warm weather

Whispered

Hey, I was hoping one of you could put my mind at ease.

Harley (the dog) is never left outside when there is nobody home. He might spend an hour or two out the back while I'm there and more recently, when I started working nights, he's been spending about 3-4 hours outside if the weather is decent, while I catch up on my sleep.

He loves lying out in the sun, and I have to be out of the house for a few hours today (about 8). I've left him outside with twice his usual bowl of water, he has a bone, a kennel and plenty of shade as well as sunning areas. I'm worried that he wont have the cop on to stop himself over heating. He sat in the sun yesterday panting, and rather than finding shade, he went to lie on the black shore cover which must have been roasting! So now I'm worried. He'll be ok, right?

littlelady

Helena, he should be fine as long as its only for a couple of hours. My dogs are the same, not got the smarts to go into the shade! What I've been doing for the last few days is filling a bowl with water & putting some cut up apple & orange it & freezing it, when frozen take it out of bowl - hours of endless fun & licking

PaulB91

he'll be fine - all my four do this, sit there panting and you get all worried and try and get them to drink and they just look at you stupid ;o) remember dogs panting is like us perspiring, and just because we sit in the sun and sweat don't mean we want to sit in the shade

Whispered

littlelady wrote: »

Helena, he should be fine as long as its only for a couple of hours. My dogs are the same, not got the smarts to go into the shade! What I've been doing for the last few days is filling a bowl with water & putting some cut up apple & orange it & freezing it, when frozen take it out of bowl - hours of endless fun & licking

I keep saying I'll do that and I haven't yet. I will definately make one tonight for the morning.

PaulB91 wrote: »

he'll be fine - all my four do this, sit there panting and you get all worried and try and get them to drink and they just look at you stupid ;o) remember dogs panting is like us perspiring, and just because we sit in the sun and sweat don't mean we want to sit in the shade

Thats it, at one stage I even moved him into the shade (no easy feat for a small person and a large dog). He promptly got up, went back to the shore cover and dropped with a grunt. :rolleyes:

I feel better now. Thanks!

mymo

I also use the doggy icepop method to keep the dogs cool, if you want to make them really happy try popping a few bits of stewing steak or a bit of mince into the water before freezing. They can smell it even though its frozen:D
I also put carrots, turnip and broccoli(or any other veg left over from dinner) as my two love the veg.
My two head for the shade when they start panting, they must be smarter:p

PaulB91

mymo wrote: »

I also use the doggy icepop method to keep the dogs cool, if you want to make them really happy try pooping a few bits of stewing steak or a bit of mince into the water before freezing. They can smell it eve though its frozen:D

i just read this and nearly pooped myself with laughter - then re-read it and understood i think you meant popping?

mymo

sorry, must check spelling before posting:o
Well it brought a smile to someones face.:D

Graces7

Helena; our collie is the same. Pants and pants and has not the sense to find shade many times.

But she loves the hose pipe or watering can; so she gets hosed down to cool her off.

It is a grand game and as soon as she sees the hose pipe she starts dancing.

I am shading the windows of the porch where she sleeps also.

morganafay

Mine are the same, silly dogs. You probably already do, but I'd suggest keeping his water in a shaded area, so it'll be cool.

I've heard of this for rabbits, if you fill a bottle with water and freeze it then put it in their hutch/run, they can lie against it if they overheat. So maybe a 2 litre bottle for a dog would be some help? I must find some bottles to freeze for by bunnies soon actually, the black one has been sitting in the sun all day :eek:

I'm sure he'll be fine anyway, as long as he gets shade. I mean it is warm here, but nowhere near as warm as other countries that dogs live in

Whispered

You'll all be relieved to know he survived.

Going to make him the giant icecube with yummy bits tonight for the morning.

peasant

Not to descredit your worries and your efforts ...but the highest temperature so far this year was 18, 20 degrees max.

Harley is a dog, not a chocolate bunny ...he can cope with 20 degrees no bother and after our long and cold winter he's probably just as happy about a bit of sunshine as you and me.

Whispered

I'm absolutely aware that Harley is a dog thanks very much for reminding me though.

My apologies if my asking a question about the dog having the sense to move if he got too hot is bothering you. He's a bit silly you know, and can't look after himself very well.

Also, he's the colour of a chocolate bunny so I can never be too careful.

Blueprint

I asked this self same question on a dog forum a few years back and one of the very experienced dog trainers there advised me that dogs are just as much at risk of sun burn as us humans and you should treat them like toddlers when it comes to sun exposure - limit their time and not at the hottest part of the day etc. I've seen animals at my vets with their ears amputated due to skin cancer, so I would worry about that.

My guy also hasn't the sense to sit in the shade, but thankfully the cats are sensible.

Does Harry seem to heat up as quickly as my fellow when it's sunny? My guy turns into slow coach dog and just trails along behind me. He does however look really happy while doing so!

Graces7

Blueprint wrote: »

I asked this self same question on a dog forum a few years back and one of the very experienced dog trainers there advised me that dogs are just as much at risk of sun burn as us humans and you should treat them like toddlers when it comes to sun exposure - limit their time and not at the hottest part of the day etc. I've seen animals at my vets with their ears amputated due to skin cancer, so I would worry about that.

My guy also hasn't the sense to sit in the shade, but thankfully the cats are sensible.

Does Harry seem to heat up as quickly as my fellow when it's sunny? My guy turns into slow coach dog and just trails along behind me. He does however look really happy while doing so!

Thank you; and yes, we always take care. Collie here gets very agitated when it is hot. And because they are not used to sun, they are more susceptible.

Whispered

Considering if we left our dog in colder than usual weather, without making sure they would be comfortable and healthy we would be bad owners, I think the same should go for when the weather is warmer than usual.

Graces, I tried to hose him yesterday....... I thought it would be funny (we had a dog as a kid who used to try catch the water too) He wasn't very impressed.

Blueprint, Harley never ever slows down. He'll go as fast as he can for as long as he can then drop. Even when he's tired, he has enough energy to keep going until it's "time" to rest. Hopefully he'll grow out of it.

Blueprint

Jasper used to be a mad bugger at all times, but I find that in the last year (he's now 3 and a half aprox) he's calmed down an awful lot. Mind you, he's not getting as much sleep as he used to due to my not working nights anymore!

Graces7

helena.ryan wrote: »

Considering if we left our dog in colder than usual weather, without making sure they would be comfortable and healthy we would be bad owners, I think the same should go for when the weather is warmer than usual.

Graces, I tried to hose him yesterday....... I thought it would be funny (we had a dog as a kid who used to try catch the water too) He wasn't very impressed.

Blueprint, Harley never ever slows down. He'll go as fast as he can for as long as he can then drop. Even when he's tired, he has enough energy to keep going until it's "time" to rest. Hopefully he'll grow out of it.

lol

Our wee dog gets incensed when the hose comes out; jrt/basset cross.

Barks and bounces up and down. Never see her as angry as this ...

Collie leaps to grab the water...

It is so funny to see the different reactions.

lrushe

I feel dogs instinctively know when they've had enough of the sun and will seek out shade if they need it. It also depends on the dog, some have a higher tolerance than others, my Chihuahua will actively seek out the sun even on the hottest days while my Japanese Spitz will always look for the shade so they usually spend most of the day on opposite sides of the garden