Georgia Police Rescue Dogs in Hot Cars, Charge Owners With Animal Cruelty

Police is Roswell, Georgia are taking steps to prevent residents from leaving dogs in hot cars by charging owners with animal cruelty and, in some cases, making arrests.

On Tuesday, Roswell Police rescued two dogs from two separate vehicles parked outside of a Home Depot store – a store that allows customers to bring leashed dogs inside, issuing a citation to one pet owner and arresting another.

Police took video of a Yellow Lab, panting and showing signs of distress in the backseat of a parked vehicle. Air outside the car was 97-degrees when the dog was found.

Roswell Police posted the video to their Facebook page with a warning to pet parents:

There is little that saddens us more than seeing a dog in distress. Today, officers were called out to a parking lot where a customer spotted a dog locked in a car. While the dog’s owner was shopping inside the cool, air-conditioned store, her animal was suffering inside the sweltering hot vehicle. It’s 97 degrees outside! Although the front windows were cracked, officers show that the temperature inside the car was 150 degrees.

This month, we have responded to numerous calls of dogs trapped in hot cars. We know that dog owners love their pets, and aren’t intentionally trying to harm them, but people must know that temperatures inside the car can soar to scorching heights within minutes. The heat is extra tough for dogs because they can only cool themselves by panting and sweating through their paw pads.

Members of the fire department moved the dog to the home improvement center’s garden center and cooled him with a water hose. He is doing well. His owner was found inside the store and given a citation for animal cruelty.

In a second case on the same day, a woman visited the Home Depot, leaving her Chocolate Lab inside the locked vehicle with the windows slightly cracked. The owner was found and arrested on charges of animal cruelty.

Roswell Police are taking dogs in hot cars very seriously. Both cases would likely have resulted in arrests, but the first case was an elderly woman with health concerns.

Even on a mild day, the temperature inside a parked vehicle can reach well into the triple digits. Police are urging citizens to leave dogs at home.