Seven years ago, Leo, Amy and Brandon Venckus bought their Jack Russell terrier, Mr. B. The Venckus family later moved to Florida from Massachusetts and quickly discovered that Mr. B is a dog easily affected by the heat.
The first time that the Venckus family discovered Mr. B’s problem was on an extremely hot summer day. Amy and Leo were outside most of the day doing yard work, and Mr. B had accompanied them by chasing and barking at squirrels. Mr. B would occasionally sit in the shade to cool off, but with the attention span of a Jack Russell terrier, there was always something to distract him.
After several hours of trimming hedges and pulling weeds everyone was exhausted, including Mr. B, so they decided to take a little swim in the pool, a favorite place for Mr.B. Once Leo got in the pool, he laid on a pool raft and without hesitation little Mr. B jumped upon Leo’s lap. Not even a minute went by when all of a sudden Mr. B vomited all over Leo’s chest. Leo quickly put Mr. B back on the pool deck where Mr. B continued to vomit. Amy and Leo quickly started putting cool pool water on Mr. B’s back and grabbed a bowl of cool water for him to drink. They noticed that Mr. B wasn’t only vomiting his dog food, but also thick white foam. This worried the family; they knew that if it continued, they would have to rush Mr. B to the vet.
“I was really concerned about Mr. B and because he had been panting very heavily and wasn’t walking around a whole lot, I knew it was from the heat rather than something he had eaten.” Amy Venckus said.
Amy and Leo brought Mr. B into the house and continued to keep an eye on him. They now know that even though Mr. B had only been outside for a few hours, which didn’t seem to be very long for a dog, each dog reacts to the heat differently. The Venckus family continues to keep a close eye on their beloved Jack Russell. This could have ended differently if Amy and Leo hadn’t acted so quickly.
Dr. Randall’s advice on protecting your pet during the heat of summer:
Imagine not having the option of putting on shorts and a tank top in order to beat the summer heat. Imagine having to go outside in 92-degree weather wearing a winter coat, or better yet a fur jacket. This is what dogs and cats have to deal with everyday when the temperatures start to soar. So it is up to us as pet owners to make sure our pets aren’t being ignored when it comes to the scorching summer heat.
Prevention
The best way to prevent your pet from getting heat stroke is to provide them with plenty of cool water and keep them in a cool or air conditioned environment as much as possible. Keep in mind that a pet can still get heat stroke, even if left in a shaded area, so air conditioning is always your safest bet. Keeping your pets out of cars is also a way to prevent heat stroke. The number-one cause of heat stroke in pets is spending too much time in a car without air conditioning.
Monitoring a pet hourly is crucial in the summer months, especially for pets that spend a majority of their time outdoors. A dog or cat can begin to show signs of heat stress in temperatures as low as 75 degrees and that includes water temperatures as well. Just because a dog is in the water doesn’t mean they are exempt from heat stroke. It is important that the dog is given cool, fresh water to drink on a continual basis, especially if they are swimming in a pool or at a beach, lake or pond where the water is rarely, if ever, healthy for them to ingest.
Signs
A few signs of heat stress that an owner should look for are excessive panting, a rapid heart beat, a change in the coloring of their gums, collapsing or lying down and inability to get up, thick saliva, excessive saliva, confusion and dizziness. If a pet’s body temperature reaches 104 degrees it’s time to take action, if a pet’s body temperature gets to 106 degrees it becomes a life threatening situation. Finding a pet’s temperature requires a thermometer, which many people don’t have for their pet, so it is important to become familiar with the signs and symptoms of heat stroke. Heat exhaustion, when not attended to, will eventually cause the pet to have a seizure, go into a coma or die.
So, enjoy the fun and the sun that summer brings, but don’t let ignorance or negligence cause you to lose your beloved pet to heat exhaustion. Be sure to monitor your furry friend’s fun in the sun and look out for the signs of overheating! Have a happy and healthy summer season!