With change of seasons, we also try to keep ourselves comfortable in various manners. We change our clothing, we change our lifestyle and even we change our food habits. But what for the pets? Actually they can do nothing for themselves. Suppose you have a pet dog in your home, and its summer time what will they do to save them from the heat? It’s your responsibility to look after the matter of taking care of your pets. Pets depend on you and so you should also keep the value of such dependency if you really love your pet. You should know about some important summertime dog problems and how you can deal with it. Yeah! This article is going to tell you all.
Important Summertime Dog Problems and how you can deal with it:
Overheating:
This is really a serious problem for dogs during the summer time. It’s not only uncomfortable but also can lead to serious health issues.
Symptoms: If you see swollen tongue, gray or white gums, excessive panting or cloudy eyes, all these are the major symptoms of overheating. Do you know that a dog left in a car for just 5 minutes can result in stroke? Dogs can’t take excessive heat and if left untreated, they will die.
Prevention: During the summer season, you should be sure that your dog is left in a well ventilated place with proper air flow. Provide them with plenty of water. If needed, use a table fan or a pedestal fan towards the dog’s crate for better air flow. When the heat is excessive, never take your dog in a car and when going outside be sure that they gets enough shed to take rest.
Treatment: As soon as you see that your dog is showing symptoms of heat exhaustion, take the pet to a shade and provide them enough air and ventilation. Try to make them bath in cool water but not at all cold water. While bathing, pay more attention to the abdomen area which will help to cool the dog faster. Let them drink small amount of water at that time because excessive drinking of water will cause vomiting.
Dehydration:
Dehydration can actually happen as a result of continuous overheating and dehydration can lead to many hazardous health conditions.
Symptoms: Normally a dehydrated dog shows dry nose and mouth. Eyes are loose and sunken and the flabby skin doesn’t get’s back in to the position when tugged.
Prevention: If your dog goes through regular exercise, be sure to hydrate them before the session. Try to keep them away from direct sunlight and heat. Reduce the amount of exercise and walking during this time.
Treatment: Keep the dog hydrated all the time. Water should be available to them always so that they can drink water in short intervals. You can also use electrolyte solutions to remove dehydration faster. But if you notice severe dehydration, then rush immediately to the vet.
Canine Sunburn:
You may think that dogs have a fur coat above their skin so they can’t get any sunburn, you are completely wrong. Dogs those have short hair coat or light hairs will suffer from canine sunburn if left directly to the sunlight for a long time.
Symptoms: the main sign of sunburn is redness and hair loss from the abdomen, ear tips and bridge of the nose. In most of the cases, the sunburn is minor and heals with time but repeated exposure may lead to cancer just like humans.
Prevention: The only solution is to keep them away from direct sunlight and if necessary you can use such fabrics which actually protect their skin from UV rays.
Treatment: Spray the area with cool water at a proper interval of about 30 minutes. Skin conditioner can be used to heal the wound. Bath your pet in Luke warm water with oatmeal mixed in the water. Use aloevera gel to treat the sunburn faster.
Burned Pads:
During the summer season, the asphalt coat of the roads gets heated and as a result if the canines walk over it, the pads will get burned.
Symptoms: This is very rare but still but still you can spot skin blisters and red burns on the underneath of the paws.
Prevention: The major prevention is taking your dog for a walk at morning when the heat remains relatively lower. Or even you can take them for a walk in the evening. For better result, use dog booties which can protect the feet in any condition.
Treatment: Put your pet’s feet in cold water and then let it dry out. You can apply any anti-biotic ointment which contains hydrocortisone. Cover the paws to keep it safe and also coat the burns with peanut butter.
Seasonal Allergies:
The last that is very important is the seasonal allergies that are very common in the canines. They can actually be allergic to various seasonal objects such as parasites, plants, grass, fleas etc.
Symptoms: There can be respiratory problems, infections, itchiness, watery eyes etc, but as soon as you see them you should never late for the treatment as ignorance may lead to a serious issue.
Prevention: First of all, you will have to avoid staying outside of the house for a long time. Heat exposition should be always prevented as heat can be a major factor for all these allergic reactions. Clean your dog on a regular interval to get rid of fleas and moles.
Treatment: If you spot allergy in dog, just immediately rush to the vet doctor and consult with them. There are some particular medications that should be given.
The fact is that dog’s are very much uncomfortable in excessive heat, so you should always try to keep them safe from the weather condition. After all it’s your pet and you love a lot. No pet lover wants their pet to go through serious health issues.
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