the heat is on!

Woohee it is hot folks - been hot all of June really but this week is especially hot
So keep an eye on your furry friends, they can't deal with the heat as well as us.
There is a bunch of essential information here
LINK

Some of the things I do for Bugsy are:
only walk him very early (pre-sunrise) or after sunset
I wet him down prior to his walk/run - the best parts to wet are their underneath, groin area, armpits, & feet. I do these and then wet his back for good measure LOL

After our walks I fill his kiddie pool and he stands in it (Oh how I wish he would lie down in it) and he has a huge drink. I splash the water underneath him again making sure his groin area and armpits get wet.

I don't let him out for long during the heat of the day. For some bizarre reason he will go lay on the deck and bake himself so I limit this.

In the evenings when he goes out I often give him one of the ice treats I make with an old 32oz yogurt tub water and cheese. This helps occupy him for a bit and cools too.

He basically sleeps all day which is highly unusual for him so he is raring to go when it cools a bit.
A few energy burners -

I tend to not just throw his meal in his bowl - I use some sort of kibble dispenser to occupy him.

I do some indoor training and/or games.

The heat really limits his activities and he is a dog that needs activities so the above are simple ways that I try to use up some of that unused energy.



Here's an interesting tidbit - a short single coat dog is the worst in the heat as double coats insulate from cold and heat. Obviously darker colors absorb more heat. So if you like me own a short single coated dog who is dark in color be very aware of them overheating

Oh and of course dogs with 'pushed' in faces (think bulldog) have extra difficulty breathing in the heat.

Lastly watch you dog's tongue - sure it is normal for it to lengthen with exertion but watch the color as it shouldn't go too dark and also watch for when it will widen. If you see your dog's tongue dark red, extended and widening it is time to stop what you are doing and cool them off. For more specific details read that link above

Oops!

the busy times continue............ sorry for the lapses in posts
The high heat is here to stay so we are constantly looking at ways to exercise without spontaneously combusting..........

In a Bugsy funny he has decided that the best position to drink from his outside water bowl is to stand on the steps and reach down to it.
Don't ask.
Today he tries this maneuver while his friend Izzy is here and although I am not sure exactly how it happened he managed to tip the water bowl on his own head.
It was hysterical as he looked at me like whoa how did that happen.
But he didn't stop drinking or wagging his tail as I replaced the bowl.
One crazy dog I tell you

getting back to normal

it has been a busy time here but we have been getting back to our routines starting yesterday. I think Bugsy was going to disown me if I didn't give him a good walk so we went for a long way this morning.
I sure wish I could get him to stop tracking all the time - he seems to be 'hunting' which I don't need. Don't have any ideas about how to change that though
Other than that not much to say. I still think he isn't 100% but can't figure it out.
Also can't comprehend why he thinks it a good idea to go lay in the sun on a day that is well into the 90's.

He is happy to have his normal schedule but he misses our boisterous and fun guest who brought him lots of stuffies and played with him all the time.
Such a poor neglected dog

Woohoo extra humans at my place!

We have some guests this week including a retired dog handler from a major police force and Bugsy is super happy with this development. We are too, but we just don't show it in the same exuberant way.
For me it has been wonderful to talk 'dog' and to get an experienced outsider's view of Bugsy.
The dog handler is very impressed in many ways but just had a ton of fun playing find it in the yard in the dark with B.
I feel validated in a way to hear someone who has worked with amazing and intense dogs talk about my silly mutt with such respect.
I plan on getting as many tips and suggestions as I can off this guest before they leave next week
These are also the first guests that I don't have to constantly manage Bugsy for - they are perfectly capable and happy to take care of themselves and he has been very well behaved