AIBU to have called the police over a dog left?

[doginthesunshine]

Went for a pub lunch today - new car parked up next to ours when we went to leave with a dog inside. The poor dog looked elderly, my car thermometer was reading 30 degrees, and the car windows were cracked about 5cm each. No shade and no water left for the poor thing. It was panting very quickly and looked incredibly hot.

I didn't know what else to do but call the police (who were very good), owner came back to check on it and got aggressive at me - I probably shouldn't have asked him wtf he was doing but as a dog owner I can't fathom leaving an animal alone in a car when it's so hot.

I drove away having given the police the car and reg details but felt a bit shaken about the whole thing. What would you have done?

Well done OP. I would have done the same. Hope his dog is taken off him.
I hate it when people see something wrong but "don't want to get involved".

Thank you and totally agree - if you get a dog you commit to planning your time around them.

You did the right thing. 5 mins to get petrol - wouldn’t do that either tbh. I couldn’t bear that myself in a car.

All the people saying you should have waited 10 mins/5mins/whatever to see if the owner came back, I urge you to look up one of the many videos made by vets, dog handlers, etc of them locking themselves in their own car for a short amount of time.
Note how unbearably hot and uncomfortable they become well before the 5 min mark is even up.

This is much worse for dogs, who don't have swest glands and are wearing fur coats.

Op did the right thing.

I’d have smashed his windows anyway just for being an utter bastard. And maybe scratched the word cunt in his paintwork for good measure. People who do this to animals are scum. The amount of people dragging their dogs around in this weather when there’s no need for it makes me bloody angry.

Friday morning I returned to my car to see a dog in a car parked next ti mine panting and distressed. I went straight into the supermarkets and told customer services they put a call out and told the owner to return to their car. By the time I got back to my car the owner was there and looking very annoyed. I didn't say anything as looked the sort to get really nasty but he did drive away sharpish and hopefully will think twice before leaving his dog like that again

Had one of these posts on our local FB group - dog left in car.

The poster got rounded on by blokes saying the car may have been one that keeps cool inside even when ac off (didn't know this was a thing) - the women backing the poster up.

Was interesting to see the difference in the sexes responses!

YANBU

Our car does get very cold with the air con on so for a short while would stay like that if you kept the windows shut

The problem is how do you know

I dont know that this is about what sex someone is, why on earth would you start looking at sex differences in responses?

It definitely wasn't one of those cars - it was an 02 model.