The hot weather that we have been enjoying of late puts a greater stress on our furry friends than it does us.

Dogs lack the ability to sweat from their skin and their thick fur coats mean they are much better at keeping warm in cold weather than cool in the heat. Dogs rely on panting to cool themselves – evaporation of water from their tongues, nasal passages, throat and lungs cools their body temperature, but also expends large amounts of water which needs to be replaced by drinking. Most of the time this happens very efficiently, but in some circumstances we see problems develop where a dog cannot cool itself effectively.

Hot cars aren’t the only problem

The most common situation is the dog that is left in a car on a hot day. The temperature inside a car can rise rapidly; increasing humidity inhibits a dog’s ability to cool itself and the more a dog pants inside a car, the more humid the car becomes. Hot cars aren’t the only times we see problems though. Dogs with breathing difficulties are prone to overheating as they cannot pant efficiently. Old dogs, obese dogs, and dogs with heart and lung disease fall into this category, but increasingly these days we see the short nosed dogs having significant problems – the pugs and the bulldogs (British and French) being among the worst affected. These breeds have become increasingly popular in recent years, but also suffer significant health problems associated with their popular ‘squashed face’ appearance.

Heatstroke can be quick and disastrous

When a dog overheats a number of problems occur – cells start to die when the core temperature hits 42°C (109°F), the cells in the intestine start to die and severe blood loss can occur. Heart muscles start to fail, swelling of the brain will occur, leading to seizures and coma, liver and kidney function starts to deteriorate, and breathing becomes severely impaired. All in all it’s pretty disastrous and can occur in a very short period of time. Even if you catch it early the damage can be permanent.

So during hot weather, do your best to keep your pets cool; use fans indoors and make sure they have plenty of access to water. You can even hose them down or provide a paddling pool on very hot days. There are also commercially available cooling vests for dogs that suffer in the heat. Walk them in the early morning or mid evening when the weather has cooled down, and never ever leave them in a car on a warm day.