What a great idea to bring a water spritzer or spray bottle along on a walk. In the Arizona summer, I try to make walks as early in the day as possible to avoid the heat. I always bring water along, but I didn't think to spray or wet the dogs coat. Thanks for the tips Cesar!
had no idea dogs cooled from bottom up thanks for the great tip. I also keep a small kiddy pool handy have to change daily as he uses it so much. Great tips thank you
The fake chamois that they sell for polishing or drying cars are great to cool dogs. Soak one in ice water, wring it out and hold it against your dog's belly. Helps cool them right down. Also they sell (reasonably) crate mates that have the water-holding material inside that you can put in plant potting mixes--they will stay cool for a day or two--just don't use them with dogs that eat their mats or beds. You can also use those bandannas with that material in it that they sell for folks. There are also crate fans to help them stay cool. Add ice cubes to their water several times a day and be sure to change their water at least every day--gets slimy fast in warm or hot weather. Walk early and late--chill out midday.
I actually make icecubes out of canned food or dog gravy. I mix 1/3 of the food/gravy with 2/3 of water and freeze them. I give some to my dogs in hot weather. They love them and get water in their system at the same time!
Love your column, is it new to Yahoo?? Great iinformation! Our dogs have always loved swimming in our pool, they run to the gate and bark to be let in so they can cool off.
yes, how do you help a dog deal with fire works? My dog has been known to jump off a second story deck during a thunder storm, luckily fire work are easier to predict. Any tips besides putting her in the bathroom- we actually enjoy them and like to be out.
I myself have 3 dogs and neither of them enjoys fireworks. I ignore their fear because I think that any comforting on my part is only going to instill the fear in them and confirm that the way they feel is ok. I think with fear you need to do the same thing as with any other behavioral issue. Like Cesar says, be calm and assertive. My dogs mostly hide either in the bathroom or in the laundry room. I do nothing, I ignore it and when they come out of their hiding place I praise them for coming out and that's it. Not sure if that's the right way but it works for me.
In addition to that one I would advice to have normal background sounds on when you leave such as a tv or radio, and not make a bigger deal out of leaving your dog like you normally do, they'll know something is up if you do that. I have heard of dogs actually goign through the window out of fear. Make sure your dog is secure and can't get out in any way, and if they're used to a crate, then crate them so they are safe.
I have a big dog that hates the 4th of July, New Years etc. He tried to climb in the closet with my shoes so many times I found another place for my shoes. He is obsessed with tennis balls, so when it starts getting loud I start playing with him and most of the time now it distracts him enough. I've also started asking him what the sound is, and he gets interested, looking out the window and going outside instead of hiding, so he seems to feel protective instead of fearful.
Fireworks and Thunder have become such a problem for my dog he tends to relieve himself out of fear. He continuosly pants and shakes and tends to drool a lot. I have found that ignoring the action does tend to calm him down a little, but not nearly enough. Can anyone help with what we should do?
My dog is short haired, but very fair skined. I put a kiddy pool right on my deck. She has all her tennis balls in it, and plays for hours. I luck out when it comes to fireworks, our dog comes to work with us. She experiences the sounds of air guns and drills all day. So when the 4th of july comes, we obviously take some precausion, but has no effect on her. Sorry
"The Johnson Bunch" provided several good tips in response to this. "mac" also described what I think is a good example of Cesar's Calm Assertive approach. For "roman1216428" and "Janet Jeffries" consider the recommended Bach's Rescue Remedy. There are also other herbal calmatives for dogs. For large dogs ( 60lbs) you can try some antihistamines that often cause sleepiness, like Benadryl. Ask your vet. Many antihistamines have a good history on dogs.
Aromatherapy doesn't have dosage issues and calms people as well, lavendar is a good choice. If your dog is upset by fireworks, don't bring him/her to see them, even if you want your dog with you. The dog doesn't understand the celebration.
If you want to teach your dog to accept loud noises, check out resources for people teaching hunting dogs and police dogs. If you want to teach it to accept stuff flying through the air, make a kibble launcher. Start small. Take baby steps and work through it.
Tellington TTouch may help and there are several good audios of various noises--kids yelling, vacuum cleaners, drills, thunderstorms, fireworks, etc--available at Dogwise.com--where I get loads of good info on training and behavior. One needs to explore ALL the options available to trainers and owners and use those that make the most sense. Certainly calm works--assertive--not necessary. I want a partnership of non-equals--I can't smell, see, hear or feel what my dogs do and vice-versa. I have no idea what they think except that there is no basis to assume any "historical" or abstract thought on their part. We are different species sharing the same home--"boss" is not necessary.
great tips. i never knew that dogs cool from the bottom up. our dogs love to play together outside all day and one of them is a 10 month old black labradoodle so he gets very hot, very quickly from burning off all that puppy energy. we always keep water out for him because he gets so hot so quickly but you can't keep him inside, he just loves to play all day long. he also likes to cool his tongue on the deck floor so i sometimes put ice cold water on the deck floor when he lays down and he loves it.
I shave my Golden almost year round. One thing to consider, my dog loves the hairdryer and bathtub so going to the groomer is really a "spa day for him." He pants all year long, but MUCH less when he is shaved.
As far as fireworks for dogs. Sedatives would have to be prescribed by your vet if he/she felt it necessary, and only after running bloodwork. You can however, try a dose of Benadryl help calm your pet. It is based on weight(1mg/lb). For instance, a 25 lb dog would receive one 25mg tablet twice daily. If you have any questions on dosage, a pharmacist could always help out. As far as ignoring the fear, this is never a good idea. If the pet really is that worked up, and that is not addressed, this could lead to a very sick pet. Please don't try tough love with pets. I have been a veterinary nurse for many years and have seen many pets with real fears. These behaviors always need to be dealt with. Good luck.
Things I do to keep my dog cool are:
1) Give him a Frosty Paws(dog ice cream cup you can buy in your grocery store. Its usually kept near the Good Humor Ice Cream Pops and has a white dog on the box). If you can't afford these, try freezing chicken or beef broth into cups or even putting a dog treat or pieces of dry dog kibble in an ice cube tray, or in a bowl and freeze it with water, they will spend a lot of time licking and trying to bite it out. This will keep them busy and cool.
2) Hose him down frequently if we are outside all day. Make sure to thoroughly hose him, because my dogs coat is so thick the water beads right off of him. I have to sometimes hold the hose(on low to medium spray speed) right against his fur for it to soak underneath.
3) Take your dog swimming in a river or creek or lake nearby, of course always monitoring them. Even if your dog is afraid to swim, if he just puts his paws in it cools them off dramatically.
4) Keep him in the shade as much as possible.
Great post, just want to add that they can get sunburns as well. My Bullterrier has to wear sunscreen while we are on the boat. It seems to help a great deal.
Love your show and the tips! What kind of dog is the tri-color on the feature page. I have a dog I rescued from the dog pound 9 years ago and she looks exactly like your dog in the picture. Thanks.
Love your show and the tips! What kind of dog is the tri-color on the feature page? I have a dog I rescued from the dog pound 9 years ago and she looks exactly like your dog in the picture. Thanks.
Cat
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