Summer can be a great time to get out and about with your beloved animals. However, it can also be a dangerous time for pets due to the extreme temperatures. Here are a few summer safety tips to help you and your animals enjoy the summertime while also staying safe.
Plan Your Walks Accordingly
The first step towards enjoying any summertime activity with your pet is to plan accordingly. Check the weather forecast and adjust your plans as needed. If the skies are predicted to be clear and the temperatures high, plan to take your dog somewhere with plenty of shade or water.
If you’re only able to get your dog out for a stroll through the neighborhood on a certain day, try to get them out early in the morning or later in the evening when the temperatures are not as intense.
Whatever activities you have planned, always be prepared with the necessary supplies and don’t push it too hard. A 90 degree day is not the best day to take your dog out for their usual 5 mile run. Maybe dial it back and only do a couple of miles at the crack of dawn, or find a more appropriate activity like a swim at the lake or something. Whatever it is, don’t get caught out in the heat unprepared, away from home or your vehicle. Remember that if you have to walk a mile to get from your home to the park, you’ll also have to walk another mile to get back home. Leave early enough to avoid the hottest parts of the day and be prepared.
Have Plenty of Water Available
An essential part of being prepared during hot days is to have plenty of water available for you and your pet. Obviously, you’ll want to have plenty of it to drink, but you can also help your pet stay cool by pouring it over their body.
Dogs and cats don’t sweat like we do, but they do lose heat through the hairless areas of their bodies, like the insides of their ears or the pads of their paws, as well as through panting. Obviously, you don’t want to be pouring water straight into their ears (which can lead to ear infections), but you can pour some cold water on your hands and then rub that on the inside flap of their ears. This is something you can do periodically while you’re out to help their body dissipate excess heat. Use this same technique to wet around their muzzle, nose, and the rest of their head, even around their lips and gums.
And don’t forget a nice cool splash on their back, belly, and limbs!
Use Proper Protection
There are other forms of protection that can really help your pet to stay comfortable during hot days. Doggy shoes or some sort of paw coverings can really help if you are going to be walking on pavement, asphalt, or even trails. Exposed areas of ground soak up the sun’s heat and can get much hotter than you might think. The easiest way to measure this is to just kick off your shoes and see how your own bare feet feel on the ground. While your pet’s paws are probably more used to being exposed to different elements than your feet are, a good rule of thumb is that if it’s too hot for you to walk barefoot, it’s too hot for them.
Another form of protection that may be necessary for short-coated or hairless dogs is sunscreen. Yes, dogs can sunburn if their skin is exposed. Common areas that can suffer from burns are on the top of their nose, their back, and their belly. If you can see your dog’s skin, slather some sunscreen on it if you plan to be out for a while!
Don’t Leave an Animal in the Car
The next summer safety rule is to never leave them unattended in a car! Car rides with the windows down or with the A/C blasting are all good and fun activities for many dogs, but you should never leave them unattended while you run errands. Even if it’s only 75 degrees out, it can take only about 10 minutes for the temperature inside your car to reach 100 degrees! When it’s even hotter outside, temperatures inside cars can easily reach upwards of 120 degrees or more. This is plenty hot for animals to develop heat stroke or suffer from irreparable organ failure in a very short amount of time.
Your best bet is to just not chance it! Leave your pet at home while you run your errands.
Know the Symptoms of Heat Stroke
Heatstroke can happen fast, so you need to be monitoring your animal regularly when they’re exposed to the heat. This is especially true if they’re very young, older, or not in prime health.
One of the first signs you may notice is a general sense of discomfort and restlessness, usually accompanied by heavy panting and bright red gums. If left unchecked this can progress to trouble breathing, heavy drooling, vomiting, or diarrhea, and in the critical stages of heat stroke you may see disorientation and confusion, lethargy, and fainting.
If any one of these symptoms is seen, immediate action is necessary! For earlier symptoms, you’ll want to get your pet to a cooler place, provide them with water, and even put a cool wet towel over their body if you have one available (another good reason to have an ample supply of water on you). You’ll also want to get them to a veterinarian ASAP to determine whether or not any lasting damage has been done. Act quickly because by the time you’re seeing disorientation and lethargy it may be a sign that their organs are failing and too late to do anything to reverse it.
And for cats, heavy panting is never a good sign as it signals extreme stress. If you see this, take immediate action to get your cat somewhere cooler and less stressful.
Or, better yet, avoid putting your pet in danger by planning your outings appropriately and being prepared with all the necessary supplies. Proper summer safety preparations can save lives!
