With summer here, the weather is rapidly heating up, and that means we’re going to have to begin changing how we do things. That can include cranking up the A/C, keeping the blinds and curtains closed to save on energy bills, doing your utmost to stay hydrated, among other things. However, it isn’t just you that is going to be heavily impacted by the shift in weather; your dog is also having to contend with the increasing temperatures, and canines have a much harder time dealing with hot weather, as they can’t sweat, nor can they turn up the air conditioning! They just have to suffer through it – unless you help them!

What is Canine Heatstroke?

It’s a simple mistake, but one that can cost your dog their life: leaving your dog in the car, for even a short amount of time, can lead to heatstroke and even death for your dog. Heatstroke is a deadly disease, one that kills human beings around the world regularly, and your dog is just susceptible to it as they are. Even with emergency treatment, there would still be a very real chance that your dog, your friend, your companion would die. Preventing this series of events from ever coming to pass is the only sure way to avoid that nearly inevitable result.

The issue at hand is that the inside of a car is uniquely suited to creating the perfect conditions for heatstroke. During the summer, the sun penetrates the glass of the car, heating the air, while the sun also heads the metal and plastic surrounding the car further absorbing heat into the vehicle. Combined with humidity in the car, especially on high humidity, that humidity can make it very difficult for your pet to rid themselves of their excess body heat. Consequently, they overheat.

Looking for Solutions

Some pet owners think that merely be cracking the windows, they can save their pets from this fate. They can’t open the windows entirely, after all, or their dog could leap out, run away, be hurt, or otherwise become lost. This is, of course never truly enough. It won’t decrease humidity or heat in any significant way. The only surefire way to avoid heatstroke for your pet is to avoid this situation  entirely by always ensuring that your pet will not need to be left in the car on an errand.

When you need to travel, you can either leave your dog with someone responsible enough to care for the dog, or set up a backyard or indoors situation that you can trust your dog in. However you choose to handle it, don’t do harm to your dog by leaving them in the car; nothing good can come of it!