by Dan Warren
A WARRINGTON based charity has teamed up with the national #DogsDieInHotCars campaign.
Founded by Birchwood Shopping Centre’s operations manager Claire Grundy 12 months ago, #TeamOtisUK has joined a coalition of major animal welfare organistaions such as the RSPCA, Dogs Trust, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, and PDSA to raise awareness of dogs left in hot cars, their recent campaign video can be found at http://bit.ly/29Mnszw
The RSPCA alone receives thousands of reports a year of dogs suffering from heat exposure, around a call an hour, with three dogs already tragically dying so far this summer. When it is 22 ⁰C outside, within an hour the temperature in the car can reach an unbearable 47 ⁰C!
While not every dog will die in this situation, at the very least they will experience distress, discomfort and anxiety. In this environment a dog cannot sweat to cool down like humans. Can you imagine the guilt of someone returning to their car to find that their dog has suffered from the effects of heatstroke or worse?
#TeamOtisUK offers simple advice of “don’t leave an animal in car or caravan, or even a warm conservatory or outbuilding where temperatures can rise quickly.”
Claire Grundy said; “I set up the charity after numerous occasions of dogs being left in hot cars at Birchwood Shopping Centre, where I have worked for the past 17 years as operations manager, and as the name suggests it was named with my own Labrador called Otis in mind, who is our charity’s mascot.
“I felt that owners were not always aware of the dangers of leaving dogs in unsuitably hot environments otherwise they would probably think twice. I also felt the law was inadequate to deal with this type of offence which i simple terms, is a form of animal cruelty. If an animal is an unsuitable environment like a hot car there should be legal consequences, and not just if this suffering proved fatal, because death is far too late.”
Claire added: “Being asked to to join the major animal welfare organisation’s national campaign was a proud moment for the credibility of #TeamOtisUK, and an honour to be part of the team.”
If you see a dog in a car on a warm day, it is best to dial 999 and report a dog in a hot car to the police; especially if displaying signs of heatstroke (panting heavily, drooling excessively, lethargic, uncoordinated, collapsed or vomiting). The RSPCA may not be able to attend quickly enough, and with no powers of entry, would still need police assistance. If the police can’t attend be aware that breaking into the car without proper justification could be criminal damage.
Make sure you tell the police of your intentions and take photos or footage of the dog as well as names and numbers of witnesses. The law states that you have a lawful excuse to commit damage if you believe that the owner of the property that you damage would consent to the damage if they knew the circumstances. Once removed from the car, move the dog to a shaded/cool area and douse him/her with cool water. Allow the dog to drink small amounts of cool water.
If the dog isn’t displaying signs of heatstroke, establish how long the dog has been in the car and make a note of the registration. Ask a member of staff to make an announcement of the situation over the tannoy, if possible, and get someone to stay with the dog to monitor its condition.
#Team Otis can be found on Facebook; https://www.facebook.com/TeamOtisUK/ and Twitter; @TeamOtisUK
