Wonder if you could all give your tips on cooling down a dog after & during walks. Barney pulls like a train during his walks as he cannot be let off lead, therefore even on a mildly warm day he is soon panting for England! If I know it's going to be hot, I take a small bottle of water with me on the walk and try and get him to take some - but he does seem to get very hot, very quickly and then takes ages to get his breathing back to normal - should I be concerned at all - he's just one year old!

We take a water carrier with us called H2O to go. They are great. rather than gulping the water the dog licks it in the stream that comes down. (you have to see one to know what I'm talking about). They come with a strap so you can just sling it over your shoulder.

You could also have a towel soaked with cold water before you go and carry it in a cooler and cool him down halfway thoruhg? just a thought.

Wendy

Hi Goink, soak large towels in water ring out until dripping has stopped & then put them in fridge or freezer.
On hot days only take him out in the very early morning & after the sun goes down.
Christine2

What about using a gentle leader to stop him pulling so much?

I don't tend to take mine out much in the middle of the day if it's hot. They get a long walk first thing and again in the evening at weekends. During the week, they get a 5 min walk to relieve themselves and stretch their legs at lunch.

I also try and walk them near water if it is warm so they can cool down by having a swim or a paddle.

Helen

The age old way we used to use in obedience is to pour some water over your dogs head and back of the neck. It will keep a dog cool for a long time as it evaporates.

Regards, John

Another spot to put a washrag/wet towel is to dampen the dog's feet and bottom of the pads. Other than panting, that's the other area where they naturally cool down.

go to www.countrymun.com and order a wet-towel coat......basically a fitted towelling coat that you make wet & it keeps them cool.

I have just "designed" a dog coat which contains ice chill packs in the lining to cool the dog. Prototype on its way to Bournemouth now to be tested by a French Bulldog. I came up with the idea at Leeds, on Toy day, after watching the pugs and chihuauas being cooled in water. Having just 'got into' pugs I wanted something simple and effective to help cool them . Will report on "Phoebes" thoughts about her new coat when she gets back.
Gwen

I have heard that one ofthe best places to cool a dog quickly is on the inner thigh, as most dogs have least coatin this area. where are your icepacks sited?

Wouldn't make much difference where on a pug sized dog, as they would touch a larger area, but on a bigger version might make a difference where yout site the pockets.

just an idea"!

Hi, yes, on the pug size the removable ice mats cover each side. As I am making them just to keep the dogs comfortabel rather then as a qick temperature reducing method, I haven't even looked at putting them underneath (but nothing is impossible) I have just got hold of some new ice packs which come in individual "pillows" about 2inches square, and am going to be actually sewing them into the coat, all over. This means the whole coat has to be frozen of course, so probably more suited for small size dogs - might take up to much freezer space to fit a newfi!
Gwen

Why not try sewing squares with velcro fastenings at the top to keep the "frozen" bags in? Having the option of removing each and being able to put in fresh "coolers" might be a good thing :D :D Esp. if there happens to be a leak :rolleyes:
toodles

Then the ice packs/cubes could be kept in a vaccum flask cool bag!

Yes, already done that on the prototype - a velcrod flap closes the pockets, so you can keep further sets in freezer/chill bag and replace when melted.