by Dr. Monica Tarantino<\/p>\n
Summer is here and we are so excited. We get to spend a lot more time outdoors with our wonderful animals during the warm summer days.\u00a0 But, there are a lot of things to keep in mind with regards to beating the summertime heat.\u00a0 Some owners are unaware, heat stroke (a potentially deadly condition), and other injuries, like burned paw pads are a frequent occurrence during the summer.<\/p>\n
Our dogs have a limited ability to dissipate heat.\u00a0 One of the most common reasons we see pets on our emergency service\u00a0during the summer is heat stroke.\u00a0 Heat stroke can be a life threatening condition where a dog is unable to lower it\u2019s body\u00a0temperature after being outside and overexposed. This can happen to dogs even at temperatures as low as 75 degrees for some breeds, ages, or during exercise<\/strong>. These animals may show signs such as weakness, collapse, excessive drooling\/panting. If this condition is allowed to progress without intervention, heat damage can occur to vital organs, and in severe cases cause death. One study showed a survival rate of 50% in our canine heat stroke patients.<\/em>\u00a0 No joking matter. For this reason it is best to limit your animal\u2019s exposure to the warm weather. We can do this by only exercising our pets during cooler hours of the day. This mostly restricts activity to mornings and evenings, and avoids the mid-day heat. This is especially the case for overweight dogs, older dogs, dogs with thick fur coats and the breeds with shorter faces (Bulldogs, Sharpei\u2019s, etc.). If they do need to be outside during a warmer day keep reading for more tips!<\/p>\n It simply gets too hot in the middle of day to leave dogs outside for extended periods of time.\u00a0 Shade and water help, but the risk of heat stroke pertains even to sedentary dogs simply being left outside in hot temperatures.\u00a0 Have a brachycephalic breed (like a Pug, Bulldog, Boston Terrier, etc.) or an obese dog?\u00a0 Then your pet is likely less able to dissipate heat as well. This applies to breeds with thick fluffy coats as well as dogs prone to airway disorders like older Labradors with laryngeal paralysis.<\/p>\n During the day the pavement heats up to the point that it can burn your pets paw pads.\u00a0 I\u2019ll never forget the first dog I saw come into the clinic with raw, blistering pads a day after a long midday walk on a hot summer day. \u00a0It can make the owners feel terrible as they don\u2019t often realize how hot the pavement gets when you don\u2019t have shoes on your feet. Often dogs will keep following their owners despite the pain.\u00a0 That is how loyal our companion animals can be! To help prevent this, place a barefoot or your hand on the black pavement for 30 seconds and see if you can tolerate it.\u00a0 If you can, then it\u2019s probably ok to walk.\u00a0 Another tip is to always give your dog the option of walking on grass instead.<\/p>\n2. Keep backyard outings short, shaded and hydrated:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
3. Paw Pads burn on Hot Pavement:<\/strong><\/h3>\n
4. No pets left in cars please:<\/strong><\/h3>\n