subject: Keep Your Dog Safe During the Dog Days of Summer [print this page] Keep Your Dog Safe During the Dog Days of Summer
Summer is finally here and it is time to head outdoors. If you are a dog owner, family outings often include your furry friend. Remember these guidelines throughout the summer months to help keep your active dog free of potential danger.
Traveling
Now that the nice weather is here, it can be tempting to bring your dog along with you to run errands. Leaving your dog unattended in a car can pose a great danger to your canine. A vehicle can quickly heat up to 120 degrees even when parked in the shade. Leaving the windows cracked does not provide enough air circulation to keep the climate controlled in the passenger compartment. Dogs do not perspire. Instead, they expel heat through panting and through the pads on their paws. Heat exhaustion, heat stroke, brain damage or death can onset quickly. When you cannot monitor your dog, the safest most comfortable place is at home with a cool dish of water and a fan.
Food Dangers
Cookouts abound during summer months and dogs are happy to share the bounty. If you do feed your dog table scraps, be cautious about what types of food your dog is getting. Grapes and raisins can be toxic for dogs. Also, do not give your dog your leftover barbeque chicken leg. Cooked chicken bones can splinter when a dog is chewing them, posing a potential threat for intestinal tears. Other common foods that pose a toxic threat to your dog are onions and garlic.
After a game of fetch or a run around the neighborhood, a cool refreshing drink of water seems natural. Make sure your dog does not drink large quantities of water too quickly, especially after exercising. This can lead to bloat, which is the second leading killer of dogs after cancer. Small bowls of water frequently after a rest period is ideal. Another risk factor for bloat is eating directly before or after exercising.
Environmental Dangers
Year round flea, tick and heart worm prevention for your dog is highly recommended. These potential threats are more prevalent in the summer months, so be vigilant about preventative care. Heart worm is on the rise and you may be surprised to learn that this disease is passed to canines from mosquito bites. Ticks can carry and transmit Lyme and other diseases. It generally takes several hours to transmit a disease to a host. Locating and removing ticks as soon as possible can help prevent disease transmission. Remember that tick diseases pose a threat to humans as well.
With the proper precautions, the summer season with your dog can be happy, healthy and safe.
