A woman left her dog in a crate in her car while she went into a store. A drunk drove into her car, breaking open the crate and smashing out the window. The woman returned to find her dog missing.
She posted about the missing dog in many places, and the vast majority—not one or two, but most—of the responses suggested that it was her fault for having her dog in a car. That her dog was better off dead, roaming the streets, or finding any other home, than it was continuing to live with someone who would treat it so inhumanely as to leave it in a car.
This should send a chill down the spine of every informed animal lover: not only is it absolutely insane, it is a tangible demonstration of how devastatingly effective the animal rights movement has already been in making it socially unacceptable for anyone to have a dog:
They started with a reasonable assertion: cars can get dangerously hot if left in the sun, and anyone leaving a dog in a car needs to be aware of the temperature and take appropriate precautions to ensure their dog is safe and comfortable. Of course, everyone agreed! They began passing laws mandating that dogs were not left in hot cars, and while a few wise individuals foresaw the risk in such statutes, most people cheered and voted yes. Then they began lowering the recommended temperature until almost any day was ostensibly too hot for a dog to be in a car. Then they suggested that cold cars could be a problem. Then they suggested that dogs needed to be restrained in crates when in cars. Then they suggested that dogs should never be stuck in crates because it is inhumane.
BAM!
There you have it—dogs should not be in cars! Not ever. It is un-natural, unsafe, inhumane.
Of course that it is absolutely untrue: Most dogs love going places, love hanging-out in the car. Love the awesome adventures and enriching fun in which they get to participate by going in the car. Even if this means they have to nap in the car while mom runs some errands. Most dogs, given a choice, will get in the car and go almost every time. Most dogs spend a huge portion of their time lounging about anyway, and doing it in the car is as good as anywhere, and if it means they get to go for a swim or a hike or even just hang with their mom all day, it is even better. Most cars can be kept at a safe temperature on most days with a modicum of effort.
Yes, this means that a teeny-tiny percentage of dogs will die in car accidents or overheated cars or whatever. So will some people. Animals die every day out in the natural world, because life has risks. We must constantly be wary of invoking regulations that would save a few animals or people from harm by grossly diminishing the lives of millions.
It is stupefying that they believe dogs should not be in cars. But what is truly scary is how easily most well-meaning animal lovers have been convinced to accept this propaganda.
For many years, pet lovers have shrugged their shoulders about the animal rights movement—sure, they are perfidious loons, but they are no real threat. They may outlaw exotic species, or chickens or cows, but surely they would stand no chance if they came after dogs and cats.
WAKE UP! They are going to eliminate pets without ever having to say a word about it: They are simply going to make it socially unacceptable to have pets in cars, in crates, or on collars. It will be stigmatized to take your dog with you, or to leave your dog home alone. To feed your dog unnatural kibble, or to feed your dog dangerous raw food. To own multiple dogs which means you do not have enough time for each, or to own a single dog who should not be forced to live a lonely life without canine companions. Nobody should have a dog that does not have a CGC. Nobody should have a dog of certain breeds. No dog should live in a home that is not air conditioned and heated. Nobody should ever have an intact dog. Nobody should breed a dog.
These are not the paranoid imaginings of a conspiracy theorist. Oh, how I wish they were! But every single one of these things has already been stated, many have already been legislated, and most importantly, they are, with alarming rapidity, becoming accepted social norms.
Well-meaning pet lovers show up in droves to support bills and regulations that seem designed to make life better for pets, without recognizing that these bills are quickly making it impossible for anyone to keep dogs in any manner without being vilified.
Make no mistake about it, pet ownership is under serious and immediate attack, and it is up to those of us who truly love animals to protect it.
Well said! I whole heartedly agree!
Pet ownership is indeed under attack – but there is a bit of a disconnect here. Animal Rights would (perhaps) eliminate all pet ownership and yet, the evidence is clear that they are hijacking the rescue movement and padding their pockets in the process. All one has to do is look up their local shelter and rescue organizations, who have to file yearly Form 990s with the Internal Revenue Service. What you see will astound you! Many of these so-called non-profit organizations bring in $million$ in revenue. It’s obvious that they are attempting to “shame” the public into “adopting” (for a fee) vs purchasing a pup from a retail outlet or a breeder. And it’s working.
