Community steps up after a Maryland pet shelter loses its AC in a heat wave
A community in Maryland rallied to the aid of a local animal shelter this week when it put out an emergency call for foster care when its air conditioning suddenly failed due to a mechanical issue, putting dogs and cats at risks in the middle of an extreme heat wave.
Local media reported temperatures in the facility had quickly risen to 83 degrees Fahrenheit.
"If the air becomes hotter than what their body temperature is supposed to be, they can overheat really, really quickly," said Caroline Hairfield, executive director, of the Montgomery County Office of Animal Services. "It can become a life and death situation."
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00:03Are you guys something for people that didn't want to notice about a dog industry?
00:07They had a...
00:08Yeah.
00:09Yeah.
00:10We're mainly interested in dogs.
00:13Hi.
00:36Hi.
00:41Oh, he's a cute baby.
00:45You two are.
00:46A cute baby.
00:48You're a sweet baby.
00:51What kind of dog is this?
00:54I'm not sure what they have on list today.
00:56He looks like kind of a terrier man.
00:58Yeah.
00:59Yeah.
01:00Are you a terrier?
01:01Are you a happy boy?
01:02Yeah, you look like it.
01:04He looks...
01:05So it gets really hot here and we happen to be under an extreme heat advisory.
01:19I think it was the heat index was around 105 yesterday.
01:22And inside the building, as temperatures started to rise, so did our humidity.
01:27And animals, dogs and cats particularly, they use the air to cool themselves.
01:33And if the air becomes hotter than what their body can... temperature is supposed to be, they can overheat really, really quickly.
01:40It can become a life and death situation.
01:43And it was a pretty chaotic moment.
01:46And it was a very serious situation where we had to get these animals out of here as quickly as possible for their safety and well-being.
01:54Thankfully, we have a wonderful community who responded so quickly right away.
01:58So if you guys are interested in fostering him, I can get someone to open for you.
02:06I'll just get the information on his...
02:08He should have a rabies before he leaves.
02:11Okay.
02:12Just need to make sure he has that.
02:14I think he was surrendered a day or two ago.
02:16Okay.
02:17Yeah.
02:18He's in spirit.
02:20Oh, how cute.
02:22Yeah, Tom can't have the doctor before.
02:24I was going to say, this doctor won't take long.
02:26Yeah, exactly.
02:41They can keep them short-term.
02:43A couple of days can actually make a huge difference in the stress level in an animal's mental health.
02:48Or, sometimes if they choose to, they could keep them longer.
02:51Sometimes it's two weeks, three weeks.
02:54However long, it's really up to the foster parent.
02:57And, oftentimes, foster parents get to know their pets so well that they help us find a new home for their pet because they know exactly what that pet needs.
03:07So, I kind of just wanted...I looked on the website.
03:18I saw which ones I was interested in and then I decided to come up.
03:21I'm, like I said, ten minutes from here.
03:23I was like, why not just come up and check them out?
03:25I saw some other ones that weren't listed on the website.
03:27So, I also got a list down with me.
03:29I'm going to show my family soon when I go back home.
03:32And, hopefully, we can come out tomorrow or the next day, kind of meet the dogs fully.
03:37And, I think they even do like a meet and greet with some dogs.
03:39So, once we decide which two or three we'd like, we'll go and do the meet and greet with them.
