An Illinois father, Steve Serota, has spoken of his devastation after his six-year-old Labrador, Miller, died on 2 September after being left inside a van all day at Waggles Pet Resort in Chicago, on one of the hottest days of the year. Serota said Miller was dropped off around 9am as usual, but was not found until roughly 4pm, when the resort's owner called to say the dog had died after being left in the vehicle. The case has drawn attention because the owner has since been arrested and charged with cruelty to animals, and because the business has continued operating despite the death.

Serota said temperatures reached 97°F (about 36°C) that day and that Miller, a 110lb dog, was in plain view in the first crate of the van when he was discovered, leaving him baffled as to how staff could have missed him. Ross Miehaus, the pet resort's owner, turned himself in and was arrested on a charge of cruel treatment of animals, according to ABC 7. Waggles issued a statement calling the death heartbreaking and "unacceptable", said it was pausing its chauffeur pick-up service pending a review, but said pending legal proceedings limited what more it could say. Serota, who works in healthcare, criticised the company for not visibly conducting a root-cause investigation before continuing to operate.