{"id":83,"date":"2020-08-07T05:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-08-07T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cdblogdev.frontrowdigital.com\/index.php\/2020\/08\/07\/you-don-t-have-to-be-on-the-grill-to-be-a-hot-dog\/"},"modified":"2026-03-20T01:03:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T01:03:11","slug":"dogs-overheating-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/pet-parenting\/dogs-overheating-summer","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t sweat the summer: How to keep your pet cool when it\u2019s hot."},"content":{"rendered":"

The park at noon. On a blazing sidewalk with no water. At home with no A\/C. Overheating can happen anywhere during the not-so-dog-friendly dog days of summer. And with sweat glands only in their feet, canines aren\u2019t exactly well-equipped for cooling off. That\u2019s why it\u2019s on us humans to look out for them, but luckily there are a lot of things you can do (and buy) to help.<\/p>\n

For starters, no one likes wearing a heavy winter coat in the summer. Help your long-haired breed lighten up with a summer grooming<\/u><\/a> appointment. Start with a haircut, but if they experience \u201ccoat blow\u201d (AKA excessive shedding), add a hand-pruning session to remove dead hair.<\/p>\n

Hydration is key, so keep their water bowl full inside and out of the house. Carry water for walks too\u2014if they don\u2019t want to drink it, make like a team that just won the Super Bowl and pour it all over your dog\u2019s neck and chest. If they\u2019re not drinking enough, try some frozen treats, like tasty bone broth<\/u><\/a>.<\/p>\n

The rule of thumb for summer walks and playtime? If it\u2019s too hot for you to exercise, it\u2019s too hot for them. Use your hand to test the pavement for 5 seconds. If it\u2019s burning, it\u2019s not safe for paws. \u00a0Take them out once the temp drops, give them lots of rest breaks and consider a cooling dog jacket for a little extra comfort. You can even turn your backyard into a doggie oasis with a kiddie pool or even just a sprinkler and garden hose.<\/span><\/p>\n

Think about your furry roommate before you turn the air conditioning down as you leave. Houses can get steamy in the heat of the day, and a slightly higher bill is worth a happier, healthier dog. If you want to make your pet really happy, create a place for them to relax and let the air blow directly on them.<\/p>\n

Now that we\u2019ve covered the do\u2019s here is the absolute biggest don\u2019t\u2014never leave your dog in car.\u00a0 Not even on a mildly warm day. Not even with the windows open. Not even just for a little bit. Cars can get hot extremely fast, with temps rising more than 30 degrees within just ten minutes.<\/p>\n

Not matter how careful you are, it\u2019s important to still be on the watch for heatstroke. Dogs with short snouts (like pugs), elderly dogs, obese dogs, and dogs with very thick coats (like huskies) are especially at risk. Symptoms include excessive drooling, heavy panting, redness of gums, lack of coordination, a dazed demeanor, tremors, shaking, a high temperature (over 102.5\u2014but you\u2019ll need to check it rectally) and skin so dehydrated that it \u201ctents\u201d instead of going down when you lift it from their neck.\u00a0 Heatstroke can be deadly, so go to the vet ASAP at the first signs of distress. Monitor your dog\u2019s temperature with a rectal thermometer and try to reduce core body temperature by immersing them in cold water or spraying them with a hose. Don\u2019t use ice water\u2014it can be too cold and cause other issues. You can also spray the pads of their feet with alcohol to help them sweat more efficiently.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The park at noon. On a blazing sidewalk with no water. At home with no A\/C. Overheating can happen anywhere during the not-so-dog-friendly dog days of summer. And with sweat glands only in…<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-83","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pet-parenting"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":197,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83\/revisions\/197"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.chuckanddons.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}