HOT DOG! PETS REQUIRE EXTRA CARE IN HEAT

With the heat on, the administrator of the Humane Society of Southeast Missouri is asking that you do unto your dog or cat as you would do unto yourself: that is, keep them cool.

"We've been hosing dogs down all day to help keep them a little bit cooler," the administrator, Nancy Richards, said from the Humane Society off Route W. "We take them one-by-one; we take them out to the back."

This whole week, Richards said, is supposed to be around 96 degrees. She suggested people hose their own dogs off, especially if they have an extremely high body temperature. A person can tell if that's the case, she said.

With high body temperature comes uncontