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Tesla Unveils New Dog Mode to Keep Pets Cool

Tesla's patented Dog Mode feature uses cutting-edge sensors to maintain a comfortable temperature for canines and felines inside the car when you have to run errands or leave the vehicle for whatever reason.

At  UNIBODY Autotech Collision Center in Honolulu, HI, we have seen the stats and too many pets die annually in this country, so this innovation is a big deal indeed.

With the company's latest over-the-air update, Tesla has rolled out a few very useful features that as taken several years took to develop.

These features will use the existing sensors and cameras in all Tesla cars to offer a series of new safety and convenience options that Tesla owners should find very useful.

The first of these is the Dog Mode that features automatic sensors to maintain an ideal temperature for pets inside the automobile when you have to exit the vehicle. The system displays a message in big letters to passers-by who might become somewhat concerned for pets left in the car.

The Dog Mode's message will tell anyone looking inside the vehicle that the owner will return soon and is currently displaying a safe interior temperature. It can be activated via the car's climate control menu, simply by just pressing a button labeled "Dog" as part of the vehicle's Keep Climate On option.

Pets can experience brain damage or even die from heatstroke within just 15-20 minutes. Beating the heat is tough for dogs because they can only cool themselves down by panting. Advice for passers-by tells them to take down the car's color, model, brand and license plate number and call the police, but hopefully this new feature will alleviate this potentially fatal situation.  

Three years ago, Tesla started integrating a Cabin Overheat Protection feature -- a more simplified version of automatic climate control--for when the car is turned off. Dog Mode is an upgrade to this system and offers some user-adjustable settings.

The second new feature announced by Tesla recently is Sentry Mode that activates exterior cameras if it detects anyone near the automobile and will display a message on its central screen notifying anybody who might be looking inside the car that the vehicle is using cameras in order to record them.

With Sentry Mode, if someone breaks a window, the alarm will be activated, and the vehicle will also play loud music. Tesla drivers will need to manually activate the Sentry Mode every time before leaving the vehicle and plug in a USB drive that will upload the video.

Which one of these two updates will be more useful on a daily basis for those who own pets? Either way it's a win-win for Tesla owners and their pets. All major carmakers out there could benefit from a Dog Mode, so hopefully they will bark at their designers to integrate it into their new vehicles.

UNIBODY Autotech Collision Center in Honolulu, HI 96819 

Sources: Tesla News and Fox News