Seriously… what is it going to take?Ā I dream of the summer when I won’t end up writing a post about the tragic tale of a dog left in a hot car to bake.Ā I use that term for a reason – on a hot day, you can actually bake cookies in a car.Ā Think about that for a moment.
You can bake cookies.
Would you put your dog in an oven while you whip up a batch of chocolate chip cookies?Ā That’s exactly what you’re doing if you leave your dog in a hot car.Ā Yet every summer, many people do just that.
I can’t sugarcoat this one for you – leaving your dog in a hot car is like giving him a death sentence.Ā So for the love of whatever it is you believe in… don’t do it.Ā Spread the word so that others don’t do it.Ā Please.
Point of anger #1 – If this man was drunk, why was he driving to IHOP in the first place?
Point of anger #2 – If this man was drunk, he was endangering himself, other people on the road, and his own dog (the helpless passenger).Ā I’ll reserve my commentary on this specific point of anger for another day, but I thought it was worth noting.
Point of anger #3 – The man left his dog in the car while he went to the IHOP.Ā I realize it was dark out, but I’m not really a fan of the idea of leaving your dog alone in a car for an extended period of time in any event.Ā YouĀ never know when you’ll be delayedĀ and then your dog will beĀ trapped and helpless, at the mercy of the weather and passersby.Ā (I recognize that others may have different opinions here – that’s just mine.)
The man was arrested in the early hours of the morning, around 5:15 A.M.Ā He allegedly told the cops that his dog was still in the car, and they allegedly told him not to worry about it.Ā He was taken to the county jail, where he allegedly begged the cops to help his dog, who was no doubt baking in theĀ unattended vehicle.
Point of anger #4 – Really?Ā I mean… really?Ā Would the police (allegedly) have ignored the man’s pleas if he’d left a child in that car instead of his dog?Ā Did none of the officers haveĀ a heart?
Point of anger #5 – Did this man get a phone call?Ā If so, then why didn’t he call someone to go rescue his dog?Ā If not, then why?
I’m sure you can already guess the sad ending to this story.Ā It was overĀ 100 degrees that day.Ā The man was released from jail late that night.Ā He returned to the parking lot.Ā Ā The dogĀ had collapsed.Ā The man rushed the dog to the emergency vet, but it was too late.Ā Rex was dead.
Point of anger #6 – How many people must have been in the parking lot of that restaurant that day?Ā Did none of them (or the management/employees of the restaurant)Ā notice or care about the dog slowly dying inside that oven?
Honestly, I can think of enough points of anger to fill a book right now.Ā My anger is mixed with a deep sadnessĀ about what has occurred.Ā Poor, innocent Rex.Ā My heart breaks for him.
Loudoun County Animal Control has launched an investigation, as has the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Department.Ā To follow this saga, you can visit the Justice for Rex Facebook page.
Each time I read one of these tragic stories, I find myself rapidly transforming into a female version of the Incredible Hulk.Ā Right now, I’d really like to Hulk smash pretty much every terrible person involved in the story above.Ā You can find more information about the dangers of hot cars in my earlier posts:
Thanks for sharing that story and reminding us how important it is to keep telling other people what seems obvious to most of us.
I'll certainly visit the Justice for Rex page and share it.
Love and licks, Winnie
I just don't understand how humans can be so thoughtless.
I hit the Facebook page as well.
I will definitely spread the message. Thanks for introducing me to mydogiscool.com
-Chandra at Daley's Dog Years
I first found out about this when my brother posted the Justice for Rex page to my wall. I almost cried just on the thought that something terrible happened to this dog. Then I read the story. So. Very. ANGRY! Obviously the cops could have done more to help but all of this could have been avoided IF THE GUY DIDN'T BRING HIS DOG IN THE FIRST PLACE! Or make a quick stop to drop the dog off at home if he had to go to IHOP that badly after the party. I basically agree with all of the points of anger you made. This is so sad.
I knew you could make a well written post about this so I shared it with you š Well done.
Makes me ashamed to be a Virginian! Wanna hear another sad story?
One of my dad's coworkers was supposed to take his baby to day care before work (the wife usually did it), but forgot his son was in his car seat in the back of his car (the baby had fallen asleep during the ride) and went to work. He remembered a few hours later, but they couldn't save the baby because he had basically baked in the hot car. The dad felt so terrible because he had forgotten. I don't think he ended up getting charged with anything because it was a legitimate accident. He and his wife grieved the loss for a few years, and now they have another child…the dad always remembers when the baby is with him because, frankly, he's probably a little paranoid now…I would be.
