Tesla Is Now Adding A ‘Dog Mode’ Function To Help Owners And Dogs Alike

Tesla is set to roll out at least two new Enhanced Autopilot features this week, one of which has been aptly named ‘Dog Mode’.

Taking to Twitter, Tesla chief executive Elon Musk said that a ‘Sentry Mode’ will also be introduced. Both of these were first pitched to Musk over social media.

Starting with ‘Dog Mode’, Twitter user Josh Atchley pitched the idea to Musk on October 18 last year, stating his desire for a mode that will leave a Tesla’s air conditioning and music on while in park, allowing the owner to leave a dog alone in the vehicle. Atchley also said it could be a good idea to have a message displayed on the infotainment screen saying “I’m fine, my owner will be right back.”

Sentry Mode (and Dog Mode) roll out next week

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 7, 2019

Musk hasn’t stated whether these features will be found in ‘Dog Mode’, other than revealing that a similar feature is on the way. It seems likely that ‘Dog Mode’ will also double as a feature that will aid children left in hot cars. Which shouldn’t happen anyway, but it’s good to have something to mitigate against horrible parenting skills.

As for ‘Sentry Mode’, the idea behind it came from Twitter user Andy Sutton on January 22, who requested a “360 dash cam feature while parked.” This piece of tech is expected to make use of the plethora of exterior cameras found on Tesla vehicles to continuously monitor what’s happening around the vehicle when it’s parked. Sutton requested the feature after his Tesla was damaged while parked.

As per usual Tesla practice, ‘Dog Mode’ and ‘Sentry Mode’ will be introduced via an over-the-air update.