Summer Pet Safety

Keep your fluffy friends safe!

Summer Pet Safety

Pets, just like humans, are susceptible to heat illness - make sure to keep your animals hydrated! 

Hot asphalt or cement can easily burn an animals paws, so try to minimize walking your pet during the hottest part of the day. Not sure how hot the asphalt is? Place the back of your hand on the asphalt - if it's too hot for you, it's too hot for them. 

A few signs of heat illness in pets are rapid or irregular heart rate, excessive drooling, lethargy, refusal to eat, or excessive panting.Panting is a normal cooling mechanism for a dog but a very bad sign for a cat. Be aware of excessive panting in dogs.

If you notice any of these signs of heat illness remove your pet from the heated environment and get it into a cooler environment. Apply cool towels to the pet, remove the towels, wring out the warm water, re-wet and reapply. Provide plenty of cool fresh water for the pet, but be careful not to chill the pet.

Last but not least, NEVER leave a pet unattended inside a vehicle. The temperature inside a vehicle can rise very quickly and is just as dangerous for pets as it is for people. Rolling down the windows is not a safe alternative. Keep these things in mind and have a safe and fun-filled dog days of summer.