Urgent: PETA Warns That Dogs May Die in Extreme Heat Wave in Gastonia—Vital Tips Here

For Immediate Release:
June 28, 2021

Contact:
Tapi Mbundure 202-483-7382

A 2-year-old child died after being left in a hot car in Gastonia recently and this week’s scorching temperatures will put dogs at high risk of enduring heat prostration and death, so PETA is issuing an urgent warning to anyone with a dog:

• Touch the pavement to ensure that it won’t burn dogs’ foot pads.
• Be alert to a long, curled-up tongue and heavy panting, as dogs cannot sweat as humans can and heat builds up inside their bodies.
• Walk only in the shade, on earth or grass, and never leave animals outdoors in extreme heat or inside vehicles.

Just last week, PETA fieldworkers discovered the body of a dog who had died after being left chained up in the hot sun, and similar reports nationwide are starting to roll in. Recently, a law-enforcement officer mistakenly left his patrol car with a dog inside it, and the K-9 succumbed to heat prostration and died. Last year, more than 31 dogs were reported dead from heat-related causes. (Figures are far likely higher, as most heat-related deaths go unreported.)

Anyone who leaves animals outside to suffer in severe weather may be prosecuted for cruelty.