A new state goes to go into effect on July 1 will offer protections to Good Samaritans who rescue a pet trapped in a hot car.
But as local animal advocates say, a hot car is no place for pets in the first place.
Gov. Eric Holcomb signed House Bill 1085 into law in May, providing that a person who forcibly enters a vehicle to remove a domestic animal is responsible for only one-half of the cost of repairing any damage that they directly caused to a vehicle.
While the law is a step in the right direction, Vincennes Animal Shelter director Laura Arial said in the summertime, it’s generally never a good idea to leave an animal in the car.
“It gets too hot too fast,” she said. “So really, any day the sun is shining and it’s 75 degrees or more, your car can get so hot, depending on where it’s parked. If it’s in the shade and 75 degrees, then your dog is probably OK in the car for 15 minutes or so if you crack the window.”
But if there’s no shade to provide respite and it’s as low as just 75 degrees, the car’s interior temperature will go up in the blink of an eye.
“It can get 40 degrees hotter in the car than outside pretty darn quick,” Arial said. “And with our typical Vincennes summer, we can have 82-degree days with 80-percent humidity, so it’s just absolutely unbearable in vehicles.”
The reason dogs suffer so much if left within a car on a sunny day in the summer stems from their inability to sweat. This means they can’t cool down fast enough, Arial explained, to regulate their temperature properly.
Our four-legged friends are at risk for heat stroke, just like we are, and that can have fatal consequences.
Arial noted that the shelter generally doesn’t get too many calls from people who spot a dog stuck in a car on a warm day. Residents seem to be aware of the dangers, Arial said, and don’t put their pups in a risky situation very often.
“I maybe get three calls a summer on dogs and I’ve never had one where cats are locked in cars,” Arial said. “And usually by the time we’re there to assist, people have already come out to their cars, we discuss it with them and we’re good to go.”
If shelter staff do get a call reporting an animal in a hot car, they have a device that can check the temperature inside the vehicle. If it exceeds a safe level for an animal to be in, Arial said, then they’ll take steps to remove the animal.
“And that’s going to be pretty expensive for the (animal) owner because we do have a city ordinance about this,” she said. “That’s one great thing about Vincennes, our city council has been progressive for a really long time on our animal ordinances.
“We’ve had that in place for a long time, way before this state law, so we’ve always been able to take these steps.”
The law also states that the Good Samaritan who rescues a pet from within a hot car is immune from all other civil or criminal liability for other property damage stemming from the forcible entry, but only if a few conditions are met first.
They must reasonably believe that the animal is in imminent danger or suffering serious bodily harm, for example, and can only use a reasonable amount of force to remove the animal.
They’re also required to contact law enforcement before breaking into the car.
And that step, Arial said, is key.
“If someone sees a dog in a car on a hot day and it’s panting, they’d call the police right away,” she said. “That’s definitely worthy of a 911 call. And the police will call us, we’ll be out in a jiffy and start taking care of things.
“The owner will be fined heavily and if we have to break into the vehicle, which we now have legal ground to do by the state, that will be even more expensive.”
Good Samaritans are also required, by the law, to stay with the animal until law enforcement or emergency responders arrive on scene.
In Arial’s experience, she added, Vincennes is a community that’s conscious of animal safety — but it’s still a good idea to reiterate that pets should generally not be left in cars on a summer day.
“Our residents are animal lovers and we don’t seem to have this problem in our community,” Arial said. “But unless you’re leaving the car running with air conditioning, it’s generally a good idea not to leave them in the car.
“And if you see one in a car, before you break a window, definitely call the police.”