Leaving animals in Model S

[GlennAlanBerry]

Personally, I would not leave my dogs in my Tesla (or any other car) for more than a minute or two (especially if the outside temp was more than 70-75 F). The car would not be out of my sight during this period either. That way, nothing bad is going to happen to the dogs or the car.

Non-Tesla owners are not going to know about the Tesla app or how the Tesla climate control works. Someone is bound to jump to the wrong conclusion and either break a window to "save" the dogs or call the police, or both. Expecting someone to come looking for you in a store is not realistic either.

If I am going to go shopping (outside of pet-friendly places like PetSmart, Lowes, etc.), I leave my dogs safely at home. Nothing I think I need to buy is worth the risk to the dogs, the car, or having a confrontation with angry bystanders and/or the police.

 

[bonnie]

I leave my dogs at home in the summer ALL the time, unless I'm going out to a store where they can come in with me. But I'm thinking of roadtrips in my Model X (perhaps 'dreaming of' is better wording) ... and one of my labs will be coming along with me. There are bound to be times that I cannot take a large dog into a store where I need to stop.

I've planned to follow Audubon's example with signs in the window & also add both a temperature gauge AND my cell phone number. And park in the shade or stop for groceries in the evening or early morning. And constantly monitor my phone like a worried new mom away from home for the first time. And of course, I wouldn't want to be away from the car for any more minutes than necessary. But it will happen. I'll be a single woman out on a roadtrip and I'd like to have my buddy along with me. So no judgment, just let's make sure we've figured out the safest way to do this.

 

[GSP]

Sounds like a great dream Bonnie. :smile:

I recommend cracking all four windows about 1" as well, in case the A/C quits. Low risk, but lots of things could happen, and a car with closed windows is an efficient solar oven.

GSP

 

[green1]

Wouldn't part of determining if there's a reason for alarm to be looking at the occupants of the car? if the kids/pets aren't in distress, why would you call the police???

I could go on a long rant about idiots ruining society.... but suffice it to say that I'm sick of the clueless causing havoc for the rest of us.

 

[capt601]

Wouldn't part of determining if there's a reason for alarm to be looking at the occupants of the car? if the kids/pets aren't in distress, why would you call the police???

I could go on a long rant about idiots ruining society.... but suffice it to say that I'm sick of the clueless causing havoc for the rest of us.

So, you look and the kids/dog are not in distress and leave. Meanwhile 30 minutes or longer go by and nothing changes in the car, except dead kid/ dog. So much for who the clueless is.

 

[green1]

So rather than check any facts, you'll assume that the kids/pets who are fine and happy in a perfectly climate controlled environment will suddenly die due to unknown causes. Is society really that far gone that we assume every person and animal is at risk of sudden death at all times and needs to be "saved" by random passers by who have no idea of the current situation?

So much for who the clueless is.

No, I'm pretty sure that hasn't changed.

 

[bonnie]

Okay guys, stop. Both of you. (And you both are being treated equally here.) There is no need (or reason) to be trading insults. Keep it civil.

 

[Canuck]

Another one today: Aother child dies in a hot car, this time in Kansas - CNN.com

In my opinion, it's always best to err on the side of caution. The society I want to live in is one where we all constantly look out for others. If anyone errs on the side of caution when it comes to my kids or pets, the last thing I would do is harbour any resentment. You just clear things up and get on with life.

 

[bonnie]

Sooo ... here are the points I see in this thread:

If you MUST have a pet with you while traveling or other circumstances,

• Leave signs on the window indicating temp is being monitored & what time you will return,
• Leave your cell phone number so concerned folks can contact you before calling police,
• Leave a thermometer so someone passing by can see the actual temp,
• Leave windows cracked a little bit,
• Don't be gone any longer than absolutely necessary,
• Leave water in vehicle (okay, I'm adding that one since that's just common sense),
• Park in the shade if available.

Did I miss anything?

 

[bollar]

Did I miss anything?

Yes: accept there's a risk that you'll get a window smashed in because someone thinks all of that is insufficient.

 

[texex91]

If you wouldn't leave a kid in a car--don't leave a pet.

Some people are just oblivious to common sense.

 

[green1]

In my opinion, it's always best to err on the side of caution. The society I want to live in is one where we all constantly look out for others. If anyone errs on the side of caution when it comes to my kids or pets, the last thing I would do is harbour any resentment. You just clear things up and get on with life.

But what you're advocating is not "caution", it's acting without evidence. Sure, check to see if the kid appears to be in distress, and act accordingly, but don't assume all kids in parked cars are in distreess. More kids die each year in playgrounds than that, and you aren't advocating calling the police every time you see a kid in a playground. Yet you are advocating calling the police any time you see a kid in a parked car.

