Phoenix: Dog dies after owner flouts heatwave hiking ban | US News

A dog died after its owner disregarded a ban on walking pups on hiking trails when the temperatures exceeds 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

The dog died of a heat-related illness while a 29-year-old man took it on a hike in north Phoenix, officials said.

Around 11am on Wednesday, the hiker called 911 to report that his two dogs were having symptoms caused by the heat.

Phoenix Fire Department crew members found the man and his dogs roughly 300 yards from the Piestewa Peak trailhead.

One of the canines was already dead at the scene.

Firefighters managed to cool the other dog down and it survived the episode.

The man violated a 2016 ban enacted by Phoenix on walking dogs on hiking trails in temperatures over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The penalties for violations include possible jail time and fines of a maximum of $2,500.

He was ‘issued a citation in lieu of detention’ for animal neglect.

The man has been identified as Daniel Milunovic, according to AZ Family.

Dogs are permitted on many trails in Phoenix when the temperature is under 100 degrees. However, dogs are not allowed on the Piestewa Peak Summit Trial any time of the year, according to the city’s website.

The temperature near the peak was recorded at 99 and 100 degrees when firefighters responded to Milunovic’s call, and the incident remains under investigation.

Milunovic’s dog is not the only pup that has died in the heatwave that has enveloped much of the south and west this summer.

On Monday, a one-and-a-half-year-old Doberman died while on a hiking trail on South Mountain, according to the Arizona Humane Society.

In another heat-related incident, a pit bull that was left by its owner in her hot car for more than 20 hours while she worked was found dead the next day. The temperature in Hollywood, Florida, that day, June 18, hit a high of 91 degrees Fahrenheit.

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