Puppies die in hot car parked at Orange County hotel, deputies say

Woman arrested on animal cruelty charges

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A woman is facing charges after she left three puppies in a hot car for hours, two of which died, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies said guests at Quality Inn and Suites on Turkey Lake Road noticed three puppies locked inside a brown Dodge Durango shortly before 9 a.m. Tuesday and notified an employee, who then called authorities.

The vehicle's windows were cracked open, but the engine was not running, the report said.

"There's several dogs locked in a car. They've got the windows cracked and there's no one around that owns the dogs and they think one of the dogs is dead. A guest happened to notice it," a hotel employee told a 911 operator.

When deputies arrived, they said guests were pulling out two puppies that were alive but weak and lethargic. The third puppy was found dead in a dog carrier, according to the affidavit.

First responders gave the puppies oxygen and water until animal services arrived.

Deputies said 3-month-old shepherd mix Kiara died Tuesday afternoon. The dog that died in the vehicle was a 6-month-old Chihuahua named Minnie. Gruff, a 6-month-old terrier mix, will hopefully recover, deputies said.

Hotel staff told deputies the vehicle belonged to guest Penelope Stanley, the report said. She said she checked on the dogs around 6:30 a.m. and they seemed fine, according to authorities.

She was arrested on three counts of animal cruelty.

Daniela Alzate said this morning her mother woke her up, letting her know there were three puppies found inside a hot vehicle.

"I was just like, 'Puppies! I'm going!' So, I woke up, ran out," said Alzate. "Some kids were crying because they saw some puppies in the car. Once I came out running, we just saw the one you said just passed away, was just trying to breathe."

Alzate said that she is a former lifeguard and currently studying medicine. She said her training jumped into action.

"I just ran inside, grabbed water, and then I kind of got my CPR just kicked in right away and I just started doing a little bit of CPR on the one that passed away," said Alzate.

News 6 showed Alzate a photo that was taken by the Orange County Sheriff's Office.

"This one was following me everywhere. It was just running after me. I live in Texas and if I was able to adopt it, I would have taken that puppy," said Alzate.


Gruff, the lone survivor of the puppies is heading to a specialized animal rescue, authorities said. 

OCSO filed three additional charges of misdemeanor confinement of animals without food or water against Stanley Wednesday.


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