Yesterday I came out of Sam's Club and walked toward my car, noticing that a car parked nearby (a shiny, new-looking, white Mercury Marquis) with the cutest little black poodle sitting on the rear window ledge, panting, with its tongue hanging out. (It looked just like the picture at right.) I circled the car and saw that only one window was open, and less than two inches.
What to do, what to do.
I had another errand to do at the end of the plaza, and decided that if the dog was still there when I was done with that errand, I would do something.
While it wasn't a really hot day, when I got in it, my own car was damn hot after sitting there for only ten minutes.
I came back ten minutes later, and the dog was still there. I took down the license number and went back into Sam's Club. The woman at the door said, "there's nothing we can do legally." Oh yeah? I told her I would go to the service desk and report it anyway. And I did. The woman on duty took down the information, got on the public address system and said, "Will the owners of the white Mercury Marquis, Licence number XXX-XXX please go to your car. Your dog needs assistance." She repeated the announcement.
I thanked her and went back to my car.
And waited.
After another ten minutes, I called nine one one.
Then I waited some more. In fact, I waited another twenty-three minutes. During that time, the little dog got pretty agititated, panting a lot harder. And I got a lot angrier.
The woman I'd originally spoken to at Sam's Club came out after 15 minutes from my call and asked, "Is that dog still in the car?"
I told her "yes."
Needless to say, the police didn't show up. When the older woman and her husband came out to the parking lot, I asked her, "Is this your car?"
"Yeah."
"I just want you to know I've called nine one one and gave them your license number. Your dog has been locked in that hot car for at least 43 minutes that I know of."
She said, "Mind your own business," and walked to the car, took the dog out, then helped her husband unload their cart.
The woman from Sam's came out again. "Did you confront her?" she asked.
"Yes, and she blew me off."
She shook her head. Now she was almost as upset as me.
The older woman abandoned her cart (why is it people can't put their carts in the return--and doesn't this say more about her (lack of) character)) and kissed her little dog.
"You're kissing your dog now. But what if he'd died in that hot car?"
"I've been checking on him every five minutes since I went into the store."
Somehow, I refrained from yelling: LIAR!!! Instead, I said: "I've been standing here for over twenty minutes and you have not been out here once."
This time she screamed at me, "MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS."
The whole ordeal was incredibly upsetting. That thoughtless woman does not deserve to have a wonderful little dog like that.
What should I have done differently?
