Bridgton Veterinary Hospital

213 Harrison Road

Bridgton, ME 04009

207-647-8804

SUMMER CARE FOR YOUR PETS

As the cool weather slowly fades and the mercury rises, families begin preparing for another summer filled with outdoor fun. Children and adults will spend more time outside playing with their pets. Summer holidays are perfect for barbeques, picnics and pool parties. To make the summer more enjoyable, be aware of various summertime hazards that can result in injury or illness to your pet. Preventing these hazards can help maintain the carefree days of summer.

Outdoor Threats

Keep your pet leashed when you leave your yard. Taking your pet outdoors increases the likelihood of meeting other animals, so use a leash for his safety and theirs. A fight with another pet, or with any smaller animal, can result in cuts, lacerations or severe punctures. If left untreated, wounds can become complicated.

Protect your dog from insects.

Flies are more prevalent in the warmer months, and any injury to the skin, even something as small as an abrasion, can be a perfect place for flies to lay eggs. In a short time, these eggs hatch and become maggots. Keeping your pet clean and treating any skin injuries is crucial in avoiding maggot infestations.

Another outdoor threat is antifreeze. As summer approaches, many people change their antifreeze/water mixture. Antifreeze tastes sweet to pets and is highly toxic.

And finally, summer heat speeds up decay and decomposition, especially in the trash. Keep your dog away from garbage areas. Pets that have access to garbage or compost can ingest molds that cause significant nervous system abnormalities including severe tremors or seizures.

Summer Concerns

Whether due to space limitations or personal preference, some owners choose to keep their dogs outdoors. A fenced-in yard or similar type of enclosure is the best. However, if your dog lives outdoors, you need to provide special care to keep him cool and comfortable during hot summer months.

Housing and Shelter

In the summer, you need to provide adequate shelter to protect him from the sun and the heat. A large doghouse with a cool floor or straw bedding works well. Make sure the opening to the doghouse is not facing the sun. If you choose to equip the doghouse with fans to circulate the air, it should be done professionally because curious dogs can chew electric cords and create a serious hazard.

If possible, keep the floor several inches above ground to prevent water from running inside. This increases the chance of illness in your dog.

The doghouse should be big enough to allow your dog to stretch without any part of his body touching the sides.

If straw bedding is used, it will need to be changed periodically. The straw can become moldy and create a variety of skin and respiratory problems. You should not use hay because it often contains a fungus that can cause severe nosebleeds.

Grooming

Keeping your outdoor dog regularly groomed will help maintain a healthy hair coat. Long thick hair coats can be a problem in the summer heat. Some owners choose to visit the groomer in early summer and have the long thick hair trimmed. Whether your dog is trimmed or not, keeping the coat free of mats will help keep the dog cool.

Feeding

Dogs kept outdoors in the summer do not use as much energy in regulating body temperature as in the winter. Make sure your dog is offered a good quality dog food. Be aware that dogs may not eat well in times of extreme heat. Monitor your dog closely during severe heat waves. Water is also essential in the summer. Provide plenty of fresh water daily. Stagnant pools of water or swimming pools can make your dog seriously ill if he drinks from them, so don't allow your dog to use these as water sources. Only fresh water is acceptable.

Health Concerns

In the summertime, dogs are susceptible to a variety of ailments. Careful monitoring is necessary to detect illness early. Heat stroke is a potentially fatal hazard, especially for dogs not offered proper housing and water. Without prompt veterinary treatment, many dogs with heat stroke perish.

In addition to exposure to excessive heat, fleas, ticks and flies are prevalent. Any skin irritation or wound can result in maggot infestation. If your outdoor dog is not properly confined, ingestion of trash can lead to gastrointestinal upset.

Keep all automotive items away from your dog. Many people change antifreeze in the spring and exposure to antifreeze can be deadly. Make sure your dog has no access to any toxic or dangerous chemicals.

Herbicides, fertilizers and other lawn and garden supplies can pose a health threat. Keep these products safely away from your dog.

Table Scraps

It may be tempting to give your pet all those picnic or barbeque leftovers, but try to resist his soulful begging. Instead of including him in your festivities, you may cause gastrointestinal upset, which can result in vomiting and diarrhea. Pets are not used to the high fat foods that are commonly associated with picnics and parties. Mayonnaise and other dairy based items can be particularly bad; dogs do not have the necessary enzymes to digest dairy products and spoilage can cause food poisoning.

Even if you feed your pet non-dairy items like fried chicken or hamburgers, their pancreas may not be prepared for those foods. The pancreas can become inflamed, leading to pancreatitis and abdominal pain, anorexia and vomiting.

Not only do table scraps pose a threat but so does the charcoal and lighter fluid used to barbeque. Ingesting ash or charcoal can result in significant stomach irritation.

Gastrointestinal Foreign Bodies

At picnics and parties we use a variety of disposable items, such as styrofoam and plastic utensils. Unfortunately, pets may ingest some of these items, leading to gastrointestinal obstruction. Another concern is playing with small balls such as SuperBalls or racquetballs. Many dogs love to play fetch with these but if they are too small, the ball can become lodged in the throat and obstruct the airway. Make sure the toys you use are too big to be swallowed or stuck in the throat.

