Police are allowed to break and enter a car if they believe an animal is at risk from the hot weather inside.
Last week Sgt Ryan Canning, based in Plymouth, said officers have been called to a number of cases in the past few days as the temperatures soar.
He said: “I was alerted to one at Marsh Mills on Monday, which was absolutely baking.
“Another five minutes and we would have thought about breaking the window. Fortunately the owner returned before we were forced to take action.
“We are getting a number of calls in this hot weather about distressed dogs in cars. Sometimes opening the window a tiny crack is just not enough to keep the pet safe.
“We want to issue this warning – if we find a dog in a distressed state we have the legal power to ventilate the car in a suitable manner and released the dog. It would then be treated by a vet and the owner billed for that cost.
“The police are the first port of call for these kinds of incident, not the RSPCA. People who are calling the RSPCA are merely referred straight back to the police, so it’s best to call us first.
“Please think of your pets. It only takes a short while in hot weather for them to suffer from the tremendous heat of a car.”
(Plymouth Herald - April 22, 2015)
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