I'm worried about my dog in a recent heat wave. What can I do to keep her cool?

Question

I don't have ac. When I'm there, is it ok to put a little cool water on her? We giver her plenty of water and there is a fan lwo to the ground that she can stand in front of but what else can we do?

Answer 1

Wet her down and place a fan in front of her - keep her out of the sun - and for humans without AC, wet your hair and top sheet in water before you go to bed - put a fan on you, you wont be hot :)

Dogs pant to cool themselves off too - you are doing the right thing with plenty of water

Answer 2

i also don't have AC..(we have window units). i have 4 dogs (and 3 foster dogs)...we usually leave PLENTY of ice in their water bowls..this helps keep the water cooler longer. i have 10 bowls out for them, i know it sounds like a lot, but the more hydrated they are the better.
the fan is good..but make sure that you dog can't chew on the cord (plastic cord covers from any office supply store will do..heavy duty plastic).
Wal-Mart carries the cheapest window AC units that i know of...some around $300..you could put on on lay-away.
i open my windows in the living room also..to help circulate the air. and i turn on all the ceiling fans (if you have any).
when it's TOO hot out we just let them out in the yard, fill up a baby pool and run the sprinkler. sometimes its cooler outside in the shade than inside with NO AC.
im not sure where you live...but im in West Texas...and it's been about 105 in the afternoons. the most important thing is just keeping her water cool, and giving her plenty of it.

:)

Answer 3

Don't put ice cold water on her, this could send her into shock, if she's over heated. put her in a bath of cool, again NOT cold, let her stand in it and use a rag to wipe her face with the water. Also to keep her water cold put ice in it. Keep your house shaded and get more fans. Get a cheap a/c for the window of the room she's kept in or where her bed is, small window a/c's cost under $100.

Answer 4

I leave two bowls out for my dog during the summer, one is filled with ice cubes that melt during the day, the other is filled with cool water. As one runs out, the other will be melted and will stay cool.

I put on all the fans in the house, open the windows, but pull the drapes in such a way to increase shade. The venetian blinds are angled to reduce light in the apartment - angle them opposite the way they're intended to go (hard to explain), that way you keep the airflow, but it stays shady inside.

My dog HATES to get wet, unless it's wallowing in a ditch. But I'll take a wet cool, not cold, cloth and run it over her and her feet as well. You want to avoid any drastic temperature change.

I also take her out early in the morning before it gets hot for her walk, then a pee before work. After work, it's a quick pee, then wait until it gets a bit cooler and take her to the dog park for an hour or so, one with water that she can wade in (again, she doesn't swim...). I try to avoid her walking on cement as well as it gets too hot.

Seems to work pretty well for the past two years. She's been pretty comfortable, a bit warm but none's the worse for wear.

Hope that helps. :)

Answer 5

It is a good idea to use cool towels and some ice packs but it also depends how big your dog is, how much fur she has and the breed. If she has thick fur then shave it off for the summer. If she is not panting then she is ok. Provide lots of water and try to take her out early in the morning and late at night for her walks.

Answer 6

You can put water on her as much as you want as long as it isnt freezing cold that can shock anyone, give her icecubes to eat, you can buy a small kids pool and let her cool off in that outside on hot days, if she is laying down and panting you can put an ice pack on her body (if she lets you) you can make your own dogsicles...just freeze homemade soups in an ice cube tray (no Onions in it though they are bad for dogs) put ice cubes in her water, give her a cool bath, make her a bed and put ice packs between the blankets. Those are just a few things I do for my dogs, of course the best thing to do is go swimming! but I know I cant always take them to a lake so I do the stuff above.

Answer 7

Get a kiddy pool and fill it for when she is outside, she can just go play in the pool, or like other dogs I've seen, she'll lie in the water. Give her plenty of cool water daily to drink. Like people, pets get dehydrated, too. As long as you've got the air circulating, she is ok. What type of dog is she?

Answer 8

you could frezz water in a plastic coke bottle, in reality i'd do 3 or 4 and then you position them round were she lays. once she feels how cool they're she will be in a position to love it. We did this each and each and every of the time for our pets contained in the nice and comfortable summer. a great number of love may help her settle in and under no circumstances be petrified of the bottles. good success and stay cool....Please make positive that she has better water then she ought to ever pick..it truly is so inportant to her health also a small fan is giant to keep her cool.......

Answer 9

Yes yes yes, even provide a wading pool for her. Some dogs will just lay in the water if really hot. You can wet a towel too, it get cool and they like to lay on them. Wet the hair. Any of that will be good. Ice cubes in the drinking water, mine like that.

Answer 10

Keeping her hydrated is important, but also remember that dogs don't sweat, except for a relatively tiny portion of their surface area. I'd imagine a playful squirt from a garden hose now and then would keep her a little cooler than otherwise :)

Also, this probably seems obvious, but make sure she has some shade to lay in, indoors or out.