A man has been issued a $450 fine for leaving a dog in a hot car in Victoria on Wednesday.
While the temperature at the airport peaked at 21.7 C that afternoon, the temperature inside the car was 53, officials said.
Victoria police were called to Pandora Avenue at 1:55 p.m. after bystanders saw a Maltese cross panting and trying to hide under the steering wheel of a car parked directly in the sun, said Barrie Cockle, the City of Victoria’s manager of bylaw services.
A tow truck was called and the dog was retrieved from the car without breaking a window.
The dog was placed in an air-conditioned van and given water.
The owner returned about 3 p.m., roughly an hour after police and bylaw officers were called, Cockle said.
The owner was given the maximum fine of $450 under the Animal Responsibility bylaw for failing to provide the dog with water and shade.
Cockle said in warm, spring-like temperatures, cars can quickly heat up to unbearable temperatures.
The case was referred to the B.C. SPCA, which will decide whether to initiate an animal-cruelty investigation.
