Dog Dies of Heatstroke

Tiekie van Tonder, veterinary surgeon at Pet Doctors, Chichester and her team fought to save the life of a seven year old wirecoat Fox Terrier, who had been left inside a car in a Chichester car park during the recent heatwave.  Sadly, they were unable to save the little dog.

The dog had major heatstroke and subsequently suffered brain damage before it died.

“Even if you leave the window open, a car left in the heat can become like an oven,” explained Tiekie.  “Dogs sweat through their paws and pant to cool themselves down.  Even in the shade, a dog with long fur can find it very difficult to cool down quickly,” continued Tiekie.

In this case, the owner was an elderly lady, in her 80s, from Wales.  She was just visiting Chichester and having parked her car got lost and could not find her way back to the car, returning two hours later.

Under the Animal Welfare Act, it is illegal to cause an animal unnecessary suffering.  Penalties for doing so are a fine of up to £20,000 and/or a six month custodial sentence.

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