Las Vegas official adopts dog rescued from scorching hot car

LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officer turned the life-threatening rescue of a dog from a scorching hot car into a heartwarming adoption story.

In a post on the LVMPD

The rescue took place on a sweltering June day in Las Vegas when temperatures soared to 112 degrees. Borja and his partner were walking back to their patrol cars after helping with a doctor’s visit when a tourist alerted them to a dog whining in a nearby parked vehicle, the officer explained.

“As we got closer, we could hear the dog whining,” Borja said. In the car they found the small dog locked in an open box without a collar or water. The windows had a gap of no more than one centimeter, so the dog was exposed to the intense heat, Borja explained.

Borja and his partner acted quickly. After breaking a window to unlock the car, Borja retrieved the overheated dog and sought water from a casino attendant nearby.

“I couldn’t believe it,” said Borja. “The dog drank almost an entire 12-ounce cup of water.”

After the rescue, the dog was taken to a local animal shelter for care. But Borja said he couldn’t shake the bond he felt. He began inquiring about adoption.

“I probably stopped by every day, called the shelter and even went there,” Borja said. On the day the dog was put up for adoption, Borja and his wife arrived at the shelter three hours before it opened and were eager to bring the dog home.

“I hoped that if he couldn’t come home with me, he would at least go to a good home,” Borja said. His persistence paid off, however, as Borja remembered meeting another potential user in line. “It’s a first-come, first-served basis,” Borja recalls, noting that he was first in line to pick up the puppy.

Eventually, Borja and his wife welcomed the rescued dog, now named Theodore, a cocker spaniel puppy, into their family. As Borja reflected on the experience, he expressed his gratitude. “Every day I think about how much better his life is now,” he said.