Leaving Your Dog In A Parked Car - When Is It Dangerous?
From FarmMedley.com
Written by Matt LeClair
Have you ever considered the danger of leaving your dog in the car with the windows up on a hot summer day? Hopefully you have and you understand what could happen to your dog in just a few minutes without the proper ventilation and means to keep themselves cool. It's amazing how quickly a car can become very hot inside and the effects that this can have on your dog including heatstroke, and even death. The truth is it is dangerous in any warm weather situation, even if it is only 72 degrees F outside.
I'm fairly confident that the general consensus among the public is that you shouldn't leave your dog in a car, but there are always cases in which dogs fell victim to the carelessness of their owners, and many of these cases have come in situations where conditions didn't seem all that bad. In actuality, there are times in the spring and fall that can be dangerous to your dog as well if left in the car for an extended period of time. Often times, warm temperatures can be experienced during these times as well.
Did you know that your dog has an average body temperature of 101 degrees F, and that full blown heatstroke can occur in your dog when his body temperature reaches 108 degrees F? If it's 85 degrees F outside, your car will heat up to 120 degrees F in a matter of minutes, and when it is 72 degrees F outside, which is an average temperature for spring and late fall time periods in many areas, your car will heat up to 105 degrees F in less than 30 minutes.
The only way your dog can cool down is by the limited number of sweat glands that he has and by panting, which forces warm air out and pulls cool air into his body. If there is no cool air to pull in, then you can see why your dog would be in trouble in a parked car. To prevent your dog from suffering from heatstroke, or even death from overexposure to excess heat, make sure you are taking the necessary precautions to keep your dog safe. If you do have to leave your dog in the car, turn the air conditioning on to provide a constant source of cool air. Otherwise, the best method for preventing heatstroke in your dog is to simply leave him home and not put him in the harmful situation to begin with.
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