with a pet or a child unattended in hot weather,” said Staab. “Even a short amount of time can be dangerous.”

According to San Francisco State University, so far in 2013, there have already been 15 children in the U.S. who have died from heatstroke in cars. Just a week in the summer season, that number can rise. According to the same study, temperatures in a closed vehicle can rise nearly 20 degrees in just 10 minutes, 29 degrees in 20 minutes, 34 degrees in 30 minutes and 43 degrees in an hour.

Even in moderately warm weather, temperatures in a closed vehicle can soar.

A study by the Animal Protection Institute revealed that even with all four windows cracked, an 88-degree day can turn into 103 degrees inside the vehicle.

For a small child or pet, it does not take long before serious injury, brain damage, even death can occur.

Parents who leave their child in a car unattended can face child endangerment and neglect charges. For pet owners, leaving an animal in parked vehicle is a misdemeanor that can result in an up to $500 fine or even six months in prison.

“People can get easily distracted and lose track of time,” said Staab. “Simply put, leaving a child or a pet in a vehicle is a bad idea.”