Ouch Mum! (hot paws)

My two cats are finding shade under bushes in the garden. I am making sure their water is topped up. There are hardly any puddles outside at the moment!

I read a walking in heat story ‘from a dog’ on my Facebook page. It was very upsetting.

Poor cats and dogs in this heat, they don't know what's hit them and why they can't go out for their usual walks.
I get a new puppy on Saturday and am do pleased I didn't have to care for him this week in the heatwave. Such a responsibility.
Stay safe.

I found an old straw fan and used it to fan our cat. He quite enjoyed it until he decided to eat the fan!

My dogs have little energy during the day, I take them early for a shorter walk and they doze the days away mainly in cooler spots ( if they can find the )
The house is an older build that does tend to stay cooler indoors during the summer. Although you wouldn’t say so at nighttime…….

My 8 month old lab looks up at me with big soulful eyes as much as to ask why is it so hot, do something! We are walking at 6am and have the fan on all day but still 85F in the house. She spends half the day spreadeagled on the floor.

Apart from the heat of the pavement it’s not good for them to be out in the boiling hot sun. They can only cool down by panting and need plenty of water.

I saw some kind of cooling blanket for dogs at the garden centre yesterday.

Dd sent me a WhatsApp of a Cool Down Foldable Dog Pool available at Pets at Home which she thought the dog might like. I replied so would I!

We shouldn't underestimate how hot and bothered we all get too. Even the most well behaved dog can get snappy when hot.
A n

My little man has a cooling pad on the floor which I found in a cupboard this week (I had forgotten all about it) I think I bought it a year or two ago from ebay. He uses it most of the day, the rest of the time I have a fans in the house and the one in the hall goes right through to a bedroom so he often makes his way there and lies in the corner where he can feel the coolness of it. He is due at the groomers this afternoon so should feel better when his coat is off. He doesn't like the heat, and sits in front of me (just like Avalon's dog) as if to ask why is it so uncomfortable and hot.
Hope cooler weather is on the way for all of them.

Sorry hit button to quickly!
Was going to say that we had an unpleasant incident with a neighbour yesterday when her dog came at my 5 year old grandson. Why was her dog off the lead and out at 3.30pm. GS wasn't doing anything and was some distance away. No apology I might add.

My cat is laying under the bench in the garden. He stayed out the other night til one and I couldnt sleep because he never did that before. He slept all day like he had an hangover so I think he'd been to a cat rave!!

We have a cool pad for our dog which we bought online, he finds the kitchen tiles comfortable and also the hall when the sun has moved around to the back of the house. He had a walk at 6am and that will be it for the rest of the day.
Our vet posted this on their Facebook page -

No dog has ever died from missing one walk.
But, dogs have died from one walk in the heat!
It's just not worth it....Don't risk it!

We walk our little pooch in the forest or a quick swim in the sea. We have to be careful though as the sand and pebbles can get very hot.

I see people walking their dogs in the hot afternoons.
If those people wore a fur coat and went barefoot they may realise how their dog suffers.

Had a discussion about this with a friend the other day - she said dogs feet were used to hot weather and you don't see wild animals avoiding the sun(!!). Suggested she take off her shoes and walk on my patio (which had been in full sun for a couple of hours) - think I made my point

I also use a cooling towel on my Border Collie. They are light weight and stay cold for up 2 hours.
Mine was around £8.00 on Amazon so not expensive.

Ellianne

I saw some kind of cooling blanket for dogs at the garden centre yesterday.

I’ve got one of these cooling mats for my dog. They do feel nice and cool but the problem is getting my dog to understand that he’s supposed to put all of his body on it and not just his 2 front paws.

Mine would want to bite it!

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202107/medium-314293-7133005-03.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202107/medium-903996-7133005-08.jpg

Thanks for the tips on cooling mats.
I've just come across an ice jacket on pets at home. I wonder?

I've just been for a coffee on the seafront and there were quite a lot of people walking their dogs up and down on the tarmac.
It must be a bit of a dilemma for them especially this year with so many people holidaying in the UK and not being allowed to leave their dog alone in a rented property or in the hotel.

I will definitely look at the jacket Ellianne Thank you.

If there is plenty of shade in your gardens, I think you can safely assume that if your cats go out, they are sticking to the shade.

My younger cat does, while the elder goes out in the early morning and late evening, spending the hottest hours of the day lying on the bathroom floor - the bathroom faces north-west and has a stone floor.

I have made sure that the usual indoor and the outdoor water bowls are kept full and supplemented by a saucer of water for the hedgehogs, as they cannot reach into the bowls and a old metal basin with three inches of cold water,

Most dogs have the sense to find a cool spot indoors, but they should certainly only be taken for walks in the early morning or when the temperature falls in the evening.

Plenty of water readily accessible is necessary for us all right now. An indoor fan is a good idea too, if your rooms face south.