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Help Your Dog Dig the Dog Days!

Posted Tue, Jul 31, 2007, 10:00 am PDT
Summer's a great time to bond with your dog. Here are a few things to keep in mind when thinking about activities for you and your dog.

Swimming -- Hot weather is a great excuse to jump in the pool or enjoy the cool waters of a nearby lake. Instead of a walk, take your dog for a swim! It's a fun way for your dog to exercise and cool off. Another powerful bonding experience: let your dog take you on a ride. If your dog is large enough and physically up for the task, hold on and allow yourself to be taken around the pool. Always be vigilant to your dog's safety during your ride!

Digging -- In nature, dogs dig dens to find food, hide, give birth ... and keep cool! I always say, don't work against Mother Nature. If possible, find a shady area where you can let your dog do what comes naturally -- dig!

Walking -- Summer is a great time to take your dog for a walk, but it's important to keep in mind how the heat can affect him. If possible, exercise your dog during the cooler parts of the day: early in the morning or in the evening. Vigorous exercise is important for dogs, but the summer heat may make the usual routine more intense. Consider scaling back, and be watchful for signs of dehydration.

Want more summer tips? Visit Cesar's Web site.

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28 Comments

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  • 1. Angela - 12:05PM on 07/31/07

    Gee, just what we all want to encourage our dogs to do - DIG!! (ha ha) We've got Jack Russell's -- and they'll dig any chance they get!! :)

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  • 2. Mary - 12:30PM on 07/31/07

    Our German Shepherd doesn't like to swim, but loves wading either sitting on the steps of the inground pool or playing in his kiddie pool.

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  • 3. Susan - 12:50PM on 07/31/07

    Right now I have a Doberman puppy and she's never hot... or at least not yet.. But in the past I have taken the cool water from the garden hose and soaked my dogs.. it's refreshing even if they don't like the idea at first. After they are running and all spunky. Adding ice cubes to their water helps too.. nothing funnier than your dog blowing bubbles in their water!

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  • 4. Muschi - 1:33PM on 07/31/07

    I have 2 pomeranians, one of them is black and ALL hair! I keep them cool by walking early in the am and late in the eve. I also put ice cubes in their water and to chew on. Too bad I can't hose them off, with that much hair it would burn their skin under the fur.

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  • 5. cookiepussjones - 1:54PM on 07/31/07

    I have a mini schnauzer. I like to put her in the pool but she seems to get tired pretty quickly. I went to petsmart and bought her a life vest. Now she enjoys herself a lil more and I don't have any worries about drowning. She is so cute!!!

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  • 6. lorrainevigue - 4:38PM on 07/31/07

    Instead of a sandbox for children I have a shade covered area which I fill with sawdust, which is handy as we use them in the riding arena, and when it is really warm keep that area wet down and my heeler will go and dig in it and lay. It cools him off and since he is short haired comes off real easy a quick brush job and he is ready for the inside for the eve. It is about 3 feet deep so he has plenty to dig in loves it with sprinkler on and only takes few minutes to straighten out for another day of digging and cooling off. That is the only place he digs leaves rest of yard alone as that is soft and anywhere else would cause him to work up a sweat he isn't stupid.

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  • 7. Susan - 8:03PM on 07/31/07

    Oh that's so funny... a very long time ago I had a blue heeler that would dig a hole on a hot day... in fact he was the filthiest dog I've ever had. He would be even more happy if I filled the hole with water so he could roll around in it! Get that tummy good and muddy!!

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  • 8. txcoalminer - 5:45AM on 08/01/07

    I have two "dig sites" for my dog. I fill one place with water in the evening and he enjoys cool ground the next day. He doesn't dig a hole to China since I started keeping it damp. I rotate watering the sites every day.

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  • 9. Jeff Dough - 5:46AM on 08/01/07

    Ha! A healthy Lab can bury a truck in less than an hour.

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  • 10. kimberley r - 5:51AM on 08/01/07

    I have a boxer/bull dog named Maddie. We brought her to a private beach so she could experience swimming. Well after drinking so much salt water-It acted as an enima. But she had a great time!!!!!!!!

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  • 11. Jani - 8:54AM on 08/01/07

    We have a German Shepherd (Dixie) and she loves to swim! She never gets tired! It is also great for her hips since she has hip dysplasia. It is amazing how graceful this dog is when swimming.

