Temperatures inside these parked cars can creep up to unthinkable numbers, leaving the poor stranded animals barely grasping onto their lives. Two Kansas City police officers jumped to action when they received a call about a trapped dog. The pooch had been locked inside a car at a local strip mall. They rushed to the scene, and found the tiny pup convulsing heavily and only seconds away from certain death.
They eventually saved the dog, and helped monitor him being nursed back to health.
One of the officers went beyond merely saving the pup from the critical situation. He decided to do something that would transform his life, as well as the dog’s.
A few days ago, Kansas City police officers Erik Winter and Jeff O’Rear responded to a call about a puppy trapped inside a parked car. A second-grader had alerted her parents after noticing the dog through the car window.
After they reached the local shopping center, where the car was parked, they smashed its window, and saw a 6-month-old Chihuahua puppy. He had spent nearly two hours trapped inside the car and, according to Officer O’Rear, had reached a temperature of 107.7 degrees.
“I got the kennel out and pulled the dog out and it was one of the most horrific scenes I’ve seen. The dog was upside down and convulsing,” O’Rear told ABC News.
At the time, temperatures outside the car had hit an agonizing 110 degrees. After freeing the chihuahua, the officers rushed him to a local PetSmart emergency clinic for treatment. O’Rear also spoke to The Kansas City Star about the pup’s terrible ordeal.
“That was so emotional [for me] to see that dog; to see that somebody would do that to him for no reason…just neglect,” he said.
The officer wanted to do more than just save the puppy. He was now determined to protect and look after him, and offer him a chance at a good life. Thus, he decided to bring the pup home, and introduce him to his wife and two daughters, Melania and Michelle.
The puppy was initially held at animal shelter KC Pet Project‘s Zona Rosa location, but issued a statement on its Facebook page soon after, saying that O’Rear and his family had adopted the pooch.
Everyone from the officer’s immediate family members and his partner to representatives from Banfield Pet Hospital, who helped stabilize the pup, was present for the adoption.
“We want to make sure he lives the life of a king for the rest of his life. Because of what he went through. I think we’ll be able to provide that real well,” said O’Rear.
The dog’s previous owners have given up ownership of the puppy, and have been issued animal cruelty citations by the authorities.
In addition, a ceremony will be held soon to recognize the second-grader who helped call the police officers to the scene.
