Dog days can be deadly for pets
Saturday, July 30, 2011
By Linda Wilson Fuoco, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

The dog days of summer are no fun at all for dogs. Dog days are downright deadly when temperatures topping 90 degrees are coupled with high humidity.

I've seen people walking panting dogs during the height of the midday heat. I'd like to stop my car, get out, smack them in the head and ask, "What are you thinking?"

Pablo Wilson Fuoco isn't very happy right now. Our family's thick-coated cocker spaniel has been benched for more than a week because it's too hot to walk. He's clearly under-exercised, bored and annoyingly clingy, but he's panting even inside our air-conditioned house.

I think a breed's long-distant country of origin has current effects. Cocker spaniels were bred in England to hunt birds, for hours on end, in the cooler climes of northern Europe. Pablo is unstoppable on winter walks, and I've never seen him shiver.

In the summer Pablo is eager to walk, but he pants and drools and will stop and sit when he's had enough.

Some dogs would joyfully and endlessly walk or fetch balls until they collapse in extreme heat. That includes Labrador retrievers and golden retrievers. Both breeds hail from cold countries where they were bred to have great endurance and a high tolerance for pain so they could hunt all day. Several years ago, a 2-year-old golden retriever died in Pittsburgh during a five-mile fundraising walk held on a very hot day. The dog gave no signs that he needed to stop.

If you walk dogs in the heat, you must carry water for them and look for the danger signs.

Signs of severe heat stress include heavy panting, increased heart rate, glassy eyes, staggering walk, vomiting and diarrhea, according to a news release from Animal Friends. They may have trouble breathing, have seizures or collapse, a news release from the Western Pennsylvania Humane Society cautions.

Contact a veterinarian immediately. Take immediate steps to cool them down, but the cooling must be gradual. Move the pet out of the sun. Wrap legs and feet with wet towels. Immerse the pet in cool water -- but not ice-cold water. Apply ice packs to the head, neck and chest and provide cool drinking water.

Hot pavement can literally burn the pads of pet feet, according to veterinarians at the Banfield Pet Hospitals. Dogs can't sweat like people and can only cool down through their paw pads and by panting. Walking on hot streets and sidewalks makes it harder for them to cool off.

Here's a tip from me: The Mushers Secret Wax that protects paws from snow and ice in the winter protects against hot pavement and hot sand at the beach. It conditions and softens paw pads that are dry or cracked, and it will not stain furniture, floors or rugs.

Dogs and other animals can die if left outside in extreme heat without shade and water. But dogs and cats can overheat inside houses and apartments that are not air-conditioned, especially pets that are older, overweight or suffering from heart or lung diseases.

Also at high risk are flat-faced animals such as pugs, English bulldogs and Persian cats because they cannot pant and cool off as quickly as animals with long noses.

Years ago, I lived with a pug named Twerp in a house without air conditioning. Morning and night, in extreme heat, she got a quick dip in the bath tub. She liked it so much she would jump into the tub even when it wasn't hot. Twerp lived to be 17 years old.

You can soak towels in cold water, wring them out and put them on tile floors for your pets to lie on, suggests the Humane Society. I can't imagine most cats would like this, but it's worth a shot.

Cooling vests, wraps and mats are sold at the Humane Domain page (store.humanesociety.org)of the Humane Society of the United States. Dogs can lie on the Keep Cool Mat ($24.95-$54.95) that uses water-absorbent crystal beads to keep pets cool while keeping their fur dry. After soaking the mat in water for 15-20 minutes, the mat stays plumped up for up to three days.

Police officers and humane officers from animal shelters are working long hours investigating reports of animals left outside in the sun. Some of those owners will be prosecuted.

Never leave pets in hot cars, not even for a few minutes. Canines and babies and toddlers die agonizing deaths in hot cars.

The most recent and horrific victims are veterinarian Karen Murphy and her son Ryan. Virginia authorities charged the mother with felony murder after Ryan, 2, died June 17 in a hot car. Ms. Murphy had forgotten to drop Ryan off at day care before she went to work.