The New York City pound, long a bastion of incompetence, corruption, and uncaring, killed Don (pictured here) and caused another dog to suffer, because it transported them in extreme heat and failed to follow minimum, humane procedures.
It was “the hottest weekend the Big Apple has seen in nearly a decade.” So hot, in fact, that the New York City triathlon was cancelled for the first time in its history. The OZY fest in central park — which featured New York Senator and presidential candidate Kirsten Gillibrand, U.S. Women’s soccer phenom Megan Rapinoe, and John Legend — was cancelled. What was not cancelled was the New York City pound transporting dogs in a hot vehicle without adequate air conditioning and ventilation. And because of that, one dog has suffered and another is dead. Don “had been ‘in distress’ before his death because the cage was covered in feces and his mouth was ‘wide open like an alligator.'”
With a heat index that topped 110 degrees, Mayor Bill de Blasio (who oversees the Health Department), the Health Commissioner (who runs the city pound), and the city pound itself were all warning people not to put dogs in hot cars. And yet, the pound did just that. In addition, the driver did not have the air conditioner turned up, the van was not equipped with a thermostat, and Don was placed in direct sunlight. It’s not the first scandal involving a New York City agency refusing to practice what it preaches.
Earlier this summer, the ASPCA killed 20 dogs during transport because it, too, failed to follow minimum, humane procedures. No one checked on the dogs on the 1,000-mile trip between the time they left Mississippi and arrived, dead, in Wisconsin, roughly 14 hours later assuming no delays and no “pit stops.”
According to the American Veterinary Medical Association,
The temperature inside your vehicle can rise almost 20 º F in just 10 minutes. In 20 minutes, it can rise almost 30 º F: and the longer you wait, the higher it goes. At 60 minutes, the temperature in your vehicle can be more than 40 degrees higher than the outside temperature. Even on a 70-degree day, that’s 110 degrees inside your vehicle!
With temperatures near 90 in Mississippi and dogs packed tightly in crates, the temperature inside the vehicle could have reached almost 135 degrees in as little as one hour.
All guilty parties walked away scot free. The same will occur with the scofflaws at the NYC City pound, who should be prosecuted for animal abuse. But like the ASPCA, no one will be held accountable, disciplined, or terminated. Thankfully, the surviving dog is under the care of rescuers and not those who harmed him.
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