I have never been to an SPCA that actually makes money….these places rely on the care and the support of people in their community donating their time and money to help feed, facilitate, house and find homes for many animals, as well as providing vet services like spaying, neutering and putting animals down that need to be after rescues from abusive environments. Also not for profit organizations do not take a profit on their business, it does not mean money is not being made, all major sports associations are none profit organizations. Purchasing from a breeder is MUCH more expensive. The shame you are feeling is your own, it can’t be created by commercials or marketing by shelters, it is your own shame, a company shouldn’t be able to change your emotions unless you are an emotional idiot. Also revenue is not profit, it costs millions of dollars to do everything a shelter needs to do depending on the size and the amount of animals that come through and also that are rescued from puppy mills and the likes. Have you seen the profit line, after medical bills, food, housing costs, the costs of raiding people’s houses, the emotional cost of training dogs that come from places where they eat, shit, piss and sleep in the same little place, where they are abused and beaten by humans into a dog that someone would want to live with so it doesn’t have to be put down! In summation you don’t seem to know what you are talking about at all.
I take care of my dog as I would a child, she has her own car seat, she is strapped in, she sits in the back … she is never left in the car … if a store won’t let her in I don’t shop there .. but I can tell you most all stores let my dog in. She is very well behaved, does not bark at strangers unless the approach the car uninvited or approach my front door for the first time … She is a rescue and the best dog evah!!!
I would love to take my dog into the grocery store with me, but Health Department regulations (if not the store’s policy) forbids this. Do you take your pooch grocery shopping? How do you get by with this?
Very sensible, but what can be done about it? When one shows up at these hearings, legislators are fast to cave to the emotional few, rather than the sensible many.
“Perfidious loons”? Perfect. You sent me to the dictionary for this one, good going. A spot-on description, too.
Friends of mine in a good-sized Massachusetts city shared a horrendous experience at the hands of one of these loons. The husband was recovering from a near-fatal heart attack, and was struggling with fear, a common occurrence in heart patients. His doc had given him permission to drive, but he was fearful of driving alone, so his wife suggested he go the pharmacy for a scrip on his own, but to take the dog, the love of his life, his comfort and joy, for support. He reluctantly set out, but the speaker at the drive through window was not working, and he had to go into the store. It was a cool morning, but just in case, he tied the dog’s leash to the steering wheel and left the windows down. He was inside the store for less than 5 minutes. When he came out, the dog was GONE! He panicked, called his wife and the police. The police, when told that the dog had a leash and a collar with ID tags, suggested that they go home and check their voicemail. Sure enough, there was a message “I have found your dog loose in my yard, come and get her.” This was less than an hour later, and nearly TEN MILES away. When my friends got to this woman’s home, she read them the riot act for leaving their dog in the car, screaming at them that they were abusive and cruel, and shouldn’t even be allowed to own a dog, the most insane accusations, quite the opposite of who these people are. My friend was in a terrible state of anxiety! The possibility of another heart attack was even more worrying for his wife than the missing dog.
The officer told them that there was ‘some nut job’ kidnapping dogs from vehicles, and threatening people. They admitted that they knew who she was, but did they bother to look for her, or cite her for a misdemeanor offense? Or charge her with theft? Nope. So, even the police in your community might not take your side. Here’s a story about a fire department in a community with one of these idiotic laws: http://www.wfaa.com/news/entertainment/pets/Couple-says-police-firefighters-went-too-far-in-dog-rescue-137063523.html
Here’s the deal; animal abuse, cruelty and neglect is against the law everywhere. Allowing a dog to suffer in a hot car has to actually happen before there can be consequences. Is it necessary to punish everyone because of a POSSIBILITY that hasn’t happened? Common sense is gone. I have tried for years to awaken people to the unforeseen consequences of these laws, and often tell this same story about my friends. But before I can finish it, my audience always jumps in with meaningless questions, such as – what was the exact temperature; was the sun shining; what color was the car; was the window open; how far was the window open; was there a sun roof; was there water in the crate; was the car in the shade; what was the phase of the moon; was the license plate from another state; what was the humidity, the wind speed, the time of day, and on and on, I have heard so many. They are all beside the point.
