In the UK, we’re having a warm spell right now, with the temperatures hitting 26-27 Celsius most afternoons. This has sparked the usual surge of well-meaning advice for keeping dogs safe in hot weather with many of the posts being shares of older posts without checking the facts are still up to date.
The piece of misinformation I find the most worrying is the advice to NOT cool the dog down rapidly with immersion in cool water or hosing them with water. This is usually followed with the (now refuted) claim that it sends the body into shock. The most up to date research on humans, horses and dogs has found that rapid cooling is the most effective way to bring body temperature down and active cooling via cold water immersion (1-3°C) is now the standard human treatment.
For dogs, hosing or pouring bottled/tap water (0-15°C) or immersion in a pool or bath or river or pond (whilst supporting head) at 10-15°C is recommended.
Photo by Afra Ramió on Unsplash
Last year (2022) I recall seeing several “shaming” posts on social media regarding people taking their dogs out when the weather was hot. You know the type; a photo of someone the poster doesn’t know with their dog and the angry caption “I can’t believe someone is out with their dog in xx-degree heat”. Without going into the rights or wrongs of “naming and shaming” people on SM, a stranger seeing a dog from a distance cannot make the call that this is a welfare issue for that particular dog. Each dog is different when it comes to heat tolerance, or lack of, and only a person who knows the dog, its medical history, specific needs and mitigations already in place for that dog can assess whether it is safe or not. There are myriad factors which have a bearing on whether it’s safe for a dog to be walked or not and the actual temperature is not the most important! Have I been walking my dogs? Yes. Yes I have. However, my elderly dog has only gone out at 7.30am as her risk factor is high and ability to cope with heat low. My 7 yr old sheltie has a far lower tolerance of heat than her 10 year old mother does and her son can deal well with it, too. My 5 yr old can also manage well. I do still take precautions, though. I'm lucky to be able to walk from my back gate and be under a stand of mature trees casting dense shade about 50 feet away and there is no hot tarmac to traverse. I don't allow them to run around like loonies and we mostly just sit and chill in the shade. I also bring water and offer it frequently.
Breed:
Breed plays a huge part in how likely a dog is to develop heat related illness (HRI), unsurprisingly, flat-faced (brachycephalic) dogs are more likely to develop HRI than many others, so breeds such as the Chow Chow, Bulldog, French Bulldog, Pug, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, Shi-Tzu etc. Perhaps more surprising is that Greyhounds and Golden Retrievers were also found to be at higher risk during the research.
Thanks to www.heatstroke.dog for the graphic
Health and life stage:
Overweight dogs, older dogs and dogs with pre-existing conditions, particularly heart or breathing issues, are more at risk of developing HRI as their body’s ability to cool itself naturally is compromised.
Activity level:
Anything that causes a dog’s body temperature to rise and remain high can potentially lead to HRI, including hot weather, hot cars, hot buildings or prolonged stressful periods. By far the biggest cause of HRI, over 75% of cases, is overheating whilst exercising, and this is not directly linked to heatwaves or excessive outdoor temperatures. In fact, the median ambient temperature on days of reported HRI events was a mere 16.9°C. Does this mean we shouldn’t exercise our dogs when temperatures go over 17°C?! Of course not! What it does illustrate is that exercise induced HRIs are not dependent upon the external temperature and, depending on our dogs’ individual risk factors, we should be aware of the chance of developing HRI during exercise at any time of the year.
In addition to the breed types listed above, Labrador Retrievers, English Springer Spaniels, Staffordshire Bull Terriers and Border Collies were found to be at a higher risk of exercise induce HRI. HRI in border collies and related breeds (Kelpies, Australian Shepherds, Bearded Collie, Rough Collie and Shetland Sheepdog to name a few) should not be confused with Border Collie Collapse (BCC)/Exercise-induced collapse (EIC), which is a genetically inherited neuromuscular disorder.
Special note for Flat-Faced (Brachycephalic Dogs):
Flat faced dogs, with or without the complication of BOAS (brachycephalic obstructive airway disease), are 3 times more likely to die from HRI than other dogs. There are several theories as to why this may be, including that in dogs with BOAS, panting is less effective than in dogs with a healthy respiratory system and can create more heat than it releases due to the amount of work the muscles do to create a pant. Also, these dogs are at an increased risk of aspiration pneumonia (whether they have BOAS or not) and the excessive salivation, vomiting, fitting and collapse associated with moderate HRI can lead to non-survivable lung damage. Anyone with a flat faced breed should be aware of the first signs of HRI and act to cool the dog and seek veterinary advice immediately.
What are the first signs of HRI?
Signs of mild Heat Related Illness:
Panting
Less inclined to play
Tiredness
Changes to behaviour
Difficulty breathing
If you see these signs with your flat-faced dog, now is the time to act.
Moderate HRI:
Drooling
Vomiting
Diarrhoea
A single fit/seizure
Collapse
Severe HRI:
Multiple seizures
Unconsciousness
Vomiting/diarrhoea with blood
Loss of co-ordination and confusion
References and further reading (I highly recommend that you take the time to visit heatstroke.dog and if you're on social media, give Dr David Marlin a follow if you want to learn more about thermoregulation in animals):
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