General News
12 January, 2023
Keep your dogs cool this summer
Roads in Maryborough are heating up as the mercury continues to soar — prompting a safety message from vets, urging pet owners to keep their four-legged companions away from the heat to avoid life-threatening consequences. As hot weather persists...
Roads in Maryborough are heating up as the mercury continues to soar — prompting a safety message from vets, urging pet owners to keep their four-legged companions away from the heat to avoid life-threatening consequences.
As hot weather persists, pets with burnt paws and heatstroke — the latter more common, are lining up to get help at the Maryborough Veterinary Practice — with their numbers slowly increasing.
Starting off with around three cases recorded in a fortnight, the practice’s co-owner Dr James Chadwick said the situation could worsen if heat conditions are intensified in the coming weeks.
“We see a number of animals every year, some burn their paws from running on asphalt or concrete. More frequently, however, we see dogs getting heatstroke — we’ve had a couple in the last few weeks but it depends on how hot it gets,” he said.
“People really need to take action and make sure their animals aren’t overheating.”
Hard to miss, the signs of a heatstroke in dogs include agitated panting, restlessness, trouble breathing, drooling and in some cases, fainting.
“There will be respiratory distress, and particulary with dogs that don’t have great airways to start with, or overweight dogs — they can even die,” Dr Chadwick said.
“When people see their pets struggling they should immediately cool them down, and get them to the vet where they can be given intravenous fluids or oxygen therapy.”
Dr Chadwick said it is possible to prevent a heatstroke, mitigating any risk, if pet owners take sensible measures like limiting exercise, walking pets early morning or late in the evening when the temperature is lower and keeping pets inside the house with air conditioning.
“If you’re struggling in the heat, your pet is too. Make sure there is plenty of water and shade. Give them entertainment that involves something cool like an ice block or frozen treats,” he said.
“If there’s some kind of entertainment, they’re less likely to be running around and tiring themselves out.”
Although less common, burnt paws are also a cause of concern among pet owners but can be easily prevented by placing your hand on the road and keeping it there for around five seconds — if it’s uncomfortable to do so, it is likely to also be harmful for the pet.
“If there’s a burn just bring them to the vet so they can get treated. But make sure they’re not getting out because I’ve seen some bad ones where the dogs have escaped and ran 20 kilometres,” Dr Chadwick said.