Anyway, sad but true story. š
Elyse and Riley
I think I'll go throw up now
I never fail to be appalled by the idiocy of some people — in this case, a lot of people. Thanks for the reminder. As it happens, I'm just writing a post about the problems of a solo women (me!) traveling across the desert with a dog and not being allowed to bring that dog in a carrier into a convenience store when I needed to use the bathroom, even though I had just bought gas there. I finally asked the clerk if she wanted to be responsible for my dog's death and/or my having an accident in the store.
I would NEVER have left Frankie in the car, of course, but it's possible I could have peed my pants; I was relying on that rest stop after several hours of driving. Luckily, the clerk relented.
This is so maddening! I actually saw someone leave their dog in the car when they went to church! I mean come on people…leave the dog at home! The sad thing is, when we called the police, they said it was cool enough outside and that the dog would be fine. But if they do it now, you know they are going to be the ones to do it when it is too hot out! UGHH!
Kirby's mom
This drives me nuts! Last year I got in an arguement with someone who left their dog in a hot car. I also left flyers on few chosen cars too!
It's a horrifying reminder of the price animals pay when we don't honor our responsibilities to them.
I've been in the kind of situation Edie described where I was driving alone on a hot day with two dogs when I needed to find my husband inside an airport.
Needless to say, the dogs stayed in the shade with me and my husband was on his own to find us. He can take care of himself; dogs can't.
Luckily I married the kind of person who agreed that I made the right choice! š
That makes me so angry to hear. People can be so very stupid it makes me sick. Drinking and driving and the idiot leaves the dog in the hot car. Does he even have a half of a brain? No. You hear these stories every year and it still goes on. I know how hot it is when I get in the car after it sits there over night with the windows up. What is it going to take to stop this abuse. I actually had a boss at the School Board of all places who had her Master's Degree…she took the pet snake of the building out to the schools in August…left the poor little thing in her car for many hours and brought it back to the building dead. She even left it there all weekend…come Monday the building was smelling so bad because of the poor little dead snake that she had left (murdered). I went off on her and got transferred to another department. I wondered with all of the education she had…where was her common sense? That was many years ago and I still get mad about it. I'm not crazy about snakes but this one was very little and a pet…murdered! I'll go to the Facebook page. Lots of love, Debbie & Holly
thanks for the story! I cannot believe people would do something like that to a dog! Argh!
Chewy
a couple we know in the neighbourhood [their dog was a friend of Georgia's] lost their dog in a hot car last summer. it was an accident [they didn't realise the dog was in the car]. they were good dog owners and loved their dog so much. it was a real tragedy. no one who knew them could believe it happened. all charges were dropped because the police could see how distraught they were. i doubt that's any comfort to them though.
in your story, it sounds very much like the cops were negligent. although the owner did a stupid thing, i assume his dog would have survived being in the car overnight. terrible.
We were at an outdoor event for dogs this weekend. I was amazed to hear a loudspeaker announcement warning a driver that they had left a dog in a car. The whole point of the event was to bring your dog outside for the day to enjoy the events!!!!
This story is the perfect storm of stupidity. I'm pretty sure that a guy that didn't think twice about drunk driving would be all that concerned about his dog. How sad š
Thanks for the comments, everyone.
Michelle – I totally agree. There were just so many things that made me angry about the situation. So many negligent and bad actors involved.
Elyse – That story is heartbreaking. š How terrible for that family. I imagine that the father would never really be able to get over having done that. Wow.
Edie – Thank goodness you are persistent! I'm glad that the clerk relented. It really doesn't make sense to me why so many establishments are so anti-pet. I look forward to reading your post.
Kirby's mom – So true! If they are doing it now, what's to stop them from doing it later? I also think that people don't realize how quickly a warm day outside can lead to a scorching hot car, even when you don't think it's that hot.
Jen – good for you!
Pamela – It definitely sounds like you married the right kind of man! My hub would be the same – Bella's safety comes first!
Debbie & Holly – the story about the snake just turns my stomach. How can people be so heartless?
Georgia Little Pea – I agree. Soemtimes there are legitimate accidents… sounds like the couple in your neighborhood was one of those. I can't even imagine how they must feel, and my heart definitely goes out to them. In the story I just posted, I think I'm just angry at everyone. It seems like so many failures added up to this horrible result. š
Bailey – that is insane! Wow… at an outdoor event for dogs nonetheless!
Karen – Perfect storm of stupidity is the perfect way to describe it. Well said.
So heartbreaking! We read a post recently (not sure if it was yours or someone elses) about exactly what happens when a dog gets overheated in a car, and it made Mama bawl! She swore she will NEVER leave us in a car alone! And actually last night she started getting paranoid that we may be overheating in the unairconditioned bedroom, where we were all sleeping. We had to calm her down by reminding her that the window was open, and two fans were on, and we had a bowl of water in there, and she was there with us, and so it wasn't quite the same as being locked in a boiling hot car!
