THEThe driver Kimi Raikkonen, on holiday in Tuscany, when he saw a dog in a parked car, therefore at risk of heatstroke, gave him a drink. A nice gesture? Yes but… he should have called the police.
As specified by the International Organization for the Protection of Animals (Oipa), in such cases, and if the owner of the vehicle is not found, call 112, the single European emergency number. The police have a duty to intervene to ascertain the situation and save the animal, as well report ex officio the keeper of the four legs. It is right to point out, already on the phone, the health conditions of the animal, in order to be able to intervene with veterinary care in case of need.
It is advisable to find witnesses on the spot and also proofs such as photos and videos to demonstrate the gravity of the situation.
Can the window be broken?
If timely intervention by the authorities cannot be obtained and the animal becomes unwell, the rescuer who breaks the window is held responsible for damage to the vehicle? “In light of the jurisprudential orientation on the subject and of the collective conscience that requires the protection of animals as sentient beings, it is possible to invoke the “state of necessity” in the case of a possible request for compensation from the owner of the vehicle », the lawyer replies Claudia Taccaniresponsible for the Oipa legal desk.
Dog in the car in the heat? It is forbidden
Leaving an animal in the car in hot weather, even for a short time, is forbidden, he explains Oipa legal desk. Many municipal regulations for the protection and welfare of animals provide for this in a specific way.
For example, the Rome Capital Regulations, whose article 8 states that “it is forbidden to leave pets locked up in any motor vehicle and / or trailer or other means of restraint in the sun from April to October inclusive of each year; it is also forbidden to leave closed animals alone, in motor vehicles and / or trailers permanently even if in the shade and with the windows open. It is also forbidden to transport animals in closed carts “. In case of violation, a fine is triggered, from 200 to 500 euros.
Criminal liability
Keeping an animal in a stationary vehicle in the heat can also constitute criminal liability for “incompatible and productive holding of severe suffering“.
There are at least two precedents, which resulted in convictions by the judges: one by the Court of Cassation in 2014, which confirmed the conviction of two subject to the payment of 1,100 euros in fines each. They had left a beagle in a car with an outside temperature of 30 degrees. The barking of the suffering dog had attracted passers-by who immediately contacted the police.
The other sentence of the Court of Cassation was in 2008 and confirmed the conviction against a man for leaving his dog in the car, with the car parked in the sun at a very high temperature. The judges felt responsible the subject even in the absence of the will to rage on the animal or injurysince suffering could consist only in sufferings.
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