Ah! Memorial Day weekend! Remember those ice storms 4 months ago. It felt as if Memorial Day weekend would never get here. Well this is it. Today it is going to be 80 degrees. Along with that comes the hot days of summer. I guess another reason for this topic today is a story I heard last year. Someone I know had a Rottweiler that was about 4-5 years old. During one of those heat waves last year, the dog who was outside most of the day, lying outside under a tree. Apparently he had knocked over the water bowl. The heat index was extremely high that day. This person’s 13 year old son was in the house, in the air conditioning, on the computer all day. He peaked out the window several times, the dog appeared ok, since he was lying down on the ground. Late in the evening, the father went out to get the dog and found him dead. Most likely, Heatstroke. I doubt the son will ever get over this tragedy. And he shouldn’t. I hope he always remembers he left his best friend outside in 100 degrees while he stayed in the air conditioned house. So Sad!! Dogs do not have the same cooling system humans have. They only have sweat glands on the pads of their feet and their nose. They cannot sweat through their fur. They pant to cool themselves down. Outside, the sun beats down on them. Especially dark colored dogs. Unless they are in a chain link run, under a tree or top, where they can get some cross ventilation, they are better off in the house, during the afternoon heat waves. We attach large pails of water on a hook in the runs and down below so they can’t spill the water. Another great idea is a small wading pool. They can cool themselves off throughout the day. Don’t leave your dog alone with access to large adult pools unless he has been trained to know how to get in and out by himself. Many dogs have drowned because they couldn’t remember how to get out. Remember, when anyone, canine or human, gets overheated, they can’t think or use good judgment. The body is shutting down to compensate for the overheated organs. When exercising your dogs do so in the early morning or in the evening. Keep it at a gentle pace not to overexert him. Bring a bottle of water for the both of you. If he is panting a lot, stop! Let him cool down. Stay out of the sun between 10am and 4pm when the sun is the strongest.
And what about sunburn? DOGS GET SUNBURN TOO! And it causes the same problems as it does in humans. Pain, lesions, skin cancers etc. To prevent this, do the same for your dog. Most vets and professional groomers tell you not to shave you dog for the summer months. His coat acts as an insulator against the heat. It seems like the opposite would be true, but it makes sense. Just continue brushing their coat to prevent it from matting. And don’t forget the sunscreen. Yes! Put sunscreen on your dog. Whatever you have in the house is fine. The most sensitive areas are the tips of the ears, around the lips and nose. They do make Canine sunscreen, but it’s not necessary. The grocery generic brand is fine; just get the highest number you can. If he licks it off, replace it often. Use it as you would for yourself. Happy Memorial Day, Everyone and be safe!!

Children and Puppies. They go together. To see a young child and a young puppy playing together. Both so young, so innocent, so much fun together. Just learning about life. Studies have proven that people grow up with a dog in the family tend to have had happier childhoods .They learned respect for the animals as well as caring for them. They learn empathy, sympathy, and sadness but also happiness, laughter and fun. They also develop self-confidence and self-esteem. These valuable experiences about nurturing innocent beings help shape their values and beliefs as they grow older. When I was growing up, we always had a dog. But these learning experiences between children and their pets do not happen automatically. It takes a responsible and very patient adult to properly teach the child how to properly care for, teach, train, and love their new family member. The puppy also has some learning to do. He needs to learn to respect and obey not just the child but also all the family members. And from the very first moment you bring your new puppy home, your child should learn the proper way to treat the puppy. Your child should realize that the puppy is a baby, and in many ways should be treated like one. Remembering that for a puppy, size for size, inch for inch, a young child can be 20 times bigger than a young pup. Young children need to learn the proper way of handling a pup. They need to be under supervision at all times. Don’t turn your back. Not for a minute. They are quicker than you. Your child should realize that the puppy is a baby and he needs to be handled gently. It’s not good to let them carry a puppy around. Puppies wiggle a lot. Dropping one could cause serious internal injuries. Pulling their tails or ears, especially toddlers, may think its cute, but to the puppy, “it hurts”. And when puppy turns & bites the toddler, the adult yells…”Bad Puppy”!! Bad Puppy? Puppy was just reacting to “pain”. And this, my friends, is the start of problem behavior. I know of breeders of many different breeds that will not sell puppies to families with toddlers for that reason. Particularly the toy breeds, whereas if toddler falls on a 3 lb pup, it could kill him. We don’t follow that rule but we are careful.. Children should be taught and corrected about not just puppies but all animals, young and old. If a small pup was to get dropped and hit his head on the floor, this can cause Hydrocephalus, or water on the brain, causing permanent brain damage. The pup would have to be put down. So sad. We know, because it happened with one of our pups after it left us. . A 12 week old puppy had to be put to sleep because of hydrocephalus resulting from some kind of a head injury. So sad. So teach your children, puppies are fragile, like babies. The old saying,” What we reap, we sow, what we plant, we consume”. Yes, Children and puppies go together. We must teach them correctly, both children and animals, when they are young so they will grow up to be well behaved and we as parents and dog owners will be proud to take our “young” anywhere with us.

Friday was our big day. So much happened. “Doggie Doctor Day”. It went great. Everyone is perfect and healthy. All the puppies had complete physicals and 1st vaccines. We took lots of pictures. They got to see and do new things. First was the car ride. We put them in 2 big crates lined with heavy blankets. Fresh Air, Wow! And new sounds. Cars, trucks, traffic, the roar of the engines. At the vet, they got to meet new people. All the staff at Middletown Veterinary Hospital got to pick them up, cuddle them, play with them. It was so much fun. The pinch from the vaccine wasn’t much fun though. When we got back the weather wasn’t so nice. So we brought them up into the garage which is heated and where we have a finished area for them to run. And boy did they run. On Sunday we were finally able to get them outside in the sun and grass for a while. They loved it. We took a playtime, lunchtime, and naptime picture which we put on the 6 ½ week picture link. Friday and Saturday we had lots of company. People were coming to pick out their puppies. Of course, it’s too early for them to go to their new homes. But this weekend they will be ready. Their AKC papers arrived last week, we are assembling their puppy packages. In a few short days, many will be leaving us. What a sad day for us. But a joyous time for the puppies and their new families.