Hello All, Its about 20 degrees and sunny here and took my 8 month year old boy for a nice casual 30 minute walk. Just wondering if it is normal for him to be completly out of breath? It almost looks like he ran a marathon. Also, when would it become to hot or dangerous to exercise? Thanks all
When you say out of breath, do you mean he was panting heavily ? My lad is a panter at the best of times so I do keep a close eye on him when the weather is hot . I do tend to walk by rivers and have taught both to drink from them when told to , if you cant do this then maybe take some water for your lad ? I also try to walk them earlier in the mornings and make sure that the afternoon walk is somewhere with lots of shade , woodlands are great . Once, ( if ! ) the temperature hits around 23+, the dogs don't get walked in the hours between 10 and 5 .
I totally agree with Kate, early morning or late evening walks in hot weather and a dip in the river, wooded walks. My Labrador x Pointer is a real panter so I do watch him carefully. I do take water for them in the Summer months if I'm not near a river just in case and they usally drink it all. In the very hot summer months it can become dangerous to walk during the hotter parts of the day so if you can't get out in the cooler hours you could do some inside training games and gentle games in your garden for a short period to keep him occupied.
What was the temperature the day before? I find the adjustment to hot weather is a lot harder to take than the adjustment to cooler weather, and so does Oban. If it was a sudden jump up we'd both be pooped and lethargic. Humidity makes it worse. Oban feels the heat more than any dog I've had and that's fine, I do too. On a 30C or higher day we'll go out early and maybe only for 20 minutes and not move very fast. The coolest part of the day is early, for us. Something to watch for on hot days is hot pavement. It can burn pads, a bit. Even sand can get pretty hot.
Remember that dogs cool off by panting. They don't sweat like we do. Paws I think transmit heat (so bathing paws could help with a hot dog) and that big floppy wet tongue.
Hi there, Dexter copes really well with the heat all things considered but in the evenings when it's humid he can be panting hard and fast after only an ambly walk ,this is ok as long as the breathing returns to normal pretty quickly ,I never feed him until his breathing is completely under control,whatever baleful looks he tries tomtorture me with! We have to cope with quite extreme temperatures. We try to stay to grassy ,shaded areas as much as we can.As Kate says,walking by water is perfect for regular cooling dips.I take lots of water with me and stop regularly for little drink breaks..Dexter isn't a glugger on walks but I just let him have small amounts regularly so he doesn't chug too much down too fast.Ive read not to give a hot dog iced water as it can cause bloat.......I don't know if this is factually correct but reading it was enough for me,I can imagine at the very least glugging down freezing water is a bit of a shock to the system...it would be to us! if you are having to walk in warmer temps,watch their tongue,as they get hotter their tongue extends further out of their mouth to increase the surface area to cool them through panting and it changes colour...it goes a deeper colour as they get hotter,the end also expands ....Watch out for excessive drooling....this is a danger sign for heat stroke.You can actually feel the heat from their mouth.I go out at sunrise in Dubai and I can walk Dexter and a spaniel together some days,I can feel Oscar getting hotter quicker than Dexter just by my hand by the pink of his mouth....I don't have him out as long as I would Dexter on his own when it's getting warm so every dog is different,just because one is coping doesn't mean another one can. Enjoy all the lovely Summer weather I hope is coming to you but stay safe as the heat can be a real danger X
Good to read all your experiences. I've noticed that our two girls really tire quickly in even slightly warmer weather. We always take water with us and stop for regular drink breaks, which seems to help, but I was surprised that they looked very 'panty' and almost worn out as soon as the first of the warmer weather arrived ... but still nothing like as warm as it's been the past few days, which is only around 19 degrees. So we are walking early in the morning or later in the evening, and also using woodland for shade. There's a fabulous community woodland near us with lots of benches and shady spots, so it's a great place to meet dog walkers and other dogs, and lots of opportunity for little rests and drinks. Thank you Angela for more information re what to look out for. South West England doesn't quite match Dubai, but heat is heat, I guess
We tend to do walks near water at the minute as Harley seems to be panting more. She loves nothing more than jumping into rivers / streams to cool off .
We have a large off leash area near us that has large creek through it, and a small river on the edge. If we play Frisbee with Tilly, she will suddenly decide she has had enough and head for the creek for a swim. We just plan for it and make sure we have dog towels in the car. I expect we will see the same from Cooper this Summer. I'm a little surprised at having a lot of panting at 20 deg. That is cool room temp isn't it? When it gets really hot, we worry about the dogs paws on hot asphalt. It can get too hot to put your hand on comfortably. I've seen times when we were on vacation in the Midwest that the dogs really did not want to walk on the pavement at all.
20 degrees outdoor with the sun beaming isn't the same as 20 degrees indoors. I was suprised too with the heavy panting for a good 20 minutes following the walk.
I walk my dogs early like Kate. I have also got a children's paddling pool for them to cool off in. They have great fun in it too.
