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Yes, its a stupid rule, but what moron leaves their dog in a hot car because they are "told to"? Either don't get the ferry or take your dog out of the car anyway, for goodness sake!
From the Daily Mail....
QUOTE
A pet pug died during a Channel crossing on a P&O ferry after he was banned from leaving the car - despite temperatures soaring to 30 degrees.
Kirsty Wallace's dog Merlin and two of Ms Wallace's other dogs had to be kept in the vehicle during the journey from Calais to Dover on Friday - one of the hottest days of the year.
When Ms Wallace returned to her car after the four-and-a-year crossing on the Spirit of France, the three-year-old dog had died and could not be resuscitated.
Now more than 6,200 people have signed a petition set up after Merlin's death, which is calling for dogs to be allowed on the passenger deck of the ferries.
The Government warns that dogs should not be kept in cars for more than a few minutes once the temperatures exceeds 25 degrees as it can lead to distress and suffering.
It warns that temperatures inside cars can be double that of outside temperatures, due to the greenhouse effect.
P&O Ferries said it was a 'distressing' incident but that the company had followed the rules.
Nina Gadsdon, a friend of Ms Wallace who set up the campaign, alleges the death of Merlin is 'not an isolated incident'.
The woman, from Aldershot, Hampshire, intends on handing the petition to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to 'ensure animal welfare is taken into account'.
At the start of the petition, she wrote: 'Yesterday, a friend’s dog died on a cross channel ferry run by P&O due to heat exposure, they came down to their car after the crossing to find one of their beloved pet's dead, this is not an isolated incident
Cross channel ferries refuse to allow owners to have their pets with them, no matter what the weather, and we believe that this is an animal welfare issue.
'It would be an animal rights abuse for a person to leave their pet in their car on land for over an hour, so how can the ferry companies be allowed to make pet owners do this?
'The companies charge pet owners a premium for taking their pets already.'
After the incident, Ms Wallace, 31, from Alnwick, Northumberland, took to social networking site Facebook to describe her black pug dog as her 'angel' and said she simply 'couldn’t believe' he had died.
Her sister, Jade Allan, 24, also from Alnwick, wrote on the petition: 'This is my sister’s dog, and I can’t tell you how upset the whole family are.
'They are moving over from Germany. When they go back home to pack he is going to be a massive miss he was her baby along with her other pets get this spread and known about.'
Warnings are regularly issued about leaving dogs in cars for even a short period of time.
They recommend leaving windows open if dogs are left in cars to increase ventilation.
Natalie Hardy, a spokesman for P&O Ferries said the company followed the correct procedures but a spokesman not available for comment to specify the procedures.
She said: 'A passenger was travelling to the UK with three dogs.
The pets were declared, the car was parked accordingly and in the appropriate place on the car deck with the windows open for ventilation and the ship’s ventilation was correctly set.
'However, upon arrival in Dover one of the three dogs had died and could not be revived despite CPR and oxygen.
'This incident was obviously very distressing for the family and the staff who helped try to revive the pet, which was taken away by Animal Welfare.'
END QUOTE.
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