The hot Alabama summers can put people young and old in danger of heat-related injuries. However, during the sunny summertime, humans need to keep an eye out for similar injuries in their furry friends, as well — especially when it comes to leaving animals in cars for a quick trip into the store.

“With the heat the way it is right now, people tend to stop at stores real quick and think the animal will be OK for a minute or so in the car, but then it takes too long,” said Rose Ogden, animal control officer for the Pell City Police Department. “I had a case today where a young couple stopped to do some quick shopping, and when they got back to the car, their puppy was almost dead from the heat.”

While many pet owners rationalize leaving their pet as long as the windows are cracked to allow airflow, it isn’t as effective as you think.

“Cracked or completely open windows don’t do anything at all, it’s completely worthless. It still gets hotter inside the car,” Ogden said. “The temperature rises within a few minutes of being left in a car, and some people think it’s OK if you leave the car running and the AC on, but it’s just not safe. If the car was to overheat or the engine turned off for some reason, the pet could get heat stroke quickly.”

The case Ogden was currently working involved a couple that left the sunroof open for airflow for a puppy left in a vehicle.

“By the time we had given it emergency first aid and I drove it to the vet, its temperature was still 105 degrees,” Ogden said. “It very well could have died. It was close to death, we were pretty sure it wouldn’t make it through the night. If it did survive, there could have been brain or internal organ damage as a result of overheating.

The best choice is to leave man’s best friend at home with plenty of water to keep cool.  If dogs live outside, owners should take precautions to make sure there’s fresh, cool water and shade available at all times — a child’s plastic swimming pool can double as water to drink and a place to cool off. But, Ogden cautioned, make sure to change outdoor water often, to prevent mosquitoes from using it as a breeding ground.

“You can fill two-liter bottles with water and freeze them for outside animals to keep their water cool, or tie a wet handkerchief around their necks to cool them off,” Ogden said.

Younger and older animals, dark-colored animals and breeds with short noses tend to have the most trouble in hot temperatures, and should be watched closely at home and on the road.

Citizens are also asked to be vigilant for animals that may be without water or stuck inside a vehicle, calling the local police department non-emergency number to have an animal control officer dispatched to help the animal. The reports can be made anonymously.

“If you see a dog in a car in a parking lot and you don’t have a cell phone so you can call the police department to come out right away, go into the store and tell them to call the police department, but also have them do a public announcement in the store to have the owner go out to their car,” Ogden said.

If possible, Ogden said to get cool — not cold — water on the animal’s chest and neck area to slowly lower their body temperature.

A call to the police for animal welfare doesn’t always put the owner in danger of losing their animal, either. Sometimes a visit from the animal control officer can consist of a quick education on proper animal care to prevent any future damage. But for more severe cases, they aren’t always that lucky.

“People can go into the court system and face jail time. They sometimes serve a short amount of time in jail, typically they have to pay the vet costs involved in caring for the animal, and sometimes have to do several hours of community service,” Ogden said. “We don’t take animal cruelty lightly  here in Pell City, and we will prosecute if necessary.”