A Bensalem man faces multiple felony charges after he left his pitbull mix inside his car while he was gambling at Parx Casino on Sunday. The dog later died.
Andrew Deshield, 62, was allegedly inside the Bensalem casino when police rescued his dog, “Gucci,” from inside the car in the parking lot, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Police rushed the dog to a Middletown animal hospital where the dog had a temperature of 108 degrees, above the normal range of 100 to 103.8 degrees.
A Bensalem man is facing felony animal cruelty charges after he left his dog in his car while gambling at Parx Casino and she died.
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Gucci was also dehydrated, his gums were discolored and he showed signs of neurological issues as a result of his high body temperature, the affidavit said. Those symptoms are possible signs of heat stroke in dogs, according to PetMD.com.
The high temperature on Sunday was 88 degrees and at that temperature, a parked car’s interior can quickly reach temperatures exceeding 120-degrees, according to Kids and Care Safety.
DeShield allegedly refused further treatment at the hospital, stopped all care and took the dog home.
On Monday, police, Bensalem animal control and the Bucks County SPCA followed up with DeShield, who was staying at a Bensalem hotel, who informed them that Gucci had died. He died of complications from heat stroke, according to the SPCA.
Deshield left the dead dog in the back of his car, where the SPCA took custody so he could be properly disposed, the affidavit said.
Deshield was arrested and arraigned June 30 before District Judge Joseph Falcone on three felony charges of aggravated cruelty to animals and related misdemeanors.
He was sent to Bucks County Correctional Center in lieu of $200,000 bail. He had no legal representative listed as of July 1, according to the docket.
Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Bensalem man charged when dog dies after being left in car at Parx