Hot Weather – and doing what’s best for your pets during the summer.

Every year I write a blog about pets and hot weather. Well, here’s mine for 2024.

It’s summer and the hot weather is here, so it’s time for a reminder to all pet parents: Please leave your pets at home where they can stay cool when you head out to the stores this time of year. Sitting in a hot car is a death trap for them as well for children. Please check your backseat before exiting your car.

Try to keep your pets indoors and if they are outside making sure they have a shaded area to get out of the sun. Water is another issue. They will need more to drink when the weather is hot. Shade and cool water are two necessities for dogs’ well-being.

I’m blessed we have a deck with a doggie door so they can come and go as they please all day, but they do have water, shade and a way back into the coolness of the house.

Also, if you walk or run with your best four-legged friend this time of year, try doing it in the early morning hours or later into the evening. If you wouldn’t walk on the hot concrete or asphalt in your barefoot you shouldn’t expect your pet to either. This will burn their paw pads, and they will be in extreme pain. They might also need a trip to the vet to get relief, which can be very costly.

If traveling with your pets, you’ll need to make stops for them to use the bathroom. Make sure you pull up to a grassy area and always pick up your pets’ waste and dispose of it properly. This is called being a responsible pet parent.

If you’ve never witnessed a dog in heat duress in a hot car, thank the good Lord above. It is an awful site to witness and a lot of them don’t make it. This bothers me, because all that had to be done is the right thing — leaving them at home.

If your dogs are like mine, they love to go for a car ride, and we only take them when one of us is staying in the car or just for a Sunday drive.

So be smart this summer and take care of your four-legged pets. Love them like they love you — unconditionally.