A Livingston County woman was charged with animal cruelty last night after she reportedly left her puppy in a parked vehicle in Ontario County for several hours. The 5-month-old puppy died.
Laurie J. Balcerak, 49, of Hemlock, Livingston County, is accused of leaving a cockapoo puppy in her vehicle in direct sunlight, with the passenger window slightly cracked, according to Ontario County Sheriff's deputies. The vehicle was parked in the Wal-Mart plaza at the corner of Routes 5 and 20 and County Road 10 in Hopewell, Ontario County. Balcerak reportedly left the animal to attend a movie at Canandaigua Theaters.
Deputies said a Wal-Mart truck driver was walking through the parking lot just before 6 p.m., heard the dog barking and called 911. By the time police and Humane Society officials arrived, the puppy had died, deputies said.
"On a warm day, like yesterday, the temperature in a car can rise to 160 degrees in a matter of minutes," said Ed McGuigan, director of the Ontario County Humane Society. "You shouldn't leave any animal in a car on a hot day. It's like baking them, even when the window is cracked open."
Temperatures in the Rochester-area reached a record 92 degrees yesterday, according to National Weather Service meteorologists. Today's forecast also calls for temperatures in the upper 80s and low 90s in Rochester and the Genesee Valley, said meteorologist Joseph Pace.
Dogs do not perspire the same way humans do, McGuigan said. Canines cool down by panting, and breathing cool air in through their lungs. Without cool air, they can get heat stroke and suffer brain damage, he said.
The Ontario County Humane Society receives several calls each week for dogs left in parked vehicles, but this was the first local case in which the animal has died, he said. "The best thing to do is not bring the animal with you when shopping, even if you are going for a short period of time," McGuigan said.
Balcerak is expected to answer the charge, which is an unclassified misdemeanor, in Hopewell Town Court at a later date. Neighborhood MapFor more information about the Interactive Animal Cruelty Maps, see the map notes.
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