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www.oakvillebeaver.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Thursday, July 8, 2010 · 12 Don't leave Fido in the car during heat wave By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Humane society investigating parking lot incident "It takes 10 minutes for a vehicle to get up to 39C and on a day like today (Monday) it will go higher than that and you'll come out and find your dog dead in a coma. It's just not worth the risk." n The Oakville and Milton Humane Society is once again calling on residents to leave their pets at home on hot summer days following a Monday incident that saw a dog left in a car in an Oakville Longo's parking lot. Hugh Coghill, the Humane Society's manager of animal protective services, said his office was contacted when a passerby spotted the dog inside a car at the Dundas Street East grocery store around midday. The Weather Network listed the temperature as being 32C during that period, but feeling like 43C because of the humidity. "Clearly it is way too hot for a dog to be in a vehicle on a day like today (Monday)," said Coghill. "I'm told the back windows of this car were open a little bit, but that's not enough. Even with all of the windows open it would still be too hot for that dog. You just have to think about how uncomfortable it is for you when you first go out and get in your vehicle until you get the AC going." Coghill said the passerby was so concerned about the dog she actually opened the car and took the dog out. When the owner returned, Coghill said, Hugh Coghill, manager of animal protection services, Oakville and Milton Humane Society she was not happy with the situation and took her dog back and departed the area before the arrival of the humane society. Onlookers did write down the woman's licence plate and Coghill said the humane society plans to follow up. "We will make sure the dog is okay and we have a standard letter that we send to people when this happens and in this letter we point out to them that a closed vehicle, even with the windows slightly open interferes with a dog's normal cooling process, which is evaporation through panting," said Coghill. "For example on a 30C day, and we're going to hit higher than that today (Monday) I'm told, the temperature inside a vehicle will reach 39C within 10 minutes and within 30 minutes the temperature may go up as high as 49C." Coghill went on to say a dog cannot withstand a body temperature of 42C for any length of time without suffering irreversible brain damage. Coghill said a temperature of 42C can be easily reached in a closed vehicle even if the windows are slightly open and even if the vehicle is parked in shade. This was not the only call the Humane Society received in which someone was concerned about a dog's welfare, Monday, with Coghill stating people need to get it through their heads that on a hot summer day the best place for a dog is at home, preferably in an air-conditioned house, but outside is fine too provided the dog has lots of shade and lots of water. "A lot of people say, `My dog is happy when he's with me.' Well he's happy when he's with you and maybe you're only driving from point A to point B and coming straight home, but what happens if you decide on the way that you're going to stop and go into a store and while you're at the store you get tied up, you get in a conver- sation with someone," said Coghill. "It takes 10 minutes for a vehicle to get up to 39C and on a day like today (Monday) it will go higher than that and you'll come out and find your dog dead or in a coma. It's just not worth the risk." If a pet's wellbeing is not enough of an incentive to keep them at home on a hot day, Coghill said, there is another one. If an animal is harmed or killed by being left in a hot car, recent changes to the OSPCA (Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) Act could see the person responsible slapped with a fine that could be as high as $60,000 and or up to two years in prison. The person could also be prohibited from owning animals for life. When asked if he thought the passerby in the parking lot did the right thing by taking the dog out of the owner's car Coghill said it was difficult for him to comment on because the person technically broke the law by entering someone else's property and removing property. "I'm not encouraging people to take the law into their own hands and do something like that, but certainly they may very well have saved that dog's life," said Coghill. "As a Humane Society person it's pretty hard for me to condemn them for that." "Finally! 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