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August 10, 2015 Updated : August 10, 2015 | 7:18 pmAdjust Text Size
City of Edmonton bylaws can’t remove dog living in hot car
By Andrea Ross
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Facebook/Cam McDannoldSome residents in the Oliver neighbourhood are concerned about the welfare of a dog that appears to be living in a minivan.
A golden retriever that onlookers say has been locked for weeks inside a parked minivan has tempers rising as fast as the temperature inside the vehicle.

Cam McDannold first noticed the dog three weeks ago, panting heavily inside a Ford Windstar, parked in a commercial lot behind the Bubbles car wash on Jasper Avenue and 116 Street.

McDannold, who lives behind the parking lot, said he’s never seen the dog’s owner take it out of the vehicle for a walk or a break from the heat. The front and back windows are always left slightly open for the dog, but the owner only leaves the lot for a few minutes at a time each day.

He decided to call 911 out of concern for the dog’s welfare.

“The fire trucks came almost immediately, but they couldn’t do anything because they said the animal wasn’t in distress,” McDannold said. “I guess it wasn’t hot enough. He was parked in the shade that day.”

The Edmonton Police Service, Edmonton Humane Society and the City of Edmonton have all confirmed they’ve received multiple complaints about the vehicle. But unless the dog is in obvious grave danger, none of them have authority to remove the animal.

“Unfortunately, there’s no bylaw that says you can’t leave your dog in a car,” EHS spokeswoman Karen Meurer said. “Unless we see the dog in major distress, there’s nothing we can do.”

Meurer said EHS animal protection officers have checked on the dog and spoken with the owner. She said he lives in a pet-free apartment but needs the dog to remind him to take his insulin shots.

Despite the unusual accommodations for the pet, Meurer said the owner isn’t actually doing anything particularly wrong in leaving it in a vehicle.

“We all know it’s not the greatest thing to do, but there’s no law against it,” she said. “He’s not harming the dog in any way. He’s leaving the window open, he’s leaving water in there for the dog. He’s actually doing everything right.

“But it’s still really not the best to leave your dog in a hot vehicle, especially this week.

With temperatures expected to rise into the 30s this week, McDannold said he’s at a loss for what to do as the risk to the dog rises with the temperature.

“(The bylaw) is pretty goofy. This dog is confined to a van 24 hours a day, it’s pretty ridiculous,” he said.

“I don’t want the dog to suffer, a dog should not live in a van. I wish I had a solution.”

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