It takes just six minutes or less for an animal to suffer severe heat exhaustion in a car and die, so pet owners are urged to be aware of the dangers of leaving animals in cars in the coming hotter months.

Manningham Mayor Cr Jim Grivokostopoulos said temperatures inside a car can reach over 40C on a 23C day and in that sort of heat an animal can die in less than six minutes.

“Melbourne’s Metropolitan Ambulance Service undertook tests on a 29 degree day that showed how quickly temperatures inside a car can rise.”

“Even with the car’s air conditioning having initially cooled the interior to a comfortable 20 degrees, showed it took just 10 minutes for the temperature to more than double to 44 degrees.”

“In a further 10 minutes it had tripled to a deadly 60.2 degrees. In animals, as with humans, exposure to these types of temperatures can be extremely dangerous.”

Cr Grivokostopoulos said Council is urging owners to reconsider whether they should take a pet out in the heat as it is often kinder and more responsible to leave the dog at home with water and shade.

“Dogs are particularly at risk as they cool themselves by panting. If the air around a dog is too hot, particularly if they don’t have access to water, they are physically unable to regulate their body temperature.”

“Even if the car is parked in the shade or windows are left down, the temperature inside a car on a hot day can reach hazardous levels.”

“In the time it takes to pick up a few things for dinner at the supermarket and get through the supermarket check out, a dog left in a hot car could have already died an agonising death,” he said.

If you find a pet left in a hot car, please call Victoria Police on 000. Police are equipped to dispatch officers quickly from the nearest police station, which is critical under these circumstances.