Passers-by rescue dog left inside hot car

A trapped poodle was rescued from a car parked at the Spokane Valley Mall on Wednesday.

As temperatures climbed, passers-by got worried about the dog. They squirted water through the partially open window. A woman eventually found a way to unlock the door.

“I think the dog is lucky to be alive,” said Nancy Hill, director for Spokane County Regional Animal Care and Protection Services, SCRAPS.

The temperature inside the car measured 115 degrees, way too hot for pooches, Hill said.

Temperatures hovered in the low 90s throughout the region Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Similar highs are predicted for today.

The hot weather is perilous for pets left in cars. Dogs can suffer brain damage or die from heat stroke or suffocation in a very short time, Hill said.

SCRAPS officers scrambled around Spokane Valley on Wednesday to keep up with calls of dogs left in cars. SpokAnimal C.A.R.E. also responded to four or five calls Wednesday, said director Gail Mackie.

“Some people just don’t have a clue,” Mackie said.

The general guideline is as follows: If a person wouldn’t be comfortable sitting in a car for 15 minutes, the dog won’t be either. It doesn’t need to be in the 90s to get too hot. Temperatures as mild as 70 degrees can heat up a car to over 100 degrees in a matter of minutes, Hill said.

“We squirted him with water because he was ready to perish,” said Darralyn Hite of the poodle. “That’s way too hot.”

Hite and her friend, Joan Rhoades, had parked next to the car with the poodle. They went into the mall to walk on their lunch hour. When they came back out an hour later, the dog was still there.

The women – both dog lovers – were horrified. The dog was lethargic.

A third woman eventually came by and helped unlock the car and get the dog out.

“We’re dog owners. My dog is at home because it’s too damn hot,” Hite said.

Mackie and Hill said it’s always advisable to leave a dog at home with plenty of water when the temperature soars. Dog owners also should be careful about walking the animals on hot pavement and leaving dogs in the back of pickup trucks.

The poodle’s owner, 22-year-old Sea Jung Oh of Seattle, eventually came outside to find Animal Control and several concerned citizens crowded around the car. He was given a misdemeanor citation for confining the dog in an unsafe manner, Hill said.

Mall security officers prevented a reporter from trying to interview Oh.

The poodle was taken to a veterinary clinic and appeared to be in good health, Hill said.