Tips: Survivng The Heat

Jukes

Well-Known Member
I know the worst of the heat is going - thnak God - but I thought it would be useful to get some tips for the next time on ways to survive the heat.

For Jukes who loves ice I started adding ice cubes to his bowl of water to keep it cold and give him something to crunch on. Then I started to offer him flavoured ice (I just froze some fruit in the ice like a raspberry or a bit of melon) which he loved:).

Jukes also took part in several water fights (someone had arranged a huge one - 42 people and 3 dogs king of huge!), and of course swimming was a frequent activity. He didn't get half the amount of walks he's used to because it was just so hot! So we had to substitute with lots of tricks training and swimming in the pool - when it got really hot I let him have a go on the running machine - he would stay on it for all of five minutes before wondering off to investigate something else *sigh*.
 

Anneke

Honored Member
I do that too, ice cubes in the waterbowl;) Jinx takes them out and plays with them, but Cooper loves that the water stays really cool.
I put fruit in the blender, then put in a kong and freeze it.
And a lot of swimming too.
If they are very lucky, we can go and play in my friends garden(we don't have a garden). We put the sprinkles on and then play in our home made rain:D
I also have cooling bandana's they can wear.
 

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
To walk my dog, who does NOT tolerate the heat AT ALL, not a bit, he goes limp in the heat....but he is a border collie and does need his walks,
i hose him down, gently, prior to each walk. I first empty out all that HOT water sitting in the hose, and then, with hose on low, and continuous praise, i thoroughly soak his neck, chest, and upper back, (thinking i am cooling off the vessels going to his precious head) and also his back.
This did take some getting used to, but, Buddy totally comes right over to the hose now, knowing he is going on a walk. To Buddy, he now greets the hose in same way he sees his leash coming out. I notice if i forget to constantly praise Buddy he doesn't seem to enjoy it quite as much. He'll do anything for praise, he just can't ever get enough of that lovey talk.

He can walk perfectly normally this way, as if it is not hot out. I also soak my own head of hair, getting it soaking wet, too, if it is wayyyyyy hot out, so i can keep up with Buddy.:p

Buddy is dry by the time we come home, or pretty much dry.
 

heidio

Active Member
My parents would dedicate a kiddie pool to their Rottie. I've been taking Max to the brook that runs behind the dog park to go swimming, but he just doesn't seem interested. He'll go in and walk around but when it comes to swimming and playing in the water he's not interested. I would of though a retrevier would like the water. Maybe with time he can learn to enjoy it.
Ice cubes are Max's favorite treat to play with when it's hot. I just toss a couple in his water bowl and on the ground for him to play with and he loves gobbling them up.
 

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
Heidio, my dog did not seem much interested in water his first summer with us, BUT, now he loves it. The kiddie pool is great idea.
We have a small plastic kiddie pool, that has small pinhole in it. I was going to get a new one, then i realized, that pinhole does drain the pool out in a few days, forcing us to keep fresh water in it, ha ha, cuz Buddy WILL drink it...so maybe that pinhole is not all bad.
 

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
I have actually made Buddy eating ice into a trick.

(i posted this trick here, once as a thread, but, i can't find it, sorry)

I took a magnetic picture frame,
and wrote "BUDDY WANTS ICE" on a piece of paper
and slipped that into the frame. You could also just print up a picture of ice cubes.

Then i put the frame onto the fridge,
down low,​
where Buddy can reach it.​

Then i rubbed some meat onto the frame
so Buddy would sniff at it.

soon as Buddy sniffed it,
CLICK!
only instead of a bit of meat, he got a bit of ice.
and some praise.

He learned this trick in one (1)day.
I bet, if your dog loves ice, he will learn this very quickly, too!! ha ha

Now, whenever he wants ICE,
he runs over and presses his nose to the frame
to be handed an ice cube.

He also will do this to the verbal cue, "Does Buddy want ICE?" ---> he'll run over and nose that frame.

I will stand there, with small bowl of ice,
and hand him ice cubes for each nose press onto the frame
until he is satiated.
He gets about a half cup total i guess. He LOVES this trick.

My daughter said, "Why didn't you just teach him to hit the ice maker button?"
but,
i could foresee some problems with that one, hee hee. Sometimes the button is left on 'water' not 'ice',
and i am not entirely sure everyone here wants a dog paw hitting the spot the lip of their cup should hit, etc etc. Plus, sometimes no ice comes out at all, which would discourage Buddy. This way worked best for us.
 

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
but again, everyone who is not walking their dog cuz of the heat,
GET THOSE DOGS SOAKING WET
with the hose,
then walk them.

they will be dry by time they get home.

I carry gallon of water in plastic carton in my car,
to wet Buddy down,
for when we drive to park to walk....so i can wet him down after we arrive at park, instead of wet dog in the car.

Is probably a good idea anyway, to carry a gallon of water in your car.
and each of our cars has lil doggie bowl for water, too.
 

Jukes

Well-Known Member
Great ideas here - love the paddling pool - might have to invest in that one:D

Tigerlily - I think I will try soaking Jukes and then walking - perhaps that way we could maybe get half an hour in even on a really hot day - it should be simple enough since Jukes loves water and doesn't mind being squirted with it hence the water fight participation:p
 

tigerlily46514

Honored Member
Lol, Jukes, my dog initially LOATHED the hose, tried to run away, and when i leashed him and brought him over to the hose area, Buddy just glared at me while i soaked him down...well, that was his initial attitude about the whole process.
NOW Buddy happily goes over to the hose area, and expects that cool water all over him. He seems to enjoy it NOW, but, oh that was NOT his first impression, at all!
But, i have found out, that if i praise him continuously in slow low voice, while i gently hose him down, with water on LOW PRESSURE, or no pressure, he rather enjoys it. He also knows, as soon as i set the hose down, we are off for a walk.

so Buddy now thinks of the hose in the same way he thinks of his leash. The hose means = GO FOR A WALK?

my dog will do most ANYTHING for praise, he just can not not not get enough praise! But yeah, i've found out, we can walk as long as we usually do,
IF Buddy is soaking WET when we start out.

I think it helps keep his coat shinier too.
I get my own hair wet, too, keeps ME cool too!!! ha ha.
 
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