Hundhållning i bil : situationen i Sverige och effekter av utetemperaturen. Enkätundersökning och experimentell studie

Abstract: The aims of this project were to describe the circumstances around dogs being left alone in cars, to investigate owners' knowledge of the risks associated with leaving dogs in cars and the relevant legislation and, finally, to study how changes in the air temperature and air composition in the car affect the dog. The project consisted of a survey of the literature, a questionnaire part and an experimental part. An important conclusion is the importance of the level of knowledge of owners, since there are several ways in which an owner can prevent their dog from heat stroke and, in the case of an eventual accident, their action can have direct consequences in minimizing the long-term damage to the dog and even whether or not it survives. Fewer than half of the owners in the study knew that for a dog suffering heat stroke, the most important thing is to bring the body temperature down. Only a third of dog owners knew that if a dog is left in a warm car and showing signs of heat stress, then the police should be contacted and the dog quickly helped out of the car. The survey also showed that just over half of dog owners knew which rules apply for dogs in cars and that in practice many dogs are left alone in cars more often and for longer period of time than is recommended. The space allocation per dog, according to the legislation that applied at the time of the study, are difficult to satisfy in many cars and regulations concerning the thermal climate for dogs are difficult to maintain in a stationary car on a warm summer day. A conclusion, therefore, is that a dog owner who leaves their dog in a car on a warm day could be charged with animal cruelty. In the experimental study, the results showed that the dog's body temperature and behaviour was influenced by the air temperature in the car, despite the fact that the study lasted only twenty minutes. However, it is difficult to say when it is risk free to leave a dog alone in a car, because of individual variation in the sensitivity of the dog to heat and because of the many external factors that influence the situation.