PALMER, Mass. (WWLP) – A Brookfield man was arraigned in Palmer District Court Tuesday, after leaving his dog inside of a locked, hot car on Monday.
While the dog is thankfully okay, this incident is a reminder to pet owners of just how dangerous a hot car can be.
It’s a mistake that can quickly lead to tragedy: leaving your pet inside a car in hot weather. That’s what happened Monday in Palmer when Brookfield resident David Gouin allegedly left his dog locked inside his car for at least 30 minutes.
Local dog owners, now sharing their thoughts, “Do not forget about your dogs and don’t leave the dog in the car for any period of time because it is hot, it is very hot and these poor dogs, they can’t open the windows they can’t open the door,” says Timothy Matthew of Agawam.
Since we humans are needed for that, there are laws in place to protect pets. During his arraignment Tuesday, Gouin pled not guilty to animal cruelty charges.
Animals don’t regulate their body temperatures the same way as humans, so what may not seem so long to us is a lot more dangerous for them. In our 22News parking lot, we moved a car from inside the garage out to the heat for five minutes, the internal dashboard temperature increased to 115 degrees in that short amount of time.
As a result of that incident in Palmer, Gouin is not allowed to possess any animals and is due back in court on November 15th.
Kaelee Collins is a reporter who has been a part of the 22News team since 2022. Follow Kaelee on X @kaelee_collins and view her bio to see more of her work.
