BANGOR, Maine (WABI) – As summer heats up here in Maine, it’s important to make sure everyone in your family is keeping cool, which includes your furry four-legged friends, too.
Dog do not sweat like humans do. Combine that with a coat of fur, and it makes it easy for dogs to overheat.
One large danger for heat stroke in animals is leaving them in your car.
Bangor Animal Control Officer Trisha Bruen tells us a car is like a greenhouse and could take as little as 10 minutes to give a dog heat stroke.
“If you have to leave them in the vehicle and you just need to run into the store for something really quick, you know, make sure the windows are down enough to have airflow,” explains Bruen. “If you’re going to be in the store for five minutes, 10 minutes, set an alert to your phone. That alert will go off and tell you you need to get back out there. It’s hot, your dog’s there waiting.”
Every dog and car are different, so it’s imperative to know how both react to heat if you do choose to leave your pup in the car for short periods of time. Bruen says generally, smaller cars get hotter faster than larger cars. The inverse is true for dogs, as bigger dogs heat up faster than smaller breeds.
Bruen also advises owners of young puppies, older dogs, and dogs with flat-faces like pugs and bulldogs to be especially cognizant of your four-legged friends this summer.
Other tips Bruen notes are if you are taking your pet out for an adventure, bring a cooler with cold water for them. You can even prepare some pup popsicles or ice cubes for them to lick on, or swing through a drive-thru for a pup cup or puppy-sized ice cream.
When spotting heat stroke in dogs, you can look for symptoms such as panting or labored breathing, drooling, or loss of energy.
If you see a dog alone in a car, Bruen recommends to not call Animal Control right away.
Instead, she says to follow these steps:
- Assess the location. If you’re in a store parking lot, the owner can come out momentarily. If you’re in a movie theater parking lot or other locations where most people spend longer times inside, then there is cause for concern.
- Monitor the conditions. Does the dog look in distress? Bruen advises to turn off your own car and check to see if the car is on, as the AC may be going and the pup could be nice and cool waiting for their owner.
Outside of vehicles, Bruen recommends taking your walks off pavement and onto grass.
To test if the tarmac is too hot, you can place the back of your hand on it. If it’s painful or uncomfortable for you, it most likely will be for your dog’s paw pads as well.
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