A woman has appeared in court on four animal cruelty charges over the deaths of four dogs she left in a hot car while eating inside a nearby restaurant.

According to local police in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, Tesia White left the dogs in a car with the windows up and the air conditioning on. She claims she went back to check on them during the hour she was having lunch, but that when she returned to the car after her meal, the animals were in distress.

In a recorded 911 call, a person can be heard describing the scene: “I’m outside of Corkscrew Bar and Grill on Canal Street and we have four dogs on the side.

“They accidentally turned the air conditioning off in the car and they were trapped in a hot car and now they’re all laying on their side and none of them are moving.

“We’re pouring water on them but they look unconscious.”

Police claim that when they arrived on the scene, Ms White was herself visibly distressed as she cradled one of the dogs, saying “I should not be allowed to own a dog” and “I cannot believe I let this happen”.

The police force later released body camera footage of Ms White being arrested at the scene.

As reported by Newsweek, the dogs were “a four-year-old Goldendoodle, two approximately 12-week-old Goldendoodle puppies, and a two-year-old Boxer.”