What Our Laws Say About Dogs in Hot Cars

by Stephen Wells

Just a few minutes in a hot vehicle can harm or kill your pet. On hot days, the temperature inside a vehicle heats up to over 160 degrees in minutes. Parked cars quickly trap the sun’s heat, and “cracking the windows” doesn’t do much. Pets can’t cool themselves the way humans can, and this makes them especially vulnerable to heatstroke. Too often, a neglectful dog owner goes into a store “just for a minute” only to find his dog dead in the car upon his return — and such neglect carries serious legal consequences.

In June, an eight-year-old German shepherd named Elisha died in Belmont, California after being left in a truck in a motel parking lot for seven hours. Dogs who are trapped in cars pant heavily, pawing at the glass of rolled up windows, trying desperately to avoid the heat of the sun. They may experience excessive thirst, vomiting, seizures, increased heartbeat, and elevated body temperatures of 104 degrees and higher. According to media reports, officers on the scene tried to revive the shepherd with ice and water, to no avail. Elisha’s owner — who was sleeping in the motel while the dog was in the truck with no water — is being charged with felony animal cruelty.

When an animal dies an excruciating death from negligence, writing off the tragedy as a simple accident is insufficient — and criminal prosecution is just. Fifteen states have specific laws against leaving animals confined in vehicles: Arizona, California, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Vermont and West Virginia. Rhode Island’s brand new law was signed by Governor Lincoln Chafee this summer and is one of the most comprehensive of these laws, with the strongest penalties — up to a year in jail and up to $1000 in fines. Vermont also allows sentences of up to a year in jail, while Vermont and West Virginia allow up to $2000 in fines.

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Posted by chesliepickett on Jul 28 2014. Filed under The Buzz. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.