What should have been a routine vet visit turned into a turning point in German holidaymaker Sandra W.’s trip.
What she learned at the practice, and later witnessed on the streets of Pula, left her so furious that on 11 August 2025, she took to Facebook to speak her mind, striking a chord with many animal lovers.
Heatwave with deadly consequences
Croatia and much of Europe were experiencing extreme temperatures that posed dangers not just to humans but also to dogs. Yet many owners still took their pets out on long day trips in the scorching sun.
Sandra W. shared her experience in a Facebook group for Croatian holidaymakers: “I went to the vet today to collect tablets for my dog.” There, she was asked how her pet was coping with the heat, a seemingly innocent question that revealed a shocking story.
She explained that her dog was only walked in the cool morning and evening hours. “As any sensible person should do,” she later reported online. What the vet told her next left her deeply shaken.
English Bulldog dies on day trip
Not every holidaymaker was so careful. An English Bulldog had died shortly before because its owners had taken it out all day in the heat. As Sandra left the practice, she saw a couple sitting on the steps, tears streaming down their faces, the owners of the deceased Bulldog. The sight haunted her.
Later, during a stroll through Pula, she saw countless dogs in distress, dragged through the searing heat by their owners.
The exhausted animals had their heads hanging low, tongues almost touching the ground. “The animals looked utterly spent while their owners were busy with their phones or window shopping,” she complained, before asking furiously: “How mindlessly stupid can people be?”
She urged that anyone who cares about their dog should keep outings to cooler hours and always provide shade and water. Summer temperatures can quickly become life-threatening for pets.
