By Nate Baxter DVM
The first thing that needs to be understood is that dogs and people aredifferent enough that most of the info cannot cross lines. Dogs do not loseenough electrolytes thru exercise to make a difference, but if the dog getstruly into heat stroke, the physiology changes will make them necessary. BUToral replacement at that point is futile, they need intravenous fluids andelectrolytes and lots of it.
Cooling: Evaporative cooling is the most efficient mean of cooling. However,in a muggy environment, the moisture will not evaporate so cooling does nothappen well. I cool with the coldest water I can find and will use icedepending on the situation. The best way is to run water over the dog, sothere is always fresh water in contact with the skin. When you immerse a dogin a tub, the water trapped in the hair coat will get warm next to the dog,and act as an insulator against the cool water and cooling stops. If you canrun water over the dog and place it in front of a fan that is the best.Misting the dog with water will only help if you are in a dry environment orin front of a fan. Just getting the dog wet is not the point, you want thewater to be cool itself, or to evaporate.
For MOST situations all you will need to do is get the dog in a coolerenvironment, in shade, or in the cab of the truck with the air conditioningon (driving around so the truck does not overheat and the AC is moreefficient). Up to a couple of years ago, I was very concerned about my dogsgetting too hot in the back of my black pickup with a black cap. New whitetruck fixed a lot of that problem. When I had one dog I just pulled the wirecrate out of the car and put it in some shade and hopefully a breeze. Buthaving 2 dogs and running from one stake to another, that was not feasible.So I built a platform to put the wire crates on, this raises the dog up inthe truck box where the air flow is better. Then I placed a 3 speed box fanin front blowing on the dogs with a foot of space to allow better airflow. Ipurchased a power inverter that connects to the battery and allows the 3speed fan to run from the truck power. It has an automatic feature thatprevents it from draining the battery. When I turned that fan on medium Iwould find that the dogs where asleep, breathing slowly and appeared veryrelaxed and comfortable in a matter of 20 minutes or less, even on very hotmuggy days.
Alcohol: I do carry it for emergencies. It is very effective at cooling dueto the rapid evaporation. It should be used when other methods are notworking. You should be on your way to the veterinarian before you get tothis point. We recommend using rubbing alcohol, which is propylene alcohol,not ethyl, for those of you not aware. So do not try to drink it. Alcoholshould be used on the pads and lower feet area where there is little morethan skin and blood vessels over the bones. Use a little bit and let itevaporate, you can use too much as some is absorbed through the skin. Thereare concerns about toxicity, but you have to get the temperature down.
I purchased those cooling pads that you soak in cold water, but found thatthe dogs would not lay on them. I would hold them on the back of a dog thatjust worked to get a quick cool, but have not use them for years. I alsobought a pair of battery operated fans but found them pretty useless. Spendyour money on the power inverter and get a real fan.
Watching temperature: If you feel your dog is in danger of heat injury,check its temp and write it down. Keep checking the temp every 3 minutes. Irecommend to get a "rectal glass thermometer. The digital ones for the drugstore I have found to be very unreliable, Don't forget to shake it downcompletely each time, sounds silly, but whenare worried about your companion, things tend to get mixed up. This is VERYIMPORTANT**once the temp STARTS to drop, STOP ALL COOLING EFFORTS. Thecooling process will continue even though you have stopped. If the tempstarts at 106.5, and then next time it drops to 105.5, stop cooling the dog,dry it off, and continue monitoring. You will be amazed how it continues togo down. If you do not stop until the temp is 102, the temp will drop waytoo low. I cannot emphasis this point enough.
When the dog is so heated that it is panting severely, only let it have afew laps of water. Water in the stomach does not cool the dog, you just needto keep the mouth wet so the panting is more effective. Do not worry about hydration until the temp has started down. A dog panting heavily taking inlarge amounts of water is a risk of bloat. Due to the heavy panting they will swallow air, mixed with a large amount of water they can bloat. Once the temp is going down and panting has slowed to more normal panting then allow water. The dog will rehydrate it self after temp is normal. If the doghas a serious problem and even though you have gotten the temp normal, getthe dog to a vet, as it can still need IV fluids and some medication. Also,a case of heat stroke can induce a case of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis (notparvo), with a ton of very bloody diarrhea and a lot of fluid andelectrolyte loss. These cases need aggressive treatment.
The best method of treatment is prevention. Learn to watch your dog, and seethe changes in the size of the tongue, and how quickly it goes down. Learn your dogs response to the different environments, and be careful when youhead south for an early season hunt test or trial. I have been to Nashvilleat the end of May, only 5 hours away, but the difference in temp andhumidity did effect the dogs as they were used to more spring weather inOhio. Try different things in training to help the dog cool and learn whatworks better. Another very important point=> Do not swim your hot dog tocool it then put in put in a box/tight crate. Remember, evaporation can nottake place in a tight space, and the box will turn into a sauna and you willcook your dog. Carry a stake out chain, and let the dog cool and dry beforeputting it up. I demonstrated this lesson this spring with my 10 month oldpup. After doing a 15 minute session in yard drill on a warm 70+ degree day,she was panting pretty hard and was pretty hot. She was OK but it was timeto stop. Just for the heck of it I took her temp. She was 103.6, abovenormal but too bad for a dog that had just finished working. In my back yardI have a 300 gallon Rubbermaid tub filled with water. I took her to it andshe jumped in and out 3-4 times. She appeared totally improved, tongue wasmuch smaller, and eyes brighter and her full spring was back into her step.So I re-took her temp and it was 104.2, so even though she looked better shewas hotter. This is < /SPAN>a perfect lesson to show not get a hot dog wetand then put them in a box. The water on her skin caused the blood vesselsto constrict, decreasing blood flow to the skin. Therefore the hot blood wasshunted back to the dog's core and retained the heat. You may have felt thesame thing, after exercising but still being very warm, take a shower andget cooled off but as soon as you turn the shower off you start sweating again.
I know this is a bit long, but hopefully this is easy to understand andhelps provide some useful information.
Remember: Prevention, learn your dog. It is worth the time and effort
Nate Baxter, DVM
This evening I took our foster "puppy" Hershey on that all-too-familiar ride to his new home. He was restless on the drive over, as though he knew something was up, because his crate was in the car for his new mom and dad to borrow.
When I left, I didn't look back to see if he was following me. I imagine tonight he'll be confused and wonder why I sent him away. I hope he will somehow know that Jim and I did the best we could for him, we helped him learn, we gave him a safe place and all the love in our hearts. And now we have turned his life over to Ruth and Marc, and they will give him more love and attention than we could.
Alice (above) and Gracie's brother and sister, Bonnie and Clyde, were at PetSmart as well. Both look exactly like Gracie! And both received good applications in fact Clyde is already adopted and is in his new home.
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