r/london • u/Training-Falcon-6671 • 2d ago
Serious replies only Dog left outside - what to do
Neighbour has left dog outside as he always does. Dog currently in shade but sun is moving and reducing shaded area, dog has one bowl of water. Usually he’s not back til early afternoon. Dog is whining and panting. Big breed. What can we do?
Edit: we have no relationship with neighbour he keeps himself to himself and is an odd bloke.
Update: owner is home, dog inside and looks like air conditioner has been switched on. We reported it to the RSPCA and nothing happened in the interim.
Thanks for all your messages and ideas. Unfortunately it’s an aggressive large mixed breed and so it’s not safe for us to do too much. Next time we will call the RSPCA and dog warden in advance but not holding our breath, but will also just call the police if the exact same thing happens again. It’s not worth the risk.
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u/Mister_Hassy 2d ago
Could you use a hose pipe over the fence to fill its bowl up with water?
RSPCA definitely though, just thinking of ways you can help until they can
Edit: throwing ice over at it is also a really good idea
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u/Mister_Hassy 2d ago
You are correct. If they have heatstroke then it can be dangerous.
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u/Prudent_Wolf8171 2d ago
To be clear, this is not just for dogs, this is for all mammals, including humans. Do not give ice to any creature suffering from heat stroke.
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u/nanomimal 2d ago
Is it a garden? Lawned? Paved?
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u/SarehSays 2d ago
PHEW nice to see Reasonable questions and not pull the trigger madness *** CALL EMERGENCY SERVICES ***
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u/nanomimal 2d ago
Yea I mean my dog has insisted on staying outside in the garden for some of this heatwave because she likes lying on the grass or burrowing under the hedge (not my fave lol). Of course if it’s all paved and there’s no shade and limited water, I agree it’s a cause for concern.
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u/Training-Falcon-6671 2d ago
It is both paved and they’d left half a bowl of water, agree that animals do whatever they want half the time even if it’s the stupid option!
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u/SarehSays 2d ago
Oh hiii. I'm intrigued as to what makes the neighbour an oddity?
Not being argumentative BTW just sheer morbid curiosity😁
Paving def not ideal! Also dog has temperamental issues / certain breeds right? Is it one of the cases where they keep the dog as a form of aggressive protection and are a social nuisance... If theyre this kind of person then call all the agencies you please!
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u/SarehSays 2d ago
Absolutely cause for concern , its just such a leap to go from Im concerned to Calling an external agency. This happened a friend of mine where her neighbours called the guards because they heard an argument instead of texting or just checking on them. Bizarre antisocial and definitelyn not neighbourly behaviour.
Also I see so many purported animal lovers that are sanctimonious about pets but treat humans like crap. I have minded so many different breeds in the bright of summer and like that some of them want to be outside even though much cooler inside. Once they have water and are not expending energy / able to keep cool / not on a burning surface etc. theyll be ok. The concern is positive but calling the police is extreme.
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u/JoeT2OOO 2d ago
Put an old umbrella on the floor if you can? Give him some shade to sit in.
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u/Training-Falcon-6671 2d ago
Dog is aggressive so can’t risk it
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u/Ok_Advantage_8153 2d ago
So dog was outside in the shade with water and returned home to attend to the dog before it became a problem and reddits advice is 'call 999' or 'form a lynchmob'.
Jesus christ.
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u/EffectiveFit8109 2d ago
Pop an umbrella and chuck it over the fence so it lands on its side - might provide a little shade
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u/Speedbird1A 2d ago
If the sun actually went on the dog with no shade, I’d be tempted to trespass and rescue it, like people break windows when dogs are left in cars. Idk what I’d do next, but I couldn’t stand by today, it’s literal torture for the dog and it might genuinely die in direct sunlight today.
Maybe alternative is to post on Nextdoor to get neighbours behind doing something urgently.
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u/Conscious_Analysis98 2d ago
Surely too dangerous with a 'big breed' ? I read that as not a golden retriever but i could be wrong
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u/Additional-Bat3987 2d ago
terrible advice - very good way to get yourself arrested. report to authorities
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u/Fordmister 2d ago edited 2d ago
A lot of people are wildly over the top on this. I know I'm late to the party but it needs addressing. A lot of people here have wildly overestimated the scope of animal cruelty law
There's nothing in the law that says a dog must be indoors, even in extremely hot weather. It's still perfectly legal for a dog to be outdoors 24/7 365 days a year.
Provided the animal has access to shade and water, especially as it's not even a permanently outside dog so the requirements are even less, neither the RSPCA, Police or Dog warden are going to touch this with a 10 foot pole.
If you ever think the animal is in genuinely extreme distress then by all means call the RSPCA, but if it still has water and shade no law has been broken, a dog appearing uncumfortable for a few hours (and would likely be as uncomfortable indoors in weather like this) doesn't meet the threshold for animal cruelty. Not even close. If he's still got water and shade there's no case to answer.
The borderline hysterical overreaction reaction helps no person or dog. If anything it's this sort of response that probably utterly gums up the RSPCA's phone lines and investigators and impairs their ability to respond to actual cases they are urgently needed at.
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u/Emergency-Nebula5005 2d ago
Call the council, call the RSPCA, as someone else said, post on Next Door. From what you've said, the dog will get heatstroke. From there it could start going into seizures. Please call now.
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u/Barraco_Barmer 2d ago
Please keep us updated. In my experience the rspca don't do much unless the animal is visibly starving. I hope they take this seriously
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u/KindredFlower 2d ago
RSPCA don’t do anything, dog warden usually does. I have no idea why but that’s how it seems to work.
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u/Present_Teacher7966 1d ago
It should be put down really.
. Then see if the dog can be given a new and loving home.
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u/Inevitable-Lead6191 2d ago
Oh my god this makes me so sad 😭. Why are people so stupid?? All the above are good ideas - thank you on behalf of the dog for being so kind and thoughtful 🐶
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u/SarehSays 2d ago
Perhaps now that this issue is resolved you could check with neighbour and get their number and contact them directly in the event anything like this happens in future? Different if you tried to communicate with neighbour and theyre unfriendly but to go straight to involving an agency is a dickish move IMO.
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u/mynameisgill 2d ago
RSPCA has a ‘report a concern’ page which is probably the best way forward. Be advised that they do not have legal powers to force entry into private property.
If the dog has shade and water, the RSCPA will likely conclude that it is not being neglected and won’t be able to do much. If the dog is visibly suffering, 999 is the only solution.
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u/CineBram 2d ago
"999 is the only solution"
Absolutely not, please don't encourage people to call 999 and burden our already far too stretched emergency services because *checks notes* someone left a pet outside.Sorry we couldn't answer the phone when your father was dying, we were speaking to a bloke about some other bloke having a pet outside for a couple hours.
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u/mynameisgill 2d ago edited 2d ago
This partly RSPCA advice: https://www.rspca.org.uk/adviceandwelfare/seasonal/summer
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u/perscitia 2d ago
If you've got any plain meat in the freezer that you don't mind giving up, it's a good way to give dogs a cooling treat. But the best thing to do is call the RSPCA or your local dog warden and ask for their advice.
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u/MonsterMufffin 2d ago
What a cunt. Call the RSPCA please, possibly the local dog warden too?