Woman removes dogs from vehicle, argument ensues

What would you do if you saw two dogs struggling to stay cool inside a hot car?

Last week a Barrington woman decided to remove the dogs from the vehicle and put them inside her air-conditioned car while she waited for the dogs' owner to return from the store.

On Thursday, July 20 at about 10:30 a.m., police received a call from a woman who said she had spotted two cocker spaniels inside the cab of a pick-up truck parked outside the Shaw's Supermarket in the Barrington Shopping Center. She said the dogs were overheating so she removed them from the truck and placed them in her air-conditioned car.

The police officer asked the woman how she was able to remove the dogs from the truck; she said the truck's doors were unlocked. 

Moments later the dogs' owner emerged from Shaw's carrying three bags of groceries and noticed that his cocker spaniels were missing. The man flagged down the police officer who had responded for the alleged animal cruelty call and told him his dogs had been taken from his truck.

The officer then explained what had happened, which allegedly drew an angry response from the dogs' owner. Police said the man began arguing with the woman who had removed the dogs from his truck — he said he left the truck's windows rolled halfway down and there was a bowl of water on the floor of the truck; she said the dogs were distressed and yelping loudly.

The officer separated the two people and told the woman that she did not have the right to take the dogs out of the truck. The Barrington woman then grew angry at the officer. She said the dogs needed rescuing and she did the right thing. 

The officer also spoke to the dogs' owner and asked how long he had been inside the store. He said he was inside Shaw's for about 10 minutes. 

No one was charged.

The high temperature in Rhode Island for Thursday, July 20, was 93 degrees.