How do you feel about leaving a dog outside in freezing cold temperatures?

Call animal control immediately. That dog needs rescuing.

Well, my Aunt has a Siberian Husky that insists on sleeping in the snow…but if it’s not a breed that enjoys that weather and can tolerate it, then yes it is abuse. I would call animal control, like @pdworkin suggested.

Um, that sounds horrible and I agree with what has already been stated above. I could never leave my babies outside-they are not bred for cold weather.

This actually happened in my mom’s neighborhood. I went and kidnapped the dog with another friend. It was a boxer, a short haired dog that should not be out in the cold and it was a puppy. My friend kept the dog. I don’t reccommend this, but we were young.

If it’s within the five buroughs, the SPCA has full police powers and can enforce proper conditions for the dog.

It is illegal to not have a source of fresh (unfrozen) water. And they must provide adequate shelter.

Call them and make a report. You can do this anonymously if you wish.

The dog is a St Bernard…Maybe it’s bred for cold weather? But to have no access to water is still abuse.

Call the owner and tell him what to do!,it’s not your own dog(unlike a cat,a dog is considered as a property in the U.S.).

I agree with ButtonSTC. Contact your local SPCA- they will intervene. Do not bother getting into the middle of things with whoever the owner is- That is what the cops get paid to do.

@Doctor_D I can’t just call the owner of the dog. It’s a big warehouse. Even if I could find the number in the phone book, it’s Saturday night. They’re not there and won’t be until Monday morning. And honestly, I don’t think it would do any good to call them myself. They’ll probably tell me to “f” off. A visit from animal control would have a much larger effect.

:( Poor puppy! I would call the ASPCA immediately.

Call the local police station and report it. Right now!

@ItalianPrincess1217 I think you’re right,but by doing so you’ll take away other people’s beloved pet,without knowing the cause we can’t judge the owner as irresponsible(they might having some problem that won’t allow them to take an immediate act for their dog),a puppy/dog especially the one as you described is a strong breed even for such condition,a common breed will survive without food for almost a week so why it won’t survive for just 3 days(provided it has no disease),you can always give it some blanket and food/water if you really concern since there’s no one out there,if you really care then you must honestly act on your own.

Ive often thought about scaling the apartment buildings behind me to rescue a dog in this same situation. (S)He sits outside all day. Rain, snow, wind, cold, hot, it doesn’t matter.

I feel people not willing to be there for their pets have no business owning them.

@Doctor_D – a warehouse sounds like a guard dog not a pet dog. I really hope someone would report me and take a dog out my my care if I treated it the same way as this owner does. It is disgusting.

@Rachienz I believe that’s true,but a ‘St.Bernard’ is never known to aggressively attack someone(even a stranger),they’re naturally too sweet and tame to do that.

@Doctor_D – could there size be intimidating though? I seems so pointless to have a pet dog that is sweet and tame and then leave it alone in a warehouse lot in freezing temperatures. What would they miss in it’s absence?

@DD

Talking about how long a dog can survive without food is pointless. It can’t survive for that same length without WATER.

Besides, from what I have seen on AP they normally don’t just march in and seize the animal in a circumstance like this.

They will attempt to educate the owner and then make periodic checks to be certain that he has amended his behavior. But by making a report you ensure that the case is now formally on record.

If there have been similar incidents in the past, then they will take that into account.

As strange as it may seem, apparently there do exist people who are ignorant enough to not realize that you can’t leave a dog with a frozen water bowl and expect him to survive.

Cases like these is precisely why SPCA exists. Give them a call and let them handle it. This will also ensure that this owner will be on their radar screen and hopefully prevent future incidents of neglect.

St Bernards have a very high cold tolerance. More ambivalent information about St. Bernard puppy cold tolerance.

@Buttonstc I see,good explanation!.

@Doctor_D I’ll take away someone’s beloved pet? Ha! That poor thing is outside by itself every single time I drive by. It has no interaction with humans. That dog is by no means anyone’s beloved pet. And if anyone claims it is, they’re a sorry excuse for a pet owner. And for you to think it’s okay for an animal to go up to a week without food or water…that’s abuse. I hope you don’t wait that long to feed your own pets. Yikes.

Also, I can’t just walk right up to the dog house and put a blanket in there and some fresh water. It’s behind a very tall, locked fence. And it’s a guard dog. Although St.Bernards may not be known to attack, it’s obviously there for a reason. And it clearly lacks human interaction. A strange person walking up to him and sticking it’s hands into it’s house might not go over so well.

@ItalianPrincess1217 Is right – even if the Saint Bernard breed is known to be gentle, each individual dog is different, and if it has been beaten or neglected (or even simply not socialized) it can still be aggressive.

Call animal control. They’re the experts. It’s their job to investigate suspected mistreatment. If they think the animal needs to be removed, they’ll take care of it. If they decide it’s ok, no harm done in being a concerned citizen.

@ItalianPrincess1217 – please keep us informed of how you get on. I really don’t like thinking about the dog suffering.

I called the animal control officer today (nobody was available during weekend hours). He said there’s nothing illegal about a St.Bernard being outside in this weather as long as it has shelter. He knows the dog I’m talking about and he said he’ll make sure it has water but can’t do anything more. It’s kind of disappointing. But at least I tried… :(

@ItalianPrincess1217 Good for you for calling. :) You just have to assume that they know what they’re doing.

@Likeradar :) Thanks. Thats what I assumed. It’s their job to handle these kind of situations and he sounded confident that he knew what he was talking about.

@ItalianPrincess1217 as you said“It’s behind a very tall, locked fence”,then how could they deal with that?. You did your best anyway.

Good on you for having tried.

@Doctor_D The animal control would leave a notice or speak directly to the owners…but your suggestion for me to just walk right into the fenced warehouse yard isn’t possible and is definitely not safe. Not only is that trespassing, the dog is a guard dog…it’s there to keep people out.

Good for you for calling. At least this way he can make certain the dog gets fresh water.

I think it’s interesting that he knew which dog you were referring to. This would suggest to me that other people have called to bring it to his attention.

I would assume that if he hasn’t already spoken to the owners, he may now do so since it is illegal to leave a dog with no fresh water.

Even the folks up in Alaska who breed and keep numerous sled dogs for running the Iditarrod provide their dogs with little shelters lined with straw and make certain to go out every few hours to make certain they have drinkable unfrozen water when the temperature drops.

Just because a dog happens to be a cold tolerant breed, does not mean they need no care at all. those people with sled dogs take excellent care of them cuz they are fully aware of the consequences of failing to do so.