Hot weather always bothered Cassie, causing her to pant loudly, and search for sources of water to lie in. And of course, she wanted to go with us everywhere. So what did I do?
- Buy a kiddy swimming pool and change the water daily. Cassie loved to lie in her pool, using it as her walk in water dish.
Cassie in her kiddy pool. - Take your dog swimming – but be careful of water appearing bright green, which could indicate blue-green algae. Drinking blue-green algae water can get your dog very sick or even be fatal.
- We often planned creek walks on warm days so Cassie could cool down in the creek periodically during a long hike.
- Buy a cool bed – a water bed for your dog http://www.pets2bed.com/site/1405195/product/PET02-cool-dog-bed . I have several and use them for warm car rides, or for lying around in the kitchen. Store the bed in a cool place, such as in the basement. The bed has little cooling effect once it warms.
- Keep your dog in the shade. I once had a black dog that rested in each shady spot as I tried to take her for a walk. Black dogs get a lot hotter than light coated dogs. Chipper has large black sections, which feel significantly warmer than his white areas.
- Offer lots of water. When I walked Cassie over 3 miles each way to work, I offered her water on warm days. At home keep their water dish full of cool water.
- Consider shaving your pet. For some (like Cassie) shaving her fur made a huge difference in her tolerance of the heat during long walks. It also removes mats and makes it easier to find fleas and ticks.
- Keep a fan blowing on the kitchen floor. I do this on days when it’s not quite hot enough to run the air conditioner. The dogs can choose to lie in front of the fan to cool down if they choose.
Mitch stands by while Cassie rolls in a Colorado mountain snow pack in June. - If you’re hiking in the mountains and find a snow pack—by all means let your dog have a good roll to cool down!