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  • 12. TVPeople - 9:18AM on 08/01/07

    Have you ever had one of those fabric cooling devices that you place in water, and then put around your neck or on your forehead? They have small beads that soak up the water and it stays cools for hours! They now have them for pets and you can find them in some of the pet supply catalogs. You soak the mat with a garden hose, dry the exterior, and your pet can lie on it and stay cool. I live in a very hot part area and this has been great for my Lab and Springer! (You might want to make sure they are past the chewing stage - I'm not sure if the beads are toxic.)

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  • 13. J W - 12:54PM on 08/01/07

    Got to agree with what Cesar said, my dogs go to the beach most mornings in summer, and I go in with them too. The female who lived to swim (and was swimming the day before she died) was also the digger, and did indeed dig shallow 'pits' to cool off in the garden. Three holes each used depending on the time of day.

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  • 14. heather - 2:21PM on 08/01/07

    We gave our dog a corner of the yard she can dig as much as she want's . She has been trained to not dig in other parts of the yard. It is possible.

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  • 15. kk2000 - 5:39PM on 08/01/07

    We have a scottie and a westie. The westie, whose not quite one, loves to dig in the yard. The Scottie doesn't but then again, he is a bit of a premadonna!

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  • 16. Peggy R - 7:06AM on 08/02/07

    We have a sassy peke-a-poo and a cocker/chow. Neither dig. The cocker/chow likes to lay in the grass when we sit on the porch at night. As much as the little one likes to be outside she still likes inside when it's hot. Doesn't even eat a lot when it's hot. Good thing we have central air...

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  • 17. Barbara - 3:25AM on 08/03/07

    My terriers like to swim,but I'm trying to find a place where dogs are allowed.

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  • 18. lydia.woltz@rogers.com - 4:41PM on 08/03/07

    I took my Lakeland Terrier to the ocean for the first time in his 11 years. He had a blast chasing and jumping the waves. After the first drink he kept his mouth closed and had the time of his life. He slept great that night and the next day with lots of dreaming going on. It was great to watch.

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  • 19. eddie b - 8:24AM on 08/05/07

    We have a Beagle and she loves to dig. She is a passionate digger. Maybe she'll strike oil or even water one day? She has only dedicated a small area of the yard for this tendency. We love our Beagle.

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  • 20. Martalaura - 4:28PM on 08/09/07

    I have one dog that loves it when I take out the hose so that she can play in the water, but the other one runs away and looks at the one that is playing as if she were crazy.

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  • 21. CHERYL K - 3:17PM on 09/25/07

    I've heard that dogs dig because it is a natural urge.............making a den but also because of boredom. Think the boredom part is true?

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  • 22. naomifrog2005 - 4:37PM on 12/18/07

    How to get my dog stop digging holds ? Naomi thank you

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  • 23. danielle p - 4:35PM on 01/24/08

    I have a good sized fenced in yard for my dogs and I will go out and burry bones or treats for them...they love to go out and find some yummy treats in the yard. My dogs have completely destroyed one side of their area, but I just laugh and watch them having fun in the dirt. The only time I dont want them to dig is when it is raining out and they get covered in mud. Digging is natural and if you have the space...give them an area that is ok to dig in.

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  • 24. Rick F - 11:35AM on 03/09/08

    I have a chihuahua that wont stop digging and a black lab. that wont dig....? What are the odds!!!!!

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  • 25. MONA - 9:40PM on 04/06/08

    We live on a Army base,and we have two dogs. One of them digging holes in the back yard. what can i do to stop this? Please help

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  • 26. dlupilot@sbcglobal.net - 9:56PM on 04/06/08

    my doxies love to dig. They will follow the gopher hole trails all over the yard, digging ditches as they go. I just fill the trails back in. I'm in the country, so doesn't matter what the neighbors think about the condition of my yard. When they get nice and dirty, I just put them in their wading pool for a nice cleaning

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  • 27. bearie04 - 1:27AM on 04/07/08

    If you are having a hard time stopping them from digging..lay chainlink fence over the site(s) that they are digging and they will stop digging there. they wont even walk over the wire because it will hurt their feet..move it around to each new spot they start to dig and they will stop..but you should also leave a spot for them to dig..it is in their blood to do so

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  • 28. kscagirl22 - 2:50PM on 04/09/08

    I have a great black lab that i love. been watching ur show and we now go on daily bike rides. the only prob i have is that he doesn't like water. he is ok with it if it is a stream or lake but a puddle, hose sprinkler, pool, ect is around he acts like a cat.even to the point that he almost pulled me off my bike to walk around a big puddle. what can i do to make him enjoy the water as he was born to

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