Your pets have special needs during the summer when temperature and humidity are much higher. Dogs and cats wear a heavy fur coat and have limited ability to cool themselves. They have sweat glands only on their paws, so they cannot sweat to stay cool the way humans do. Dogs and cats mostly pant to cool themselves and seek cool places to avoid the summer heat.

Guidelines to use in caring for your pets in hot weather include:

• If your pet is kept outdoors, make sure he has a shaded place and plenty of fresh water to drink. Your pet will need much more water in the summer to replenish what he loses by panting. Many dogs also enjoy swimming for exercise and to cool down.



• Never keep your pet in a car in direct sun on a summer day. Even with the windows slightly open, the temperature inside a car can soar to 120 degrees Fahrenheit or more within minutes. These conditions can kill a pet within 10 minutes or less.



• If you like to run or do vigorous exercise with your dog, do so at cooler times of the day, early morning or evening. If you exercise during the hotter times of day, your dog will have much more difficulty cooling himself and could overheat quickly. He will often try to keep going to keep up with you. You may not realize until his condition is severe that he has been seriously overheating.



• When you exercise your dog in the summer, stop and let him drink frequently. Make sure he is not overweight and is well conditioned for this activity before the hotter days of summer. You might even soak him with water before you exercise with him so he can stay cooler. This is especially important for long-haired or heavy-coated dogs. Dogs with very short hair have less difficulty keeping themselves cool.

A dog's normal body temperature is 100 to 102 degrees Fahrenheit. If his rectal temperature starts to go above 105 degrees, he is approaching a danger zone of heat stroke. He will often be panting very hard, his gums may be very dark pink or even reddish, and he may feel quite hot to the touch. If he is in this condition, soak him with cool or cold water immediately and take him promptly to the nearest veterinarian. This is an emergency situation and requires immediate care.

If you have further questions call your veterinarian or the U of MN Veterinary Teaching Hospital at (612) 625-8787.