It kills me that people leave children and pets in hot cars. Just makes me so mad. Im glad there is finally a campaign out there for it.
PS> the roomba is made for carpet, wood floors and tiles. I only have wood and tile but I have rugs all over the place and as long as there arent tassles on the end of the rug it goes right over them! I still have to vacum 1x a week with my regular vacum if I dont keep up with running the roomba every day because then all the dog hair is too much for the roomba. I didnt buy the pet series one and mine works great for fred and haylies hair, oh and mine š
Very sad š
Several comments above indicate that this dog should have been left at home, and in retrospect I wish that would have happened. But, this guy – who clearly should not have been driving and I am not defending his actions – didn't intend to leave his dog in a hot car. He took his dog with him to a restaurant on a summer night. It's something I've done many times. Our dogs like to go along, and a trip out to dinner is easily combined with a visit to the dog park.
I don't feel like I've been irresponsible – though I guess I could have had a heart attack and died, leaving the dogs trapped in the car long enough for the sun to come up and the car to get hot. This is a very sad example that anything can happen. In the past I would have been hesitant to break someone's window to rescue their dog – now I'll think of this story and remember that busting their window might be the biggest favor I could do for them.
Trixie, Lily & Sammy Joe – I agree. I saw a post like that somewhere too. It was really scary!
Hound Girl – Thanks for the Roomba info! I may have to check that out. I can't keep up with Bella's hair (or my own, if I'm being honest).
Amy – You make a good point. I don't think it's irresponsible for someone to take their dog with them. (And having read and enjoyed your blog, you're the farthest thing from an irresponsible owner… you're awesome!) For me, it's that he was at a party and driving drunk that I guess makes him more culpable in my eyes. Dog or no dog, that was a bad decision that I can't quite get past. That being said, he definitely didn't intend to leave his dog in a hot car (although he made some other questionable choices that night, obviously). The police's alleged (in)action is absolutely maddening here. I'm with you though – I am sure I'd hesitate when faced with this situation as a passerby too, but I'll be keeping this story in mind in the future.
This makes me so mad and sad. You are right about all of the anger points. So much of this story could have gone differently if only multiple people had made different choices and chosen to help. I wrote about what happens to a dog when it is left on a hot car. It is not pretty. I am so sad for this dog. š
Thank you for reminding people to not take their dog in a hot car with them.
This drives me crazy when I see dogs left in cars too. I shared a link to your post on my Wednesday Round up.
Hearing these stories just anger me to no end. Such callous thoughtlessness and plain stupidity. Your analogy to baking cookies is a great one. That is what people need to visualize and think about. I just read another horrible story where a poor canine collapsed and died from being left in a car. Sadly, this is the time of year that happens each year…when really it need not happen at all. All pets should be left at home and not in a hot car. C'mon people – just leave them home. Every year we hear these horror stories and wonder, when will it end??? Thank you for your post and reminding everyone to just leave their furbaby at home when it's warm (not even hot – as the car is so much hotter) out. Period.
I get similarly angered by people who tie their dogs up outside the supermarket. You have removed their first option of flee, and abandoned them to everyone who wants to loom over them and pat them or torment them. Can't you take your dog for a walk for half an hour that doesnt involve abandoning them somewhere.
This is so incredibly sad! Mom & Dad have had people paged and hunted down in stores and even called the police on people that have left their dogs in the cars. Lowe's is a popular place around here for people to leave their dogs in cars in the hot weather (heck, it's almost always hot in SC!). This is especially ridiculous since Lowe's allows dogs in their store!
PeeS – Thanks so much for your kind words about our Gracie Girl!
The Road Dogs
Ughh I wonder when it will ever stop too. I hate seeing these stories in the news every summer, you'd think people would GET IT but they just don't! Unfortunately, all of the blogs, tweets, and articles about "don't leave your dog in a hot car" are typically only seen by us responsible dog owners who wouldn't do it anyway, and don't reach those who just don't get it.
It's up to us to be proactive when we see a dog trapped in a car on a hot day!
Mel – I agree, so heartbreaking and it's not an easy or humane way to go. š
Peggy – Thank you so much for sharing it!
FiveSibesMom – Amen.
Bodie – That's a good point. Leaving a dog unattended like that could be really stressful for the pup. You know, I saw a story last year where people did that and then someone stole their dog. So it's dangerous for that reason too.
Pat – Well said!
Road Dogs – Your mom rocks for following up with pages and making sure that the dogs are okay!
Stacy – I so agree! It really does seem like preaching to the choir sometimes.
Its nice for me that I came across this blog. I also have the same love and affection for the puppies.