Dog walker Pam Fisher gets 3 year ban as cocker spaniel dies after she left it inside hot van for 5 hours

Male cocker spaniel, Teddy, was left to die in a hot van after dog walker Pam Fisher had forgotten to take him home.
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A dog walker, who left a client’s pet in a hot van for five hours that led to its death, has been banned from dealing with dogs and transporting them for three years. Pam Fisher, 60, from York, who appeared at York’s Magistrates Court last week, was sentenced after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing in January.

Teddy, a male cocker spaniel, was left in the vehicle on a hot day on August 11 of last year, the court heard. The dog’s owner then took him to the veterinarian after Fisher informed her she had forgotten to take the dog home and found him dead in her van.

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In an interview with an RSPCA inspector, Fisher said after a group dog walk, she usually dropped Teddy off first but on this day she dropped two other dogs at home first. She said the other two dogs were in a crate which covered the view of the crate Teddy was in.

After being made aware by Teddy’s owner that the dog wasn’t at home, the court heard Fisher checked the van and was “horrified” when she saw Teddy’s lifeless body in the crate.

When asked how she felt, Fisher said she was “devastated” and that evening texted her customers to say she was stopping her business.

Vets said Teddy had died of heatstroke and that his body temperature was 40C. The statement from a vet said: “It is my opinion that the likely cause of Teddy’s death was heat stroke. Dogs can develop heat stroke and die within an hour in hot weather.

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“It is unknown how long and how quickly Teddy died. It is likely that Teddy will have suffered.” RSPCA inspector Claire Mitchell said: “Fisher had confirmed that she’d forgotten to drop Teddy off back at his owner’s and he’d been in the back of the van for five hours. The temperature that day was 30c.

“We hope this tragic case reminds people that the risk to the lives of animals is so high. Our message is simple: never leave a dog in a hot car - ‘not long’ is too long, and if you see a dog in a hot car, call 999 immediately.”

Dog walker gets 3-year ban from dealing with dogs after dog left to die in hot vanDog walker gets 3-year ban from dealing with dogs after dog left to die in hot van
Dog walker gets 3-year ban from dealing with dogs after dog left to die in hot van

Fisher was handed a three-year ban on dealing with and transporting dogs, a 12-month community order, and ordered to pay costs of £400 and a £95 victim surcharge. She pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal under the Animal Welfare Act.

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