Heat Illness

The ideal weather for picnics and outdoor parties is a warm sunny day. Keep in mind that your pet may not be able to dissipate heat as well as you. Avoid exercise in the mid afternoon heat and always have plenty of water available. Stop all play and exercise if your pet seems weak or disoriented.

In addition to heat related illness, dogs can develop sunburn. Thin haired dogs and recently shaved dogs are more at risk. Consult your veterinarian regarding the use of sunscreen to help your dog.

Another summer concern is hot pavement. Your dog may need extra protection for his feet. Prolonged running on hot pavement can result in severe burns to the bottom of the pads.


Dangers of Fireworks

Evening sets and soon the sky is filled with a brilliant display of fireworks. This display can be quite distracting and you may not remember to think of your pet, who may be nearby trembling and looking for a safe place to hide. Loud noises and bright lights can easily frighten your pet, which can cause him to run away. If the display is set off near your pet, he may be hurt by impact injury and burns. Then afterward, the area may be filled with hot ashes and remnants of the fireworks, which can burn your pets feet and noses. Be very careful when combining pets and fireworks. Keep your pet on a leash and confined, and don't let him investigate. If he becomes frantic, take him somewhere safe and quiet or even go home.

Fishhooks

Fishing is a popular spring and summer activity. Be aware that the bait you use to catch fish is also tempting to your pet. Many dogs and cats have eaten bait – along with the hook and line. Your pet might also step on a hook, which will result in embedding of the hook in the skin.

The most important thing to remember regarding swallowing a hook is NOT TO PULL THE LINE. This will result in setting of the hook and increasing the chance that your pet will require surgery to remove it. Tie the line to your pet's collar to prevent him from swallowing more of the line and contact your vet. Removing hooks in the skin can be challenging but may be possible. Cut off the barb end and pull it through. Consult your veterinarian if you are unable to remove the hook.

With a little extra caution, summertime can be an enjoyable time of the year for both you and your dog. 

Water Safety

Water is often a major part of outdoor family activities. Usually water activities are fun, relaxing and entertaining, but tragedy can occur without proper caution. Pets can drown in lakes and pools just like people. Even if your pet seems to want to keep playing fetch in the water, at some point you will need to take a break. Older dogs weaken more quickly, even if they are excellent swimmers, and when he is exhausted swimming and keeping his head above water more becomes more difficult.

Be on the lookout for stagnant pools of water. At certain times of the year, algae forms along the edges of stagnant or infrequently used bodies of water. Some forms of this algae, particularly blue-green algae, are very dangerous. Ingesting some of the algae can cause serious, rapid illness and can kill pets. Don't allow your pet near stagnant water or algae, and make sure he doesn't drink from these water sources.


Water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink.
– Samuel Coleridge

Unlike the ancient mariner of Coleridge's famous poem, your dog may not see the ocean or any body of water as dangerous or undrinkable. And he doesn't realize the price he could pay from drinking or swimming in a body of stagnant water.

In the summer, water safety for your dog extends beyond the prevention of drowning accidents. Dogs are susceptible to diseases and injuries you may not have considered, even if they do not go into the water at all. You both can have a lot of fun, but you should be aware of the following potential dangers.

Always bring extra water and a bowl for your dog, so he won't be tempted to slake his thirst from a questionable water source.

Poisoning and Parasites

One danger is drinking from a body of water contaminated by parasites or bacteria, such as Giardia. Both are common in stagnant bodies of water, such as ponds, bogs and small lakes.

 

You should be concerned if your dog shows the following symptoms after drinking from a stagnant water source:

• Diarrhea 
• Vomitting
• Some weight loss, as a result of the diarrhea
• Excessive as, caused by the parasite

A specific type of algae – called blue-green algae – is extremely dangerous to your pet. It is found primarily in stagnant water with the algae concentrated on the downwind side. Blue-green algae is mostly present in late summer/early fall, but it can occur any time conditions are ripe. Even a small amount ingested can kill your dog within an hour.

Then there's your pool. Blue, beautiful, without a trace of algae, so it must be safe, right? Think again. If he drinks from the pool, he's absorbing all that chlorine, algaecides and baking soda you dumped in to turn your pool from swamp green to sparkling blue. Too much can make him ill. 
 
Pool Safety

On a blistering hot day, owning a pool definitely has its advantages as a refuge from the heat. It also holds the potential for a family tragedy all year round if you are not careful. 

Pool safety issues for pets are almost synonymous with those for children, and they go far beyond just careful supervision. With pets and kids, you can never assume that you can watch them all the time. It only takes a few minutes of distraction for either one to fly out the door and into the pool. In fact, one study showed that in the case of children, supervision failed in 69 percent of the drowning incidents.

With that said, pools can be great fun for your pet. Here are just a few of the issues you should consider:

• Although many dogs love the water, don't assume they can swim naturally. Never throw a dog into the pool; he may panic and not be able to climb the slick sides to get out of the pool.

• Even excellent swimmers will gradually lose their ability as they age and become weaker. In addition, senior dogs are more prone to slipping and falling into a pool.
  
   
• Heat and sunlight are more intense around a pool. Your dog cannot keep as cool as you, so watch for signs of overheating. Don't let your dog drink from the pool; the chlorine will make him sick.
  
   
• In the same vein, you should be aware that chlorinated water may irritate your dog's eyes. When the two of you are finished playing in the pool, hose your dog down with fresh water to get the chlorine out.