Things To Do in Baltimore

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE :  August 7, 2009                                                                    
jennifer.mead@baltimorecity.gov
410-396-4695, 410-396-4698                                                                                                  www.baltimoreanimalshelter.org

 

Summer Care for Cats and Dogs

BALTIMORE, MD – All outdoor animals need shade from the sun and access to clean water.   Dog houses and shelters for other animals kept outdoors must be located in shaded areas.  A dog house in direct sunlight does not provide a dog with sufficient protection from the heat.  Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter (BARCS) recommends that animals not be left outside unattended.  Animals left unattended cannot be monitored to ensure they are not overheating. In addition, often unattended animals are stolen or run off and get lost.

It is illegal in Maryland to leave an animal in a hot car.  It is a violation (MD Annotated Code 21.1004.1) to leave an animal in a motor vehicle in a manner that endangers its health or safety.  Humane workers, police, fire, and emergency personnel may break into a car to rescue an animal in danger.  On a warm day the temperature in a car, even with the windows open, can reach 120 degrees in just a few minutes.  This is hot enough to cause irreversible brain damage.  Leaving the windows down leaves an animal vulnerable to theft. BARCS recommends that if you cannot sit in the car with your animal the entire time it is in the car, leave the animal at home.

If you must take your dog for a ride in your pickup truck, let him or her ride in the cab.  An unsecured animal is always in danger of being thrown from the open bed of a truck, or jumping out while the truck is moving.  In hot weather the animal is exposed to the metal truck bed which can get hot enough to burn the animal’s feet.

Safety Around Swimming Pools:  Although most dogs instinctively know how to swim, swimming pools or steeply banked natural bodies of water can be drowning hazards if the dog can’t find a way out of the water.

If you own a pool:

· Securely fence in the pool area.  Never let your dog inside the fenced area unsupervised.

·  Swim with your dog.  Show him or her the shallow-end steps of the pool and how to use them.  Most dogs, especially small ones, can’t climb out of a pool directly from the edge or clamber up a ladder.

If you don’t own a pool:

· Keep your dog leashed during walks or confined to your property at all times.  Dogs running at large are swimming pool accidents waiting to happen.

Dogs and cats are prohibited from running at large in Baltimore City and Baltimore County.  An animal is considered to be running at large if it is not on the property of the owner and is not under the control of the owner or leashed.  Animals running at large are easy targets for theft.

The Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter, Inc. (BARCS) is a non-profit organization created in 2005.  BARCS’ mission is to prevent cruelty to animals by: rescuing animals, finding homes for the neglected and abandoned animals, promoting the health and welfare of animals through education, advocacy and pet population control and working cooperatively with other animal advocacy groups, shelters, and community organizations to continually improve the lives of animals.

Please visit our website at www.baltimoreanimalshelter.org