Police dogs die in parked car (UK)

BBC News: Police dogs die in parked vehicle

Anybody willing to bet whether the perpetrators will actually get sentenced/fined?

there are two stories about this on the Nottingham Evening Post website. However, to prevent readers posting comments to the effect:

1. The police will get off scot free, or
2. They should be locked up

the comment option is locked. Suspicious?

I hate hearing about these sorts of incidents every summer. People often forget how quickly a car can heat up in just 15 minutes while standing in the sun. Please folks, never leave your dogs in the car during warm weather.

Or babies. I feel sorry for the dogs but I've read similar stories about babies and that is particularly distressing.

Perhaps the dog handlers were just being too careful about keeping the dogs secure in the car. I was out for a walk recently and noticed a police car which, judging from the picture of an Alsatian on the side, was from a dog handling unit. You couldn't see inside because it had blacked-out windows. It was an estate car and the boot was slightly open, so I kept my distance. But as I walked past, there was an uproar of barking which sounded as if it came from at least two slavering hounds in a very bitey mood. Thank god they weren't able to force open the rear door and I assumed (hoped) that they were tethered inside the car.

Two dead dogs = bad
One dead human = worse

Depends on the human...

It just begs the question: how could anyone be so stupid to leave dogs in a parked and closed car in summer?

Lorelei, a trained police dog is used to wearing a muzzle. There's no reason to use a hot car as a cage. And no properly trained police dog will indiscriminately bite people. I agree that the stories of dead babies hit me harder than those of dead dogs. The difference is that humans can sweat to cool themselves off. Dogs cannot sweat, and can only pant to try and cool down.

Regardless, I shall amend my warning to say "Please folks, never leave any living being in the car during warm weather."

Hot car dangers

I assume it's like it is in New Zealand-land where the dogs are in cages in the back of the police wagons, that way the doors can remain fully open to allow for ventilation.

Lots more humans than there are dogs, we can afford to lose more of them.

I guess it's the "I'll be back in a minute" bug...

I'd say humans were more important. As bad as animal cruelty and neglect is, the idea that animal life should actually take priority over human life seems a bit warped.

humans are animals. our capacity for pain and misery comes from our history as animals, therefore animal pain is just as tragic as human.

bet they were black

We're just animals after all..

Unless you're one of those types who believes in a big bearded man in the sky and virgin births and walking on water and so on..

And I agree with the other poster - there are too many people, we've run our course... At least animals are innocent.

how many dead dogs would have to die before it would be more tragic than one human? Answers from Koreans are welcome.

not our cats, they're evil

From an evolutionary standpoint, we should view hairless apes as more important, that makes sense. From a moral standpoint, what makes one sentient life more valuable than the next?


The dogs, the police cars, or the police officers?

I just stepped and nearly slipped in a puddle of yellow cat piss in the kitchen, and had to mop it up..., so you might be on to something there.. (Dumbass cat goes into the litter box, with his ass still sticking out, and lets'er rip..)

Saw a great sign the other day.. "Hünde haben Besitzer, Katzen haben Personal..."

That's why they died - they were German shepherd dogs

The sheriff of nottingham was always a cruel cruel man

There's no logical reason. If human life and dog life is considered to be of equal value, then a dog which mauls or kills a child should not be put down and its owner should not be prosecuted. The child and the dog are of equal value and the dog is just acting naturally.

There's the reason that's it is logical to want to protect one's own species over another species

Exacery, it's an emotional judgement.


Equal rules for all. Should a child be put down for kicking a dog to death and the child's parent be prosecuted?

I don't see it as a competition as to which death is worse. But dogs have a much less efficient cooling mechanism than human beings, and will die faster from overheating. That's what many people don't realise when they think it is fine to leave a dog in a car for "only" 10 or 15 minutes.

In hot car, ‘just a minute’ can be deadly for dogs

Tell that to my neighbours who don't want to listen to my dog howl when we leave the house. Even when I was visiting my husband in hospital (and the weather was warm), I was told in no uncertain terms that I should be leaving my dog in the car and not alone in the house if he was going to make that much noise, otherwise, next time they'd call the police.

Hmm, would the police break into the house to shut a dog up cos I'm damn sure they'd break into my car on a hot day to release him.

(Not having much luck finding a reasonably priced anti bark spray collar but we've bought a nylon muzzle to try - fingers crossed)

Are you planning to leave your dog alone in the house wearing a nylon muzzle? Isn't that cruel?

One of mine does that but after I got a completely enclosed one with a door, no problems.

Not only cruel, but you're going to come home to either an injured dog with even more problems, or a destroyed home if the dog hasn't been thoroughly trained to accept and wear a muzzle and keeps trying to get it off. Properly muzzle training a dog will take at least a few weeks of daily training, and isn't a quick fix, or any sort of fix, for barking and howling dogs. Muzzled dogs should NEVER be left alone.


- from Preventing or Reducing Anxiety when left alone BCSPCA

Tell that to the BBC, who rate the death of two dogs as marginally more important than the death of two soldiers...

What was or wasn't in Michael Jackson's will is more important that all of that put together...

Err...no... BBC doesn't actually rank the stories but just keeps putting up new ones. Surely none of these new stories are more important than the death of two soldiers, which isn't even on the main list any more.



edit: the top news stories on the UK page have already scrolled down one. See how it works?

That's right, there's no ranking at all; the main headline is chosen through a sweepstake system and when a story slips below the top three it goes straight into the archive and NOT to the top spot in the "Other top stories" section. Oh yes.

Guess you didn't notice the actual top story on the page, eh?

Meanwhile... in other news:
Four dogs 'boiled alive' in cars

It appears that you have little knowledge of dogs. This is a situation that you [as a dog owner] must change.

Barking problems don’t develop overnight. When your dog developed the habit originally, it was not dealt with. It has now developed into an accepted routine, a routine which he sees as being necessary to ensure your return. For him it is simple logic. The problem is made worse if you rebuke or punish him when you return and have to face the neighbour’s comments. Your dog would relate this unpleasant experience only with that which immediately preceded it, i.e. your absence. For him, a justification to bark.

The straightforward [and only] answer is normal humane training. If you really love your dog, you will be prepared to take the time and trouble necessary to learn what to do. Invest your money in reputable literature about dogs and about training, and then train/treat your dog accordingly - it isn’t exactly rocket science! You could also ask advice from a reputable dog-trainer.

Forget the „anti-bark spray collar“. It should be considered only as the last resort; only after all other steps have proven unsuccessful. It is not a toy and can cause more problems than it solves if used unprofessionally.

The idea of using a muzzle to stop a dog barking is new to me and simply perverse.

To effectively stop a dog barking or howling, the muzzle would have to restrict jaw movement to such an extent that the poor creature could not eat, drink or pant. Within a short time the barking problem would be solved – permanently.

Heathclyffe, the barking dog is an older puppy, only 6 or 7 months old. It was already talked about in the thread:
Local laws on barking dogs, And tips on preventing excessive barking

tiliqua is looking for a quick fix and doesn't seem all that interested in proper training.

Thanks. I have now read the other thread. (I thought this was way OT here...)

Had I known the subject is a 6 month Bassett, obviously I would have suggested an anchor chain leash, electro-shocker collar with spikes and metal muzzle. Perhaps an electric cow-prodder too for this potentially ferocious beast (one never knows...)