Heat and dogs

[sunshineandsuddenshowers]

shes my first dog, and I didn’t grow up w dogs so forgive the stupid question!

how much can i trust that a dog will self regulate in this heat? We won’t walk or take her out between 9am and 7pm, but she can and does go out in the garden and sit on the lawn (which I wouldn’t do in this sun!)

I also don’t know how much she’s drinking - lots of water out for her, but it’s up to her to drink it.

does that sound ok? She’s very sleepy in this weather, and I do worry about overheating and dehydration.

nb she’s small, scrawny, medium-haired, looks a bit like a terrier tho is a mix. No crazy thick coat, but not short haired either

In my opinion, on walks they get excited and distracted and they don’t self regulate and will walk/run/play until they drop.

However in the garden, with free access to sun, shade and water, she should sort herself out.

My dog is a sunbather and all he is doing is sleeping at the moment and in and out of the sun/shade.

Wondered the same myself. My 14 month old shih tzu is mainly snoozing indoors. He goes out but then come straight back in, normally he's in the garden a lot more! I put a cool mat down for him but he just keeps trying to eat it!

Mine doesn't def regulate at all - he loves the sun. He'd lie out in it al day. I keep inside when it's this hot and walk after 9 or when I get up at 630.

Depends on the dog - Working line GSD is very good at staying out the sun thankfully and will tuck herself in the shade of the bushes if outside and will come in and find the coolest room in the house to sleep. Drinks plenty. Working line spaniel would kill itself doing busy spaniel stuff if not put under house arrest and instructed to drink.

Depends on the dog. Some are just a bit dim tbh.

Mine will cycle between sunbathing in the garden, getting a bit hot, coming inside to cool down again then going back out. Others just fry themselves.

Ours always loved to lay directly in front of a fan during heatwaves. Especially overnight.

Does depend on the dog I think.
My pug doesn’t do well in the heat, but left to her own devices would go outside and lay in full sun. I keep scooping her up and putting her back on her cool mat next to the fan, minute I’m not watching her she’s outside again 🙄

Mine is four and currently snoring his head off under a fleece blanket

We've walked him early all weekend and he was out at 8am today (we're NW so it's not too hot). He spent the morning in the garden with FIL, came home, had his dinner and took himself off under his blanket lol.

A friend is bringing his dog over this evening and they'll play in the garden then, but it'll be shaded and they'll have access to cool mats and water if they want it.

If he was a brachycephalic dog, a darker dog or older, I'd worry more, I think.

Mine have always sorted themselves. Right now, I'm sat on a bench in the garden, with one pressed up each side of me. I'm hot. Them?

I do have a paddling pool out. They're basically using it as a bit water bowl. I figure if they were actually hot they'd go in it.

Unless your dog is brachycephalic or has health issues, I'd just leave him to it, to be honest.

I have a black patterdale x , he’s 12 and has some medical issues , I’m not walking him at all and I also keep him indoors where we have fans going , he’s very stupid and would just lay in full sun . At night he has a fan in his bedroom but often chooses to go downstairs at about 3/4 am . We are SE so it’s hot at night as well really .

I'm not convinced mine would self regulate, I make him come in. I've been giving him small amounts of his food regularly through the day mixed with lots of water to make sure he is getting liquid in as he hasn't stopped panting all day - despite fans etc

It depends on the dog, its size, its coat, how well it can breathe, how fit it is, how fat it is, and its age. And how well it reads its own body.

We have two adult (but not old) dogs, not much coat, both very fit and slim, with proper muzzles. We walked them this morning when it was already noticeably hot (probably about 21C), for about an hour. They were mostly in the sun, though they had access to water for half the walk, and swam a lot. Out again at lunchtime for a short walk in the shade, at about 26C, fine again. And then at 24C this evening, charging about in the shade and on the playing fields for a good half an hour.

They've been acclimatising to the heat for the last three weeks or so, with unlimited access to the conservatory. When they get too hot, they have a drink and lie somewhere cool. I just keep an eye - we had an elderly dog who used to really flag when it got hot, so we'd cut walks short or not take him at all.

I've lived in hot climates, and I know that while dogs can die of heatstroke, a lot of dogs can also cope with the heat very well. You just need to make sure that you build them up to it, and are alert to their signals.

I don't think dogs do self-regulate particularly well, so its my job to keep an eye on her.

Only one walk a day for now, early morning and home by about 08:30. She's quite happy to just laze around at home, and is sleepier than usual in the heat. Cool mat is down, but she's not really using it - preferring to stretch out on the kitchen floor.

She does go out to potter round the garden, but I go with her - if she starts to pant she comes straight in again.

Thank you all. Will definitely keep an eye on her and not let her lie out in the garden when it's blazing hot!

She's skinny, fit, has a proper muzzle, light coloured sort of cat-length fur. So I think she's relatively well adapted for heat. Just this last couple of days she's started to sleep stretched out, not curled up like a cat, which must be to do w the heat!

Don't stick to times instead stick to temperature. I took my dog out 10pm last night .

Agreed. In this heat I won't walk my dog after 8am at the very latest and not before 10.30pm in the evening. He's an old boy though so feels the heat keenly now but I certainly wouldn't go much outside these times and I'd assess each walk as to temperature.

I'd make sure your dog is getting plenty of cool time in the shade, they don't always do what's best for them. If he's light and thin furred, watch out for sunburn too. Visible, or just furred, skin needs sun protection applying.

Ice in water bowls, water to play with, frozen kongs, cool mats, fans...All needed in this weather.

If you need to cool him down rapidly at any point, you can keep him under a breeze and drape him with a wet towel (cool water, not warm).

Make sure you know the signs of heat exhaustion and sunstroke so that you can act quickly if he gets ill.