New tricks for dog owners to protect pets

We’ve all heard of the “dog days of summer,” the hottest days during the summer months. Although the saying would have you believe that dogs enjoy being out in the heat, take it from me as the owner of a new puppy, that it is not the case.

While you and I might like the heat and the sunshine, we can’t stand it for prolonged periods of time without some water and some shade and the same goes for dogs, as well as other animals.

Wanda Thorpe, the president and a volunteer with Thompson River Animal Care Shelter (TRACS), said that keeping your pet cool and healthy during the summer months is easy.

“It is certainly not magic by any means,” she said. “If the pet owners create an environment that is comfortable for them, then it will be comfortable for their animals.”

She said that one easy thing that can be done to help your pet beat the heat is to not leave them in an enclosed car during these hot summer days for any period of time.

“I’d tell the owner that they should sit in that car with their pet for 15 minutes to see just how hot it gets and just how uncomfortable they are, and maybe then they’ll realize how much of an unpleasant experience it is for their pet,” she said.

Thorpe said that cars are like “tin cans” that get hotter and hotter. If it is 90 degrees outside, after 10 to 15 minutes, the interior of a closed car would be around 120 degrees — enough to dehydrate and cause the death of animals. She said that she understands that people like to travel with their pets and may need to run an errand that requires them to keep their animal in their car, and if that’s the case there are a few things they can do to make the experience a little better for their pet.

“The first thing is they should be brief,” Thorpe said. “If you’re leaving your animal in your car to run an errand, you should make sure that errand is as quick as possible.”

Another tip is to keep the window rolled down enough that the animal can get their head out to get fresh cooler air, but not down so far that they are able to jump out of the car.

“The cooling from outside will definitely help, but this shouldn’t fool people that their animal is going to be cool, because the car is still going to heat up,” she added.

The last tip is one that Thorpe uses for her own pets, and says that it is the best way to make sure that her animals are comfortable when she has to run an errand that they can’t participate on.

“I have two sets of keys, so when I need to go run an errands I keep my car running with the air conditioning going, and then lock them in the car with my second set of keys,” she said.

Thorpe admitted that this method might not be ideal with the high gas prices, but she said she hasn’t really noticed it wasting any gas, especially if the errand is brief. Regardless, she said the comfort of her animals is more important than a couple of dollars saved at the gas pump.

While all of these are good methods to use if your animal happens to be traveling with you, Thorpe said the best thing to do is to leave them at home in a cool room or in the garage.

“They’ll be safer and more comfortable that way,” she said.

Helping your pet beat the heat isn’t the only summer related issue animals have to face. One big concern, according to Thorpe, are ticks, which can be very harmful and damaging to pets. She said that using a topical solution to repel and kill fleas and ticks is a good thing to use or a flea and tick collar.

“Ticks can be very, very harmful for dogs and cats,” she said. “Not only do they suck blood but they also inject some sort of poison, which can be very harmful.”

Thorpe recalled a story earlier this summer about a Yorkshire Terrier who was found abandoned in the woods and was paralyzed. Vets discovered the dog had a tick on his neck, which had paralyzed him to the point where he was not able to use his back legs.

“Owners need to check their pets for unusual bumps, and give them a good search every now and then, especially if they have been in a wooded area recently,” she said.

If a tick is discovered there are safe ways to remove them. If the tick hasn’t attached itself to the animal, it can just be taken off. However, once it’s attached, Thorpe said a good trick is to use dish soap on them. The dish soap isn’t harmful to the animal, but it irritates the tick and once the dish soap is on it, the tick should unattach itself.

Another problem animals have to face during the summer are sharp grasses, such as foxtail grass, also referred to as sheep grass. Foxtail grass has a pointed end and then some barbs on it, and is plentiful in this area.

Thorpe said that the seeds get embedded in the dogs fur and then they work their way to the skin and then into skin. Once they get in the skin they can cause an abscess and infection, which is something that TRACS has seen already this summer.

She said that the best solution for this, since the grasses are so plentiful in the area and sometimes unavoidable, is for owners to make sure they check their pet over for the barbed summer grasses that can imbed in the skin.

Thorpe said the most important thing that an owner can do is to be vigilante and look for signs that their animal is in trouble. “Animals are pretty good about letting us know if they need something, and we should try to be as vigilante as possible and make sure we take care of them.”