Overheating, dehydration, and heat stroke can happen more easily when the temperature rises. Follow these tips to keep your pet comfortable and beat the heat.

  1. Never leave your pet in a parked car – even for just a few minutes! On a warm day, even with the windows cracked, the temperature can rapidly exceed 120° Fahrenheit. Read our blog on heat stroke to learn more.
  2. Always provide your pet with access to cool, fresh, clean water.
  3. Make sure outdoor pets have adequate shade options.
  4. Hot surfaces such as asphalt can cause your pet to get hot (and also can burn the paw pads).
  5. Keep dogs from over-exerting themselves or being over-exercised in the heat.
  6. Pets that are geriatric, overweight, have heart or lung disease, or are a breed with a flat face (Pugs, Bull-dogs, Persian cats, for example) should be kept indoors in air-conditioning as much as possible.
  7. Cooling outdoor pets off with supervised water activities can be fun, but be sure to take precautions. Not all dogs are good swimmers – flotation devices might be something to consider. Additionally, if your dog is swimming in a pool, do not allow him/ her to drink from the pool and rinse the dog off after swimming to remove the chemicals. Visit our page on water safety for more information.

~​Author: Dr. C. Noureddine, DVM, MS