What’s up

Hello hello everyone sorry I haven’t posted in a month I’ve been enjoying some down time. Which is rare for me it’s amazing I can just chill and not worry about things now that my exams are over. On with the show, this week I’m going to be talking about things to be aware of in this hot weather. I know I know it’s a miracle hat Britain is deciding to participate in summer this year so with the heat there are a few things you have to be careful of with your dog.

1. Try to walk your dog early in the morning or late at night; because the daytime temperatures are so high at the moment it is very easy for your dogs to overheat when doing exercise in the daytime. If you try take your dogs for a walk in the day they aren’t going to not want to go because dogs live to please however I have seen multiple articles by vets pleading owners not to exercise their dogs during the day. Because dogs can’t sweat they have to pant which reduces their body temperature however it also puts a lot of strain on the body and doesn’t cool them down as quickly as us sweating does. So walking early AM or late PM is strongly  advised.
2. Check the pads; with all of the hot weather the tarmac is becoming very hot. Tarmac can retain the heat from the day so you must be careful when walking you dog on tarmac in the evening that it isn’t too hot. The heat of the tarmac could damage you dogs pads on their paws making it painful for them to walk. I have seen a few dogs this summer with boots over their paws to help protect against this. Also when going to the beach with you dog whether it be a pebble one or sand one. Make sure when you get home that their paws aren’t too raw and that all the sand and pebble and out from in between then pads. 
3. Helping them cool off; so there are a few ways to help dogs cool off. Mostly longhair dogs will suffer from the heat so first thing you could do is take them to the groomer and get them a summer cut with much shorter hair. Also if you don’t have stone floors in your house you can buy cooling pad mats that you freeze and they stay cold for a very long time. These are quite expensive but well worth it, my friend bought two for her dog so that while one was freezing the other could be out. Also putting a cold wet towel over your dog if they’ve been out on a walk when it’s still quite warm. These are just a few things to help and also insure that your dog always has shade to lie in if it’s outdoors. 
4. Mites; during the summer harvest mites can become a major problem, I have seen it in many practices when dogs come in irritated scratching and sometimes off food and the vets commonly check the flap of skin on the side of the ear which is where mites love to congregate because it’s dark warm and have a good air supply. The mites irritation can be held off by steroid cream I think however if you suspect your dog has mites take them too the vet and they can advise you from there. You may also have to wash all of your dogs beds to ensure there are no mites on them either. 
5. Keeping them hydrated; always try to keep 2 bowls of water throughout your house and check them every day to ensure that your dog always has water and if you are planning a car journey or a long walk take a spare bowl with you and a bottle of water for the dog. This will ensure that if your dog needs it you can give them some water.

That’s all for this week I’m sorry i haven’t posted in so long I promise to try and post more regularly over the summer. I hope you are enjoying the weather wherever you are remeber to be happy and smile at people, you never know it could make their day. Thank you for reading.