With the warm days of summer full in effect, you should always make sure you're taking some precautions when driving around with your furry friend.
The most notable precaution is not leaving your animal in the car unattended.
"You do not want to leave pets or children in a vehicle for any amount of time on a hot day," said Roxane Neufeld, Owner & Vet at the Dauphin Vet Clinic. "Temperatures in a vehicle can actually rise by 10 degrees Celsius within 10 minutes. There's really no safe amount of time to leave them."
That means if its 30 degrees outside, within 10 minutes, your vehicle could have an inside temperature of 40 degrees.
If your animal is along for the ride and you need to make a stop, here are some other tips to follow.
"If you absolutely need to, leave your vehicle running with the air conditioning on, park it in the shade and keep the windows open. That will sort of safeguard against it," said Roxane. "With that being said, you should never ever plan to leave your animal or pet in a vehicle alone."
Throughout the week, temperatures are expected to climb into the 30's. That includes 32 degrees on Friday and Saturday. Even outside of the vehicle, the heat can affect your animal.
"It's very important that your pets have access to shade and lots and lots of drinking water," concluded Neufeld.
