KEY POINTS:
Two dogs left in a car were lucky to be rescued alive after the temperature inside reached a baking 42.5degC, says the Wellington SPCA.
A person who noticed the dogs in the car in full sun at Avalon Park in Lower Hutt yesterday phoned the SPCA.
Animal welfare inspector Ben Lakomy found the dogs panting and in distress. The dogs were contained in the vehicle in a wire crate and had no water.
Although the windows were open a few centimetres the temperature inside the car was measured at 42.5degC, hot enough to give a dog heatstroke.
Mr Lakomy tried to contact the owner by mobile phone but it went unanswered.
With the help of a passerby they managed to get the doors of the car open to cool the dogs.
The dogs were agitated and initially quite aggressive but calmed down when offered water. They were seized by Wellington SPCA.
The owner contacted Wellington SPCA a short while later and was issued with a written warning.
"He made a very bad decision on this occasion, but we have spoken to him about the severity of this matter and allowed him to take his dogs back," Mr Lakomy said.
"It is really important that people realise that a car heats up, and holds heat, just like an oven.
"Even on mild days the inside of a car can get too hot for a dog really quickly, on a day like yesterday it was amazing the dogs weren't killed by the heat."
- NZPA
