Worrying about how to protect your dog from summer heat? This is a season to spend lots of time outdoors playing with your dog, but since dogs don’t sweat they don’t have an efficient system to handle heat. They easily get hot and are prone to getting a heatstroke even after a small walk in the sun.
Dogs often cool themselves off through their nose, tongues and paws so dogs with smaller snouts like pugs and bulldogs especially feel the heat in summers. The signs of a heatstroke in a dog are:
- Confused behavior.
- Excessive panting
- Heavy bags under the eyes
- High temperature
- Vomiting
- Bluish gums and tongue
You can take small, regular precautions to protect your dog from summer heat.
- Don’t spend too much time under the sun. If you want avoid summer heat then stay away from home. You can either remain indoors or play under shades. If you have to go to a park then play where there are lots of trees.
- Keep fresh, cool water always available. Dogs tend to drink lots of water in summer so keep the bowl filled all the time.
- Let him have a splash. Get a plastic pool and let your dog frolic in it. Dogs love to play in water and this also keeps their body cool. You can also visit the nearby pond. In fact many neighborhoods these days are coming up with specialized swimming pools for dogs.
- Trim the fur. You can trim down your dog’s fur to make it lighter and let the air flow freely. Heavy fur is good for winter but it can trap lots of heat in summer.
- Don’t make your dog walk on hot surfaces. In summers roads and pavements get unbearably hot and dogs have extremely sensitive paws (in fact dogs can sweat through their paws).
- Never leave your dog in the parking lot. Many dogs die of heat strokes when their owners leave them in the parking lots. Parked cars can quickly get burning hot even if you have rolled down the windows because of their metallic bodies.
- Keep your dog in shade. If your dog lives outside of your house then make sure the dog house has lots of shade around it. You can move the dog house to a cooler place or you can repeatedly sprinkle lots of water around it.
Small, daily steps can keep your adorable pet safe from scorching summer heats. Dogs are sturdy animals, but there are many varieties that require some extra protection from heat.
