Do dogs suffer from heat exhaustion?
Signed,
Sincerely Clueless
Dear SinClue,
It's funny that you should ask this question. Just this very night my guy got a phone call from our dear friend, Auntie Takako. She had encountered a dog suffering from this very thing and needed some ice stat. We helped her, of course, and she went on to offer help to the poor dog.
Dogs are mammals--just like people. We require both food and water, and when it's hot we need more water--just like people. Some dogs have a greater risk than others, and we count on our human pack members to know us well enough to understand our weaknesses and the risks.
Common situations that can set the stage for heat exhaustion and possibly heat stroke for us dogs include:
~ Being left in a hot car
~ Exercising strenuously in hot weather
~ Being confined to surfaces like asphalt and concrete with only sun exposure
Brachycephalic breeds are at a greater risk, too! My cousins whom you call bulldogs, pugs and pekingese, for example.
BOTTOMLINE: 1) If you wouldn't be comfortable doing it, we wouldn't be, either! and 2) Don't play around, if we become distressed in hot weather, do SOMETHING quickly. We need water, we need to be cooled down, we need to see a vet.
Pura Vida,
Romeo Federico Ash
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