Know How to Keep Your Pets Cool
The mercury is rising, and animals in your care need protection. If the day is too warm for you, it is likely too warm for your pets as well. Take a few important measures to ensure your fur family is keeping cool in summer weather.
Bring Them Indoors
When the weather gets too warm, the safest place for your pet is indoors, especially during the hottest hours of the day. If they need to stay outside for any length of time, it is important to provide them with shady areas to retreat from the sun's rays.
Special consideration should be given to smaller companions, such as rabbits, and to animals with short snouts. These pets are particularly sensitive to heat and susceptible to heat stroke. Likewise, care needs to be taken to ensure livestock and horses have shady areas for cooling off.
Keep Water Fresh and Cool
Provide your furry friends with plenty of water. Even when they are only let outdoors for brief periods, they should have access to fresh, cool water during that time. Put dishes out in multiple locations for easy access and in case water in one bowl gets emptied or spilled.
Keep both indoor and outdoor bowls in a shady spot and freshen the water throughout the day. Add ice to keep it cooler for longer. Be sure pastured and barn animals also have access to fresh water in shaded locations throughout the day.
Protect Sensitive Skin
Most of our pets are covered in fur, so it is easy to forget that they can actually have sensitive skin. Those with pink noses are susceptible to painful burns on their snouts. Likewise, animals with light fur and pink skin on their ears are prone to sunburns. Lighter skin is also vulnerable to skin cancer.
Another sensitive skin area is the pads on the feet. Be mindful that surfaces such as pavement, sand and rock become very hot under the summer sun. Paw pads can sustain second degree burns in a shorter time than you might imagine. Pets should have grassy areas on which to walk. If you walk your dog, do so in the early morning or late evening hours or provide them with boots to keep their paws safe.
Leave Them at Home
On a final note, never leave your fur family in a car! Temperatures can rise quickly, even when the windows are down and the car is in the shade, leading to rapid death. No matter how much they like to go for a ride, leave them at home. Their life depends on it.
The warmth of the summer sun can leave pets at risk for health crises. Make sure you take the necessary precautions to keep your fur family safe and happy.
