2nd arrest made under new animal confinement law

There is irony in the fact that the breed of dog involved in the second arrest in Johnston under the recently enacted animal confinement law was a longhaired dachshund, which has been commonly referred to as the “hot dog dog” because of its elongated body and short legs.

But it was no laughing matter for the dog, who was left in a GMC SUV with only a quarter-inch gap between the pane and the frame of a front-seat window.

Patrolman Joseph McGinn reports officers were called to the BJ’s Wholesale Cub parking lot around 1:55 p.m. on July 12 by a woman who told them she noticed the dog inside of the SUV around 1:30 p.m. when she arrived in the parking lot, and then called police when she saw that the dog was still confined 15 minutes later.

McGinn said the outside temperature in the parking lot was 84 degrees Fahrenheit when he arrived, and the dog, a longhaired dachshund, was panting heavily, with its tongue hanging out and no water available to it. Johnston Rescue was called and attempts were made to contact the owner of the dog inside the store. McGinn said three announcements over the store’s PA system produced no results, and rescue personnel removed the dog from the vehicle.

McGinn said the dog was still panting when he put it inside his air-conditioned cruiser around 2:25 p.m. He said the owner came out of the store and said she had been shopping for about an hour. She was arrested and taken to headquarters.

McGinn said he was en route to headquarters to turn the dog over to the animal control shelter when the dog started shaking and fell to the floor of the cruiser. He said the dog was given water at headquarters and then taken to the Ocean State Veterinary Hospital in Cranston.

Maj. Joseph Razza said the animal control officer was not available at the time, and they did not have the device used to measure the interior temperature of the SUV. (A study by the Animal Protection Institute recorded an interior temperature of 109 when the outside temperature was 82 degrees and 115 degrees when it was 87 degrees out).

They did have the device on July 7, when the first arrest under the new Rhode Island law that makes it a crime to leave an animal in dangerous circumstances was made, also at BJ’s Wholesale Club in Johnston.

According to police, that car’s interior temperature was 124 degrees and an animal control officer found the dog panting and having trouble breathing and removed it from the car.

David Rodriguez, 48, of Providence was charged with a misdemeanor. Police said Rodriguez was paged over the PA system but that he had a hearing problem and did not respond. He was later contacted by the police and came into the station and was scheduled for court on July 16. The dog recovered and was placed in custody of the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

That was, apparently, the first arrest in the state about one week after Gov. Lincoln Chafee signed the bill. The new law states it is a misdemeanor to leave an animal in a vehicle “in a manner that places the animal in a life threatening or extreme health threatening situation by exposing it to a prolonged period of extreme heat or cold, without proper ventilation or other protection from such heat or cold.”

On Wednesday, Razza reported that the dachshund they rescued on July 12 is doing all right and was still being cared for in the Johnston Animal Shelter. Razza, who happens to own a dachshund named Frankie, said they already have someone in mind to provide a foster home.

Another officer who happens to own a dachshund may end up hosting Sapphire while her owner, Vanica Mei, 30, of 23 Ivy Ave. in Cranston, prepares for a court date on July 23.