Tucker, her chocolate lab mix, had once been an unwanted pet too. Lazurko, 20, who lives on a Sudbury-area hobby farm, loves all animals, her family says. But Tucker was special — the 1½-year-old dog slept in her bedroom.
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| Angele Lazurko, 20, left, and Matthieu Arbour, 21, of Sudbury, Ont. are facing animal cruelty charges following the death of a dog locked in a car parked at Vaughan Mills Mall on Sunday. |
Now Lazurko and her companion, Matthieu Arbour, 21, are facing animal cruelty charges after Tucker died Sunday after it was left inside a sweltering car while the couple shopped at Vaughan Mills mall.
“She’s very devastated by this whole thing,” said her father, David Lazurko. “It’s very difficult on her, especially losing her favourite pet.”
Every summer, officials warn about the “preventable tragedy” of pets dying in hot cars. On Monday, a 70-year-old woman was was charged after her chihuahua was rescued from inside an SUV parked at an Etobicoke mall.
But Lazurko’s background makes her case all the more unusual. She is taking business classes at college with the dream of opening an animal-related company one day. She worked part-time at her local Pet Valu store. She fundraised for the SPCA. And she was in Toronto to attend Woofstock, the annual dog festival.
“She lost track of time,” said David Lazurko. “She’s not used to the big malls and that. Our malls are relatively small, compared to what you have down there.”
She also underestimated the heat, he said.
His daughter was raised with all manner of animal companions but “she’s just not used to travelling with them,” her father said.
He said she has been fired from her pet store job over the incident on the weekend but “the worst thing for her is losing the dog.”
Woofstock organizers released a statement Monday distancing the festival from Tucker’s death.
“A couple leaving their dog in the car on a day that hot is inconceivable and extremely irresponsible,” founder Marlene Cook said in a statement emailed to media, noting the many water and cooling stations available at the event.
Temperatures in Vaughan reached 32C (86 degrees Fahrenheit) on Sunday.
Brad Dewar, an investigation and communications officer for the Ontario SPCA, said it’s not unusual for owners to bring their dogs along to the mall or grocery store “because they consider them a part of the family.” He, however, feels the pets should stay at home or remain with an owner.
“We run into this type of situation every year. It’s extremely frustrating.”
On average, his agency receives six to eight calls a week in summer about dogs trapped in cars. Owners usually say they lost track of time or they didn’t realize their pets would suffer.
In Tucker’s case, police said mall security staff tried to splash water through a small opening in the car window. Fire crews arrived and broke a rear passenger window after the dog fell unconscious.
Lazurko and Arbour will appear in a Newmarket court on July 10.
Meanwhile, the Chihuahua rescued Monday from an SUV parked at Sherway Gardens was taken to a nearby pound and later returned to its owner. She has been issued a $260 fine.
(The Star - June 11, 2012)
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