By "terminate", we mean put an end to the practice of leaving animals inside unattended vehicles. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed into law a bill that makes it a crime for pet owners to leave their pets alone in vehicles, where they could die from overheating during hot weather. The penalty for the crime would be a $500 fine and/or six months in jail.

According to the Stanford University School of Medicine, temperatures inside cars rise dramatically even on mild days. Even if outside temperature is as low as 72 degrees, a car's interior temperature heats up by an average of 40 degrees within an hour. The study also showed a cracked window had no effect on the rate of heating and the final internal temperature after an hour.

Pets are susceptible to overheating because most animals, like dogs, are designed to conserve heat and do not  have sweat glands to help cool them down. And unlike their owners, pets can't roll down windows, turn on the air conditioner or open doors so they can leave the vehicle.