Paulina Rubio Learns the Hard Way: Hot Cars Can Be Deadly for Dogs

Have you ever imagined what it’s like to be trapped inside a metal coffin while you cook from the inside out? Multitalented singer and actor Paulina Rubio has—that’s why she teamed up with PETA to make a video about the dangers that dogs face when they’re left in a hot car, even for “just a minute.”

In the video, a driver parks a car in the sun and leaves Paulina locked inside with a window slightly open. At first, it’s no problem, but as the temperature climbs, she knows she’s in trouble. She tries the rear doors and windows, to no avail, and then scrambles into the driver’s seat to try the front. Another dead end! Desperate for some relief, she presses her parched lips to the cracked window. Her life apparently hangs in the balance as the video ends.

Dogs, who regulate their body temperature only by panting or by sweating through their paw pads, can sustain brain damage or die from heatstroke in just 15 minutes in such conditions.

If you see a dog locked inside a hot car, take action. Have local businesses page the vehicle’s owner, and if the right person can’t be located, call the authorities, including emergency personnel. Don’t leave until help arrives—and if it doesn’t get there fast enough, find witnesses who will back your assessment of the situation and then take measures to free the dog. Do whatever it takes.