When it comes to life’s lessons, one of the simplest is also the best: don’t do stupid things.
When it comes to cars, dogs, children, and summertime heat, the stupidity seems obvious, but apparently it is not. It is never a good idea to leave dependents alone in car. Just don’t do it. Nothing good will come of it.
If you have a police scanner, at least once a day it seems, at this time of year, you will hear one of our local police departments being called upon to respond to a report of a dog left in a vehicle somewhere, and with good reason.
As every car owner knows, cars are effective solar ovens year round. According to various sources, on an 85-degree day the temperature inside a car with the windows opened slightly can reach 102 degrees within 10 minutes and more than 120 degrees after 30 minutes. It’s a death trap for an animal whose body temperature can’t exceed 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
It could always be worse. By now you’ve likely heard about the case of Justin Ross Harris, the Georgia toddler who died when his father left him in the car for seven hours last week. Dad’s now facing murder charges.
Just yesterday, a group of shoppers at a mall in Katy, Texas actually went ahead and broke the windows of a car in which children were inside. According to reports, when mother showed up, she begged onlookers not to call police. We wish they had.
Leave the dog at home and take the kids with you. Trust us on this one.
As sad as Fido is when you leave, he will be twice as happy when you return and just as healthy as when you left.
