Florida woman left puppy in hot truck for over an hour while she went shopping: police

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A 34-year-old Florida woman was arrested Tuesday after police said she left her puppy in a hot truck for over an hour while she went shopping.

The Collier County Sheriff’s Office said Ginobeba Obregon, 34, left her 6-month-old schnauzer named “Bigotes” inside her truck for at least an hour and 15 minutes.

When deputies arrived at the Davis Village shopping plaza Sunday evening, Bigotes was sitting on the armrest “panting heavily” as the truck’s engine was off and the windows were slightly cracked.

Deputies said it was a scorching 110 degrees inside the vehicle.

According to the sheriff’s office, Obregon said she had only left the puppy inside the truck for about 30 minutes while she shopped at a boutique inside the plaza; however, a concerned citizen told deputies she first saw the dog inside the truck around 12:54 p.m.

The citizens took a picture of the truck and tried to find the owner. When she returned to the vehicle around 1:56 p.m., the puppy was still in distress and that’s when she called CCSO.

Firefighters worked with the deputies to get Bigotes out of the hot truck. Luckily, the pup was not injured and appeared to be in good health following the incident.

“It is never OK to leave a pet inside a hot vehicle,” Collier County Sheriff Kevin Rambosk said. “Leaving pets inside a hot vehicle even for a few minutes can be deadly. We thank the concerned citizen who saw the puppy in distress inside the hot truck and reported it to law enforcement.”

Detectives arrested Obregon at her home on Tuesday. She was charged with animal cruelty.

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