Leaving pets in cars a crime

With local temperatures expected to reach into the 100s this weekend, a regional animal protection agency is warning pet owners they could face criminal charges if caught leaving animals in hot vehicles.

The Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service, known as SCRAPS, which has the authority to cite offenders with several misdemeanor charges, wrote a new policy Wednesday that directs officers to get license plate numbers from callers, run the plates and send warning letters to vehicle owners, SCRAPS Director Nancy Hill said.

The policy came amid continued frustration over pet owners who endanger their animals, she said, adding that her service has received an average of one call a day in recent weeks. Often, the pet owners are gone by the time officers arrive.

“Most people don’t intend to cook their animal in a car,” she said, “but that’s exactly what they’re doing.”

Hill said officers generally only ticket when the animal needs medical attention, but they can cite for confinement in an unsafe manner if the animal wasn’t injured but was endangered. Owners of animals that require veterinary care usually receive second-degree animal cruelty citations, she said.

The new policy directs officers to ask callers to remain at the scene until an officer can arrive. That way, the caller can become a witness and can notify officers when the driver leaves.

SCRAPS serves unincorporated areas of Spokane County, Spokane Valley, Cheney, Millwood and Fairchild Air Force Base, Hill said.

SpokAnimal C.A.R.E., a nonprofit organization that services the city of Spokane, already runs license plates and sends informational letters to pet owners, said Ken Trambitas, the director of field services and an animal control officer. But his organization finds that often the offending parties don’t receive the letter because people’s addresses change or other people drive their vehicles.

SpokAnimal C.A.R.E. may also charge people with misdemeanors.

Trambitas said people don’t realize how quickly cool cars can heat up on a warm day.

One test by SCRAPS showed that an 84-degree car heated to 116 degrees in 15 minutes.

Dogs and cats are especially susceptible to overheating because they don’t sweat. Damage to a dog’s organs may be irreversible once his or her core temperature reaches 106 degrees, according to a SCRAPS news release.