AIBU to be upset my parents walked the dog in this heat?

[rollinginthedeepsea]

My parents are looking after our dog this week whilst we are abroad. They’re not dog owners themselves so I had messaged them a few days ago reminding them to not walk above roughly 20’c with the dog as that’s the rule we go by in summer. I wouldn’t expect them to be able to walk at 7or 8am as they are in their early seventies so presumed they would use common sense and just skip any walks . Checked ring camera for a parcel today and seen they walked our dog at 10.30 in 26’c.
I've called them out on it and they’re acting like I’m being completely over the top and that the dog was fine. AIBU?
The dog is not a risk breed or elderly but I’m upset at the principle of ignoring what I’ve asked.

your dog is fine. Dogs have been around for a long time and are out in all kinds of heat all over the world. Yes there will be notices from various charities and whatnot about not doing this and that but they are OTT too. Everyone is overly cautious about everything - its ridiculous, the world is too soft.

YABU to give other adults instructions, i'm sure they can manage without you controlling them. They probably think the same which is why they walked the dog and ignored you.

26 degrees and people are going on like they chucked the dog in a blast furnace. Given by all accounts the dog was fine that goes to show that the OP was being OTT in the first place and should stop acting like some sort of Oberdoggyfuhrer whose orders must be followed to the letter, whether they make sense or not.

And meanwhile breeders, handlers, agility people, Fast CAT people, dock diving people, barn hunt people, etc are outside with their dogs literally all summer long 😭 Obviously you use common sense, provide shade/water, avoid dangerously hot pavement, and monitor for overheating, but some of you talk like a healthy dog taking a normal walk in 79 degree weather is abuse. And btw, I can walk barefoot on pavement in 80 degrees with no problem unless it’s been sitting in direct blazing sun for hours, but at 10:30 a.m.? Please be serious.

We take ours with us on UK holidays but put her in kennels when we go abroad. Our good neighbours asked us if they could look after her on those occasions - we gratefully declined because we need the certainty that a booking will be honoured!

If you don’t like the way your parents are poking after your dog pay someone to look after it or take it with you.

It's been 32 degrees during the day where I am, we've taken care to walk our very furry golden retriever at about 7 a.m. and then again at 8.30/9 p.m. when the temperature was cooler and the sun was setting. What did the daft animal do during the day? Sat outside sunbathing until I called him in! 🙈and according to the golden retriever facebook page I follow he wasn't alone!!

Did you really ‘call them out on it’? Sounds so aggressive! Just remind them about dogs and the heat. I’m sure they feel doubly upset knowing that you are ‘spying’ on them as well.

But enough of them do, of all ages otherwise they would tailor the advice accordingly?
Seriously why do you think they issue the advice?
All these annual comments about "my dog is fine" or "what do they do in hot countries"
Again, why do you think they issue advice? Dont you understand stats?

Its been late 20s temperatures by that time in a few uk places last few days. And yes given the sunrise times, increasing temperatures over a few hours

They issue advice because it’s quite literally their job to warn people of potential dangers. In the same way they post about certain foods being toxic, or certain plants, or warn of the risks of stick injuries etc.

It doesn’t mean that every single dog is at risk of heatstroke as soon as the thermometer reads a certain digit, which is what people seem to have interpreted it to mean.

Well yes
Following the advice from experts...isnt compulsory its just sensible?.
No one has said heat exhaustion will happen to every dog at all. Its you that is arguing this
They just dont want to put their dog at evidenced and scientifically proven risk
Its the last word that's key

No - it’s proven risk for some dogs, not every dog.

But no one whose dog ends up with heatstroke ever thinks it is their dog who is at risk! If they think of it at all, they conceptually believe it’s a problem that other dogs might have.
obviously some cope better than other, many people get away with it just fine. But no professional is going to advise something potentially risky, are they?

I agree with OP, it's the principle - they were asked not to walk the dog if it was over 20c and they did it anyway.
And to everyone saying "it was fine for the parents to be out in that heat so it was fine for the dogs" - were the parents walking on hot pavements in bare feet and wearing a fur coat?

OP, just don't ever leave your dog with them again

I’ve been walking my dog at 6:30am each morning but but 2.30 he’s barking to go out again. I think if you ask your parents to dog sit you just have to let them do it their way.

The problem is that they were asked not to walk the dog in the heat and they did so anyway. They could have texted op saying look the dog is going mental, the heat feels alright for us to take him to a shady area, is that alright?

Exactly.

They've done you a favour and saved you a lot of money by looking after your dog. How they take care of the dog is up to them.

If you don't like how they do it, pay a professional.

Exactly
And it really isn't only old or ill dogs
At the end of the day its not legal requirement its advice and optional from experts
But, as with many aspects in life, plenty of people just think they know better

Yep

It didn't happen to me doesn't mean the risk doesn't exist

Professionals will ALWAYS err on the side of caution. That's why they tell everyone whose dog has eaten grapes to come in for an emetic. It's why humans are told that all cat and dog bites require medical attention and antibiotics.

My own dog struggles in the heat FWIW so I wouldn't walk him above about 22-23, but I don't feel like it's my place to dictate what others do. OP's parents shouldn't have walked her dog against her wishes but ultimately this is one of the risks of not paying for professional pet care.

I took my dog during the high temperatures to the dog field where he has choice on how he spends the 50 minutes. He walked around the field 1.5 times sticking to the shade and spent the remaining 40-45 minutes lying in the shade. He knows his limits. Obviously most dogs will ignore their limits if they have no choice but to accompany their owners. Although my dog will do the passive lie down flat and refuse to take another step if I don’t get the message.

Dogs in hot parts of the world are used to those temperatures they are acclimatised dogs here in UK are not given temperatures we are currently experiencing are not the norm ! Go educate yourself God help any dog of yours

They probably thought your dog needed a wallk.

Being in their 70s they probably don't naturally think about texting when in doubt. Also don't want to bother OP.