Sometimes, if there is a moment to calm down, I ask these same people if they can tell exactly how long is “too long”, and what exact temperature is “too warm”, and if they can write that down in a sentence or two to make a law that can be fairly enforced? It makes sense to completely ban keeping dogs in cars for this very reason – it is impossible to enforce anything less specific. If we want to prevent drunk driving, we could ban the manufacture of cars, I guess. I’ll never forget a talk show episode where a woman guest was vilified by a caller for leaving her sleeping toddlers in their car seats while she ran her debit card, or mailed a letter, or some such 30-second task. You’d think the guest had committed murder. And the audience, well, it was a close call, barely in her favor.
I’d love to see someone collect all the little laws and regulations and restrictions on people with animals all in one place. It would be a long list. Pet limits; insurance restrictions; breed bans; breeding moratorium, licenses or limits; mandatory spay/neuter laws; exorbitant license fees; demands to shut down pet stores; ban internet sight-unseen sales; litter limits; species bans; minimum space regulations to keep animals; size/weight limits; high insurance premiums for animal owners; exercise/nutrition/dental care mandated for pets; universal vaccinations for all . . . I know there are more, who can add another one or two? Pile all these on us and as the writer explains, it isn’t necessary for HSUS, or PETA to demand an end to family pets – we will have made that decision on our own, because it won’t be fun or enjoyable or the least rewarding any more. Only the very wealthy or scofflaws will live with animals.
It gets even better. We have a farm outside of a major metropolitan area. We bring farm products to farmers markets and every city person loves us for it. Until they move out to the ares where the city is rapidly encroaching on the country and then they turn us in to animal control. Why? Our goats are too thin. Dairy animals are, practically by definition, thin. What is one of the reasons women are encouraged to breastfeed? Because the calories burned help women lose weight! What happens when animals are milked? They burn calories and stay slim. If you had a dairy animal that is fat, it is a sign that the animal is not a very good producer. Guess what the sheriff sent by animal control said when we produced educational material attesting to the fact that our goats are not thin, but simply look exactly like they should? “What do I know, I am from the city”. Well, if you want to work with animal control in the country I would suggest that you learn about livestock, or else you cannot possibly be well informed enough to do your job.
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I take issue with your argument that it’s OK that some pets will die because “Animals die every day out in the natural world, because life has risks”. By this reasoning, it’s ok for my pet to suffer because animals in nature suffer all the time. It is akin to an argument I heard today, that wolves don’t get their teeth cleaned so this owner’s dog doesn’t need to get its teeth cleaned. (let me tell you I could smell that dog’s mouth five feet away).
Owners have a responsibility to take care of their pets–this relationship does not exist in nature. If this responsibility means leaving pets at home so as not to risk fractures or heat stroke in the car, that doesn’t seem unreasonable. Of course the dog wants to come on the errands–he doesn’t know any better. And if there is going to be reasonable legislation or regulations that help owners be more responsible, I find that hard to argue with. Obviously the key word is reasonable.
Thank you for an excellent post and terrific food for thought.
And here we go. No dog should ever be taken out in the car. Leave them home in a padded crate where they can be “guaranteed” safe (unless your house catches fire, or there is a tornado, or a burglary, or killer bees, or a flood, or a tree falls on the house, or a lightening strike, or a train derailment, or civil unrest, or an earthquake, or, or, or). Don’t take that do to the vet, or training, or to competition, or to visit friends and family, or to the park, or to a dog fair, or to the beach, or to the lake, or kayaking, or mountain biking, or jogging, or on a dog-centric vacation. Don’t take that dog anywhere where it might ever suffer so much as a sniffle or a scratch – the dog won’t care. Do nothing to bond with that animal. What a horrible existence for very social animal and exactly the point of the article. Keep them “safe” at ALL ridiculous, cruel, boring, personality-killing, anti-social costs. Please tell me you no longer own dogs because clearly you aren’t reasonable.
Oh my god yes. This should be the reply to everything anyone ever says about this topic!!!! *?
Well said!
Yes, animal rights people do push it too far. Looks like they’d rather have dogs put down in shelters than let them have a less than 100% safe environment. It’s ludicrous.
Plazmic
Good,
car training is extra activities Its is a good things
This happened in the city I live in and I can tell you no one outwardly blamed the owner. The majority of people wanted to help, as did the local media. In no way was the owner ever at fault for leaving her dog in the car in January.
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2013/01/missing_dog_that_survived_drun.html
The story received lots of positive local media, she was on the news and in print, the dog was found and reunited with the owner. Healthy and safe.
The funny thing is that the people who are saying this don’t have dogs. They are so busy fighting for a cause when they are not even participating by caring for an animal in action. Shameful!
one thing comes to mind when reading this, the poor show whippet that was in transport and the flight crate broke open and she ran off into the woods in Cold D.C. to never be seen again. what would they say about that, Dogs should never fly?
No dogs should not fly (unless they are small enough to fit under the seat in the cabin). Baggage handlers are responsible for most crates being opened and dogs escaping. Over 5000 animals a year are killed, maimed or lost on airlines. I know from experience when we flew our dog (the one and only time EVEN after doing all the research to make it as safe as possible) and the airlines killed him. Put him in the wrong, uncontrolled environment and killed him. His eardrum exploded and he froze to death. So no, dogs should never be flown.
i know of thousands of show dogs that fly all over the world daily, only fly on airlines that transport show animals,i respect your opinion,and sorry you lost your dog it was a terrible, thing to happen,but mine have flown multiple times with no incident,
Very well said and I have to agree that we dog owners and getting a bad rap in everything we do! We cannot do right for wrong it seems. Very very sad
I travel to dog shows.. and need to leave the dogs in the car while I go get food, go to the bathroom, etc.
I have a second set of keys, leave the car running with the ac on frost! I still worry about some crazy person thinking I am abusing my dogs.
Scary world we live in now.
I think you’re all paranoid. Why would anyone who loves animals balk at having regulations to protect them? Animals are best left at home. Dogs don’t need to go to the mall, store, bank etc and wait for you. Get a grip.
Animal ownership is under attack? Bull feathers.
In response to Elizabeth… ^^^ your limited list of places that a dog may go via the car missed a few. My dog is in the car almost daily and she LOVES it because the car is her gateway to many activities we share. She goes to agility class and agility trials, runs lure coursing, goes to flyball class, does canine freestyle demonstrations at local festivals and at seniors centres/nursing homes, competes and trains in canine freestyle, pulls a little wagon in local parades, goes for walks in the woods and to the beach, comes shopping at the Farmer’s Market, plays fetch in open fields, visits friends and family, and has play dates with other well-loved and cared for dogs. She loves to do all these activities and be with her momma…she HATES being left at home when she knows there is so much fun out in the wider world for her to enjoy.
Yes, animal ownership is under attack. So is the breeding of tested, healthy, well-structured and socialized companion animals…the dog with whom I do all of the above activities was deliberately and carefully selected from a responsible breeder who gave this pup an optimized, enriched, socialized puppyhood that resulted in a self-confident, resiliant and happy dog.
i don’t know what planet your from,i am a disabled trainer, i train dogs for the disabled,those dogs need to be with their disabled owners 24/7,i do believe pet ownership IS under attack, when i hear dogs don’t need to go to the mall,bank.,store etc( do you have any idea how often we hear that!!.), how do you expect my students to get a round,oh that’s right you don’t care!!,don’t we have enough to deal with ,with out others making rules for them,service dogs ,are some of the best cared for dogs there are, this is a bond as close as a marriage,i don’t agree with leaving a dog in a hot car, it is the same as leaving a child,that being said, when did common sense go out the window, i’m not a child,I do not need your regulations to protect me.they are to protect the pet from people who are not thinking about the heat,i think most people love their pets,but your going to regulate us out of existence
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Good article, my dog also loves to travel with me in the car. It is people’s responsibility to make sure the dog is safe, that is why they shouldn’t be kept in how cars, when it’s OBVIOUS it’s hot outside. However, we can’t predict any accidents caused by someone else. We just have to live and move on.
Thanks for this interesting read.
This is such a great article.. I found this infogrpahic that helps show how hot cars actually get over certain periods of time. https://figopetinsurance.com/blog/pets-and-hot-cars-what-you-need-know