Shropshire firefighters to the rescue after dogs lock THEMSELVES in hot car

It happened in Wistanswick, near Market Drayton, this morning, after the owner of the car closed the car doors while they quickly carried some items from the car to the house before letting the dogs - Jaffa, Becksi and Lilah -out.

A Market Drayton fire station spokesman said: "What they did not know was that the keys to the car had dropped from their pocket and fell on to the driver's seat. Before they realised what had happened one of the dogs had managed to press the lock button on the key fob thus locking all the doors.

"The owner and a friend had done all they could prior to ringing the fire service to try and gain entry to the car, due to the car being parked in direct sunlight and the temperature rising in the car they rang 999.

"On arrival crews found the owner spraying the car with a hose pipe to try and cool it down.

"After discussion with the owner and after exhausting all other options, crews broke the rear quarter light of the driver's side thus allowing them to reach in and with some effort and dexterity reach the handle to wind down the passenger window allowing a member of the crew to lean in and retrieve the keys."

All three of the dogs were quickly reunited with their owner and after a drink and a cool down showed no ill effects from their unscheduled lock-in.

The spokesman added: "Lilah the poodle, who was the guilty party in pressing the key fob, was a little camera shy and declined to pose for pictures."