Keeping Your Dog Safe in the Heat

When you’re making plans for this summer, the four-legged member of your family may be involved. Vets want to remind everyone it’s not just humans that get overheated in the dog days of summer.
Vets are starting to see an increase of visits due to heat-related emergencies. They’re reminding you of three important things: to make sure your dog is in the shade, to make sure they have plenty of water and to be somewhere where there is air circulation.
While panting is a good thing because that’s how dogs cool down, if your dog won’t stop panting and is frothing at the mouth, it’s time to seek immediate medical help. Veterinarian/Owner of Bienville Animal Medical Center Dr. Chris Duke said, “When I get the phone calls in that they’re coming in, I usually say put the hose to them and cool them down quickly yourself. We don’t mind if you come in with a wet dog, first aid is important. Get them here as soon as you can so we can get the IV therapy and the systematic cooling down that way.”
While we all want our pets to have fun with us this summer, just make sure they have what they need to beat the heat.