Insulated Dog Houses Now Required By Law
Insulated dog houses may not seem like a big deal here, with our beautiful warm Tampa Bay climate. But you may remember me reminding you last week during our cold snap, to bring your animals inside. While we may not have prolonged freezing temperatures here, animals still get cold and can easily get hypothermia. This is especially true in other areas with much colder climates.
So, let me be among the first to give a hearty congratulations to the people of Albuquerque New Mexico. As reported by KREQ they have now made it a law to provide shelter for animals left out in the cold. And it’s not just a suggestion! Refusal to provide an outside pet with an insulated dog house will result in a citation, a court appearance, a $500 ticket and potentially 90 days in jail.
This is great news! It’s a common misconception that dogs and cats won’t get cold because of their fur. If you are cold, your companion animal is cold. Most domestic cats and dogs are not well equipped for cold weather and can easily be susceptible to frostbite and hypothermia.
The Albuquerque Animal Welfare Department is taking it a step further, and urging anyone who sees a dog outside without protection from the elements to immediately report the violation to ABQ Animal Welfare Department.
This type regulation has been a long time coming and surely needs to be followed by more states around the country. The best place for any companion animal is inside your home. And if at all possible, even outside animals should be moved inside, especially during cold weather.
I hope everyone will take note of this on our next cold snap. Bundle them babies up, they get just as cold as you do, and they depend on you for all of their comfort, love and needs.
