Never leave a dog unattended in a car

TWO puppies from the UK Police were left unattended in a police vehicle. Both died.

This is a horrific death for these poor animals. I hope the officer is severely punished and loses his job. In the light of this tragedy I hope that a new European law will be passed calling for a prison sentence for those that leave dogs unattended in cars. In Spain you can be heavily fined.

Never leave a dog in a car unattended even if the windows are left open. The temperature can reach 50ºC in a few minutes and dogs can suffer from heatstroke within five minutes or less. If you see a dog suffering from the heat in a car, do not hesitate to call the police. You may save its life.

Train your dog to sit before allowing it into the car. Train it to stay when opening a car door so that there is no chance of it jumping out onto a road and causing an accident or being killed. Better still to have it on a secure lead.

It is not kind or safe to allow a dog freedom in a car. Both the dog and you will feel much safer if it is either secured in a travel kennel or is restrained on the floor of the car with a dog guard between you and it.

Read more on Dogs in Cars here.