This is a copy of my article I wrote for the June 2008 edition of the SE Examiner. Please post comments with questions, comments on how you keep your pets cool, and suggestions for upcoming articles! I look forward to hearing from you.
With that glimpse of summer we had I started to realize that once again we need to prepare our pets for the hot weather ahead and there are some very unique ways to help keep your pet cool this summer.
 |
| Seso cooling off at Lake Takhlakh summer 2006 |
The obvious ways, of course, are to keep your house cool while your pet stays at home. Closing blinds and running fans, or, if you have it, keeping your air conditioning set to 74 degrees F are some good ways to keep your home cooled for your pets. Leave plenty of cool open floor space for your dog to lay on, or if your basement is safe, you could put your pets down there for the day as it’s often times much cooler down there. Or consider these great Canine Cooler beds that you can be special ordered from your local pet store or purchased on line. The unique water cooled system keeps your pet cool while giving a nice cushion to lay on rather than the hard floor. Be sure to fill the bed in the place you want to leave it – they get heavy when filled. I bet cats would even enjoy them (don’t tell them what they’re called).
Cats and dogs cool themselves by panting and less productively through their footpads. Leaving cold water to drink, with ice cubes in it can give pets the opportunity to drink cold water to help keep cool. Cats are more tricky than dogs and have very individual preferences on how they like their water. Some cats love water out of the tap if your cat fits this category, let the water get cold and offer your cat a drink. If your cat only likes her water in a full cup at the bathroom sink then be sure to fill it often with cold water (use the excess to water indoor plants) and you can even try adding an ice cube or two.
Keeping pets hydrated and cool at the same time is important in hot weather. If your pet is doesn’t like to drink a lot of water, try flavoring it. Use low sodium chicken broth, clam juice, tuna water or your pet’s favorite flavor. You can even freeze the flavored water into ice cubes for a crunchy popsicle treat to help them cool down. If your pet doesn’t like the popsicles, there are other ways to add moisture to diets to keep them hydrated – you can water down the dry kibble food and this works well for dogs that meal feed or you can offer canned food which always has a higher moisture content. You could even add a little water to the canned food but be careful with cats, they are highly particular on the mouth feel of their food and may not eat a watered down version. If you want to get really gourmet, why not add the flavored water to the dry or canned food? One last idea about canned food is to fill a Kong toy with canned food and put it in the freezer to make a tasty cool treat that can also occupy your dog for awhile to take his mind off of the heat. For cats you can freeze canned food into small ice cube trays and try those as a treat. There are other commercially available “ice cream” treats available for dogs (but I bet cats would enjoy them too) called Frosty Paws. They come in small containers like the sundaes that we used to get as kids. You pull off of the top and give it to your dog, maybe take a small scoop out for the cat first, and let them lick it out of the container. If your dog is the type that would EAT the container, you may want to scoop it into a bowl first. My dog loves these and they are available right in our neighborhood at Zupans and New Seasons.