Are you ready for the best and safest dog gone summer with your furry friend?
Before summer arrives, we want to share with you some tips we compiled to help keep your dog safe during the summer.
Here are our top five tips we recommend for your dog pal:
1. Keep Your Dog Out of Extreme Hot Temperatures
“It’s just way too hot outside right now.”
A lot of us have said that before. If you think it’s too hot, then it’s too hot.
Take your dog out during the times of the day where their sun exposure is less dangerous.
Keep in mind that dogs can get sunburns too, which is why it’s very important to protect your dog from harsh summer temperatures.
You also need to keep your dogs off outdoor surfaces that are extremely hot because a dog’s paws can be burned by hot surfaces.
DO NOT leave your dog alone in a hot car! Dogs can suffer from heat strokes and die in cars where temperatures are hotter inside the car than the actual outside temperature.
2. Keep Your Dog Hydrated
Keep fresh water around for your dog, especially on those brutal hot days.
It’s important to keep your dog hydrated to avoid dehydration.
3. Enforce Pool Safety
As you watch your children in the pool this summer, please also keep your dogs safe.
Dogs can drown in pools and pool water is dangerous for dogs to drink. If your pool is not being used, keep it properly covered or fenced off to avoid your dog accidentally getting in the pool when you’re not around.
Basically, treat your dogs as you would your children when it comes to being in a pool and swimming. Supervision is a must and you should also consider swim training if you would like to let your dog take a swim with you.
This will help increase your dog’s safety while swimming because not all dogs can swim and not all dogs are good swimmers.
4. Watch for Bugs Such as Ticks
Summer also comes with the possibility of ticks. While outdoors, you should keep your dog away from areas where ticks are known to hide such as tall grass, shrubs, dark and damp places, and wooded areas etc. Read more about tick prevention here.
Some people may treat their grass with pesticides to deal with those pesky bugs that are prevalent in the summer. Keep your dog away from areas where grass has been treated with chemicals and harmful products.
5. Talk to Your Veterinarian about Dog Sunscreen
Dogs with thinner coats may benefit from dog sunscreen while in the heat.
DO NOT use human sunscreen on your dog.
Please consult with your veterinarian about whether your dog needs sunscreen as your veterinarian can help recommend brands that are suitable and designed specifically for dogs.
As you are preparing to spend more time outdoors, we hope that you and your furry friend have a wonderful and safe dog gone summer!
Please remember to continue to stay safe as we work through the COVID-19 pandemic.