Two men were arrested Thursday after the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said they left two dogs and two pigeons trapped inside the metal cargo area of a U-Haul truck while outside temperatures hit 102 degrees.

Deputies responded to a RaceTrac at 301 Palm Coast Parkway Northeast after a driver called in what the Sheriff’s Office described as a “See Something, Say Something” tip. The caller reported seeing a dog trying to climb out of the back of a U-Haul as it drove down the road with its roll-up door slightly open, calling the sight “terrible.”

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What Deputies Found

Deputies located the truck at the RaceTrac and spoke with the driver, identified as Angel Valdes, 70, of Miami. When asked whether his dogs were in distress, Valdes said no and told deputies they “just needed water.” At the back of the truck, deputies could see two large noses pushing through a gap under the door.

When deputies opened the door, they found two dogs panting heavily inside. A 70-pound pit bull mix was struggling to stand, and an 80-pound English bulldog could not stand at all. Both dogs were lying in their own urine and had to be lifted out because they could not get out on their own. Deputies gave them water, which they drank right away.

The family told deputies they were moving from Miami to Savannah, Georgia, and had put the dogs in the cargo box because their other vehicle felt too crowded. Deputies determined there was, in fact, room for both dogs in the family’s other vehicle.

Palm Coast Animal Control responded and found the dogs were suffering from neglect and needed a veterinarian right away. While showing Animal Control the area where the dogs had been kept, deputies heard chirping coming from a closed storage box with no air holes. Inside were two full-grown pigeons, which Animal Control also found to be in distress from a lack of air and water.

Animal Control took custody of both dogs and both pigeons and brought them to East Coast Animal Hospital for emergency treatment.

Arrests and Response

Deputies arrested Valdes and his son, Roy Valdes Hernandez, 35, also of Miami, on charges of animal cruelty. Both were taken to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility and later released on $500 bond each.

Sheriff Rick Staly commented on the arrests and the ongoing heat wave. “If you wouldn’t ride in a metal box in 102-degree heat with no air, don’t force an animal to do it,” Staly said. “This family had room to bring their dogs up front, but chose to let them cook in the back of a U-Haul instead. Remember, if it has a heartbeat don’t leave it unattended in any vehicle, especially in the current heat wave we are having.”

The Sheriff’s Office is urging residents not to leave anything with a heartbeat inside a hot vehicle, whether it’s a child or a pet, noting that temperatures inside a closed vehicle or cargo space can turn deadly within minutes.