Heat stroke is a rapidly fatal emergency in dogs that is entirely preventable, with outdoor temperatures and vehicle confinement the leading causes of preventable canine death.
Heat stroke causes an intensely distressing death - dogs trapped in hot vehicles pant frantically, salivate, and eventually lose consciousness as their body temperature exceeds survivable limits. Brain damage and multi-organ failure may occur before death. Surviving dogs may have permanent neurological deficits from brain injury. This is perhaps the most preventable acute welfare emergency in companion animal medicine - requiring only the decision not to leave a dog in a car. Public education campaigns save lives by changing the behavior that causes this entirely avoidable suffering.