It’s almost the middle of July–hard to believe that 2014 is more than half over already!! I’m sure everyone is enjoying the warm days which are sure a far cry from what we experienced this past winter (ugh)…but your dog might not be feelin’ the love for the heat.

Dogs are not very efficient when it comes to keeping cool. Put yourself in the dog’s skin (fur?) for a minute and you’ll see what I mean. Not only do they have the fur coat to contend with (handy in 20 degrees Fahrenheit but not so much when it’s 85 degrees), but dogs do not perspire in the way humans do. Humans perspire to cool themselves off. On a hot day, a human perspires as their core temperature increases. As the perspiration evaporates, it provides a cooling effect to decrease core temperature. (On a humid day, perspiration doesn’t evaporate as readily because the air is already moisture-laden–hence, you generally feel more uncomfortable when it’s humid.) But dogs generally only perspire through their paw pads which take up a very small space on the animal’s body, so there’s not much cooling action going on. The other way that dogs cool off is through panting. If you walk your dog on a hot day and stop to rest with him, observe his tongue. It will appear longer and wider than normal. (No, he’s not channeling for Gene Simmons from KISS.) What is happening here is that the tongue’s surface increases in order to allow for a greater dissipation of body heat.  If his tongue also appears ‘foamy’, it’s time for a cool drink. In fact, if you’re going to be walking any distance with your dog on a hot day, it’s a good idea to bring some drinking water for both of you.

So…bearing in mind that dogs wear fur coats even when it’s 90 degrees out and they’re not very efficient at cooling themselves off, WHY in the world would a smart pet ‘parent’ leave their dog locked in a car on a warm day? Here’s a statistic for you: if it’s 75 degrees Fahrenheit outside, it can be as hot as 118 degrees in a locked car–and it reaches that temperature very quickly. Doesn’t sound too healthy, does it? The sad fact is, each year many dogs die from hyperthermia (overheating) from being left in a locked car, windows up, on a hot day. Please don’t kid yourself and think he’ll be okay if you park in the shade. WRONG ANSWER. I couldn’t be more adamant about this. PLEASE don’t leave your dog in a hot car.

And now here’s an easy idea for a cool healthy treat for your bow-wows! All you need to do is pour some organic chicken or beef broth into an ice-cube tray and freeze. These ‘pupsicles’ are healthy and dogs LOVE them.

I hope you and your dog keep cool!