3 Cases of Pets Left in Hot Cars, Abandoned in Hudson Valley

An alarming number of animal cruelty arrests and violations have already been given out in the Hudson Valley this month.

Every summer, animal activists remind pet owners about the dangers of leaving their four-legged friends inside a hot vehicle. In just a matter of minutes, the temperature inside a car left out in the sun can rise to life-threatening levels. But no matter how often they are warned, some people don't seem to get the message.

In just the past two weeks, the SPCA has issued several arrests and violations to pet owners who have put their animals in grave danger.

Pet Left in Hot Car in Brewster, New York

On August 1, SPCA officials say that they discovered a dog left inside a vehicle with the window cracked at a market in the Village of Brewster. The weather at the time was sunny and 94 degrees. Detectives with the SPCA Law Enforcement Division noted that the interior temperature of the vehicle was "extreme" and immediately entered the market to find the pet's owner.

After a brief investigation, they found the person responsible for leaving their pet in a hot car and immediately brought them back out to their vehicle.  The person was charged them with Confinement of a Companion Animal in a Vehicle During Extreme Temperatures, which is a violation.

Another Pet Left in Hot Car in Carmel, New York

Just about a week after the incident in Brewster, the Putnam County SPCA received a phone call from a concerned citizen about another dog left inside a hot vehicle. While officers were on their way to the ShopRite in the Town of Carmel, they received more calls from shoppers about the same vehicle.

After arriving at the scene, SPCA officials found the vehicle left in direct sunlight. The conditions were sunny and 81 degrees. In this case, the owner was discovered to be a 58-year-old man who was charged with leaving their pet confined during extreme temperatures.

Pets Abandoned at Hudson Valley Pet Store

Employees at Pet Blvd, a popular pet store just off of I-84 in Brewster, called SPCA officials on August 3 to report a box of abandoned animals left in their vestibule. According to officials, the large white box was found to contain seven guinea pigs.

Security footage from the store showed a person in a black mask and blue bucket hat take the box from their car and leave it in front of the store. The male suspect was quickly identified by their vehicle, which was also captured on camera. An unidentified 23-year-old man from Kent was charged with seven counts of animal abandonment, which is a misdemeanor.