Oscar gift bags included a tiny hammer for smashing car windows

Every year at the Academy Awards, major nominees are showered with attention, including opulent “gift baskets” delivered to their homes. (Because how are you going to heft all those items to your limo otherwise?)

This year’s unofficial Oscars swag bags, valued at over $200,000 each, were put together by marketing agency Distinctive Assets. Items in the complimentary gift collection included free plastic surgery, food deliveries, pampering products, clothes and shoes, cookies, vacations, tech gadgets, fitness training sessions, renovation consultation and more. But one less traditional item in the 2021 gift basket was a keychain with a little hammer attached.

The “emergency hammer” giveaway comes from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and was included to raise awareness of dogs trapped in hot cars. MSN reports that the keychain reads, “The Car Is Insured — the Dog Is Irreplaceable.”

Distinctive Assets’ Lash Fary demonstrated how to use the hammer to help an overheating dog in the YouTube video below.

First, he goes through what to do before breaking a car’s window. Check if climate control is running in the car. Go into the nearest stores to page the car owner after taking note of the car’s make and model. Call animal control if the dog’s owner isn’t reachable, then 911 if animal control can’t come right away. Finally, if all that fails, go ahead and use the small hammer to break a car window away from the dog to get in and let the dog out.

While us non-Academy Award nominees can’t get the exact PETA hammer featured in this year’s opulent Oscar swag bags, PETA does have another emergency hammer for sale. It also seems like a good thing to have on hand if YOU are trapped in your car and can’t open the doors somehow.

Just note that California, where the Oscars are held, is one of only 11 states that allow people to rescue distressed dogs in cars, as The Dogington Post put it, “by any means necessary” — specifically, by breaking and entering. You can check on the laws in your state here regarding helping animals trapped in cars.