SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA) — As the weather warms up, police are urging pet owners not to leave their animals locked inside hot cars after officers in Florida had to smash a window to save a dog this week.
Police say they responded to a call about a dog locked inside of a car that was turned off in University Park. Body camera footage released by the Sarasota Police Department shows officers checking on the dog through the car window.
In the video, one officer can be heard telling a member of the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office Animal Services, who also responded to the scene, “the dog is panting and drooling all over the place.”
The officer can also be heard explained to animal services that the dog was a pit bull and they weren’t sure how it would respond to being let out after being stuck in the hot car. The officer also noted that they had tried to figure out who the car belonged to but didn’t have any luck.
The video then captures an officer smashing a rear window of the car to provide some air to the dog. Animal services got the dog out of the car shortly after.
The temperature inside the car was 115 degrees, and animal services said that was with the door already open.
The dog owner was later located. Police said in a Facebook post that he claimed he left the car running.
“Always remember to look before you lock for pets, children, and elderly loved ones,” the police department wrote.
Animal services issued the dog’s owner two citations.