Police Officers Rescue Dogs From 167-Degree Car
Police came to the rescue for two dogs trapped inside a 167-degree car in Roswell, Georgia Sunday. The dogs were locked inside the stifling car in the afternoon sun for at more than an hour while their owner was inside a movie theater.
Officers responded to the scene after receiving a call about the dogs. Upon arrival, they found the temperature inside the car was 167 degrees Fahrenheit. Body camera video captured the whole incident — including the thermometer reading the temperature.
Read: 5-Year-Old Found Dead In Daycare Van After 8 Hours Inside 141 Degree Car
“A concerned citizen noticed a dog suffering in a hot car and called 911,” the police department said in a Facebook post alongside the video. “The first officer arrived in 18 seconds. What you are about to see is actual body cam footage of the rescue and medical treatment of two dogs suffering from heat stroke.”
As the officers approached, at least one of the dogs could be heard barking, clearly in distress. The officer then held up a thermometer reading 167 degrees Fahrenheit. They then noticed a second dog inside the car.
The temperature that day was around 90 degrees, reports said. On a 90-degree day, the interior of a car can reach 160 degrees Fahrenheit in less than 10 minutes, according to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
“The dog was very aggressive from heat and fear,” the police department said. “A second dog had crawled under the front seat to escape the direct sunlight.”
The officers had to use a catch pole to rescue the dog hiding under the seat. After removing one of the dogs, it had a seizure on the pavement from heat stroke.
“Roswell Georgia firefighters provide urgent medical care to cool off and hydrate the overheated animals,” the police department said. “The owner finally arrives after emergency pages inside the movie theater. At this point, the dogs had been inside the car for more than one hour.”
The dogs were treated on the scene and given water from a nearby fire hydrant. The video shows the officers talking to the owner, whose identity is blocked out, after they finally emerged from the theater.
“Have you been out to check on the animals?” an officer asked.
“I haven’t been out,” the owner responded.
“I think that we got here just in time to save these animals’ lives,” an officer said.
The unidentified owner was charged with two counts of animal cruelty. Both dogs were taken as evidence by Fulton County Animal Control.
Hundreds of dogs die each year from heat exhaustion as a result of being left in parked cars, according to the American Veterinary Association. The Roswell Police Department noted that the person who called 911 made the right decision that day.
“Help us spread the word about the dangers of leaving pets inside of a hot vehicle,” the department said on Facebook. “If you see an animal trapped inside of a hot car, call 9-1-1, so that a tragedy can be avoided.”
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