As supermodel Elisabetta Canalis so memorably demonstrated recently, leaving a dog in your car on a hot summer day is a bad idea.

But what if you just want to run in for a second and grab something? Still a bad idea, but thanks to a new invention, you can get a potentially life-saving text warning if you take too much time running your errand.

The project, an Internet-connected dog collar from Rethink Toronto on behalf of the Toronto Humane Society, uses a coded chip, a SIM card and a thermistor to send a text when the temperature eclipses 26 degrees Celsius (about 79 degrees Fahrenheit) around the dog. Rethink told the Toronto Star the the "Dog Caller" should be available next year for around $20.

What do you think? Would you use a dog collar like this? Let us know in the comments.



