By Stephanie Dolan
This afternoon, the Brownsburg Police Department was called to Kroger due to a dog that was left in a van. Hendricks County Animal Control was called to the scene while BPD located the dog’s owner.
Officer Brandon Keisker compared leaving your pet to leaving a baby in a hot car.
“It’s the exact same thing,” he said.
According to humanesociety.org, leaving pets locked in cars is never a good idea, but it can be deadly in the summer. The site states that “high temperatures can cause irreparable organ damage and even death.”
The site also outlines steps the public can take if they see a pet left in a hot car. First, take down the car’s make, model and license plate number. Second, ask nearby business managers to make announcements in an attempt to find the car’s owner. Third, if the owner can’t be found, call the non-emergency number of the local police or animal control and wait by the car for them to arrive.
“It it’s 90 degrees outside,” Keisker said. “then the temperature inside the vehicle will raise almost 20 degrees in 10 minutes. If you must bring your animal with you, leave your car on with the air conditioner running. Make sure there is also water provided. That just helps us out. The animals don’t fall into heatstroke, and then we don’t have to bring you up on charges.”