I'm all for safety, it's my job after all. But I can not get behind telling people to act without evidence. Someone who breaks in to a vehicle to save my child who is in distress is a hero, someone who does it when they are not is a criminal. Know the difference and act accordingly.

 

[wk057]

I personally will never have an animal in my Model S, period.

But if I did, it's certainly my choice to do so. If some idiot busted a window or did anything else to my car because of the animal, there would be hell to pay.

 

[Larry93428]

It is unlawful to leave a pet in a car in many states.
Table of State Laws for Animals in Parked Cars
There are volunteers patrolling the shopping centers here in the Antelope Valley.
Leave your dog at home, son, leave your dog at home.

 

[CalDreamin]

It is unlawful to leave a pet in a car in many states.
Table of State Laws for Animals in Parked Cars
There are volunteers patrolling the shopping centers here in the Antelope Valley.
Leave your dog at home, son, leave your dog at home.

According to the table in your link, it is not unlawful to leave a dog in a car. What these laws say in various words is that to unlawful to leave a dog in a vehicle under extreme conditions that threaten the dog's health or safety. If the conditions don't threaten the dog's health or safety, then leaving a dog in a vehicle is not unlawful.

I've been involved in K9 search and rescue for the past 10 years. My dog and I train for and deploy on searches for missing people. My dog has logged about 80,000 miles riding in my SAR vehicle (currently a 4WD Tacoma). It's common for those of us who do this volunteer work to leave our dog in a parked vehicle, sometimes for hours at a time. There are ways to manage this that do not endanger the dog at all.

My nose cannot sniff out a person hidden by dense foliage from 100 yards away, but my dog can do that. Nor can I cover rugged terrain like my dog is able to do. So my K9 partner goes with me to trainings and to searches.

Those of us who do K9 SAR select dogs that are not overly sensitive to heat or cold. These are dogs bred to work in a wide range of environmental conditions.

It cannot get too cold to endanger my dog in a parked vehicle, anywhere we go.

Heat in a parked vehicle is manageable and not unsafe if you know what you are doing. By far the biggest heat concern for SAR dogs is not when they in a parked vehicle, but when they are working. Some of our dogs have so much drive to work that they don't pace themselves well and could potentially develop heat exhaustion because they run hard even on hot sunny days. The handler has to enforce rest and watering breaks for those dogs.

 

[wycolo]

Luckily my dog is smart enough to park herself down by the brake and go pedals where douchebags are unlikely to spot her.
--

 

[chickensevil]

First off, cracking your windows alone is not enough. I am willing to bet that having the pano roof open might be slightly better than the windows simply because hot air rises. I am also inclined to side with the owner here given the short time frame. But, that said, it doesn't take long to get very hot in the car very fast.

Now, that said, using your A/C is a great idea and I don't see way anyone should worry about that one, simply because you can see what the interior temperature of the car is from the phone. That is the difference between our car and the situation where the cop had a dead dog after the A/C failed. You can check your phone every 10 minutes or so to verify that the car is still fine and being cooled. in a closed car (all windows up) even in 90 degree weather, it takes quite some time for a 68 degree cooled car to warm back up... and then it would take a while being at that temperature to actually kill the dog.

On the argument of leaving kids in the car vs animals, the difference here is that in many places you cannot take your dog inside... Noone is going to refuse you bringing your child (no matter what age) into their place of business. So there should NEVER be a question of if you should leave your kids in the car or not, because there is always an alternative choice... take them with you. If the same were true for pets then this would be a non-issue in my mind because you would just take the dog with you. So yeah, child endangerment, do whatever you have to, because there really isn't a good reason to leave the child unattended. Not the least of which could lead to something else happening, like him getting kidnapped or something else.

I would probably put the sign up just because there are people out there that would just assume the animal is not ok... With the sign and the temperature being what it is, anyone touches your car should get vandalism charges brought against them and be required to pay to fix your car.

 

[Canuck]

Luckily my dog is smart enough to park herself down by the brake and go pedals where douchebags are unlikely to spot her.
--

It's too bad that instead of debating an issue with intelligent arguments in support of your position, some people resort to name calling.

 

[bonnie]

Could you all just act like adults in this thread? What's with all the frickin' chest thumping going on?

You just make work for the moderators and that makes me cranky. Seriously ... cranky.

 

[chickensevil]

Could you all just act like adults in this thread? What's with all the frickin' chest thumping going on?

You just make work for the moderators and that makes me cranky. Seriously ... cranky.

Shhhhhh shh shh shh, there there Bonnie, it is going to be ok.

In fairness, this is one of those subjects that tends to flair up this kind of ad hominem attacks, because it is easier to attack others than to debate the actual issue. I'm right because.... REASONS!