The never ending summer- the dangers of Heat

I started to write this on July 27 when we had 2 solid weeks of extreme heat and No rain.  I didn’t get it posted and the temps “cooled off” (from 90’s-100 degrees down to high 80’s).   This past weekend it all came back, and with the heat, humidity.  UGH!

All the vegetation here is dead.  The lawn, our garden, our pastures.  This summer has been one of extreme heat and no rain. 

In all of these heat warnings, the news is still reporting deaths of children in cars.  According to one article I read, at least 23 children have died in hot cars this year.  According to the article, this number usually averages 37 such deaths a year.  That is CHILDREN, not pets too.   When I look at my blog and I think, “oh, I have already written about heat” and then I hear of another death, I realize it is worth writing about.  Last night a women told me that she takes her dogs everywhere with her and she carries an extra set of keys so she can keep the car running with the air conditioner on.   That sounds good, but the reason some accidents are “tragic” is because we thought we were doing things right.  

This summer a fellow dog show participant experienced such a tragedy and 14 dogs died in a hot van in Indiana.  The van had an air conditioning unit powered by an extension cord that was plugged in at a hotel where the person was staying.  The person thought the dogs were cool and safe.  Tragically, a circuit breaker tripped, cutting off the air.  A heart breaking, tragic accident.   While I travel to shows with my dogs this summer, I worry about the heat, and try to plan ahead.

The best thing to do would be to leave the pets at home, but that is not always an option.   Make sure to have plenty of water.  Portable Fans are available for travel.  Some small ones hang on the crates, while other larger ones plug into portable batteries.  Cool mats for the dogs to lay on (in their crates while in a car of course) help to move heat out of the body.  Shade- always, always park in the shade when possible. Windshield and window covers help quite a bit.   Lastly, just don’t leave them in vehicles. 

Stay Safe, fall will be here soon. 

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