Summer has gotten off to a great start this year! I hope you are all enjoying and taking advantage of this warm weather. However, this heat does come with some challenges when it comes to taking care of our dog friends. We have complied a list of tips and tricks to keep your pups safe this summer!
- Limit your walks to early mornings or evenings to avoid that mid day heat. And always walk with water for them to drink.
- Pavement test– If you cannot stand on the pavement in your bare feet, it is too hot for your dogs’ paws!
- Shorten your walks, increase mental stimulation! If its too hot to take your dog for a long walk replace that physical exercise with mental exercise. Food puzzles, foraging games, training exercises are all great ways to tire our pups!
- Hydrate! Make sure your dogs have access to fresh cool water at all times. If you notice your dog isn’t drinking enough water, try spiking it with beef or chicken broth! Want to go the extra mile? Homemade beef/chicken broth popsicles are always a hit!
- Never, ever leave your dog in a hot vehicle. Even 5 minutes is too long. Did you know that life threatening heat stroke can occur within 10 minutes or less of a dog being stuck in a hot car?
- Don’t shave your dog! While it seems intuitive to shave our long coated dogs to help keep them cool, it actually does the opposite! Those big double coats are performing double duty; keeping them warm in the winter and cool in the summer! By shaving them down we are removing one of their defenses from the heat!
- Bring out the kiddie pool! For those water loving dogs, invest in a plastic kiddie pool for the backyard. Make it extra fun by putting in ice cubes, broth cubes, carrots etc and watch them bob for them! If they really love the water- bring out that sprinkler and watch them chase and chomp the water!
This article was originally published in https://delta.experiencebc.ca/keep-your-fur-family-cool/