Summer is here and temperatures are soaring! While Summer is a fun season filled with lots of outside activities with your dog, it’s also time to protect your pet.
Dogs are unable to regulate their body temperature like humans can, so it’s very important to keep your dog cool in warm weather. Here are 10 tips to keep your dog cool in the summer heat.
1. Walk your dog early in the morning or late evening when the temperature is cooler. Bring water with you to keep your dog from dehydrating.
2. Walk on the grass. Pavement, asphalt, wood, metal, and sand a can become very hot during the summer months and can burn your pet's paws. If it feels too hot for your bare feet then it's too hot for your dog's paws.
3. Provide plenty of water and shade. Make sure your dog has a shady place to get out of the sun and keep the dog bowl filled with cool water.
4. Apply pet sunscreen to your dog’s easily burned areas: nose, earflaps, and belly. The safest and most effective sunscreen to put on your dogs is one that is specifically made for canine use.
5. If your dog takes a dip in the pool or ocean, make sure you rinse off as soon as possible afterwards to remove chlorine or salt and prevent your dog from drinking pool water, which contains chlorine and other chemicals.
6. Give your dog a cool summer trim. Heavy coated dogs will appreciate a lighter coat when temperatures soar.
7. Never leave your dog alone in the car. On a warm day, temperatures inside a vehicle can rise rapidly to dangerous levels. On an 85 degree day, the temperature inside a car with the windows opened slightly can reach 102 degrees within 10 minutes. After 30 minutes, the temperature will reach 120 degrees.
8. Use screens on your doors and windows. Open windows and doors pose a real danger to pets. Keep all unscreened windows or doors in your home closed, and make sure adjustable screens are secured.
9. Keep careful watch over older or overweight dogs as they are more prone to overheating.
10. Make a cool treat for your dog. Try cooling down your dog with this delicious and healthy FROZEN STRAWBERRY AND BANANA SMOOTHIE DOG TREAT from The Cottage Market. Includes video.
