On a pleasant spring day, it can take as little as 10 minutes for a parked car to heat up past 30 degrees — temperatures hot enough to cause heat stroke, brain damage or even death to any furry friends locked inside.
That’s why Mountain View Veterinary Hospital is once again launching a “Keep Pets Cool Campaign” to help keep pets out of hot cars.
All summer long, Mountain View is offering free window signs to local businesses to let customers know they are welcome to bring their pets inside instead of leaving them in a hot car.
“Every summer we see needless pet fatalities caused by people leaving them in a hot car,” Mountain View said in a press release.
“It is an extremely dangerous situation because animals can suffer heat stroke, brain damage and even die if left in a hot car. Ideally, it’s best to not bring your pets with you, but if you have to, it’s great if there are pet-friendly businesses that let you bring your pets inside.”
BY THE NUMBERS
When outside temperatures are at 21 degrees Celsius, it takes 10 minutes for a car to heat up to 31.6 degrees, and 30 minutes to heat up to 40 degrees.
And on a hot summer day in the Lower Mainland, outside temperatures of 29 degrees can heat up a car to 40 degrees in only 10 minutes, and 48.3 degrees in 30 minutes.
HOW TO RESPOND
If you see a pet in a hot car, do not break in to rescue it. Instead, residents are asked to do the following:
- Record the information about the vehicle;
- Ask nearby stores to page customers; or
- If the pet appears to be in distress, call the Langley Animal Protection Society at 604-857-5055, the BC SPCA Animal Cruelty Hotline at 1-855-622-7722 or the local police.
For more on Mountain View, visit www.mountainviewveterinary.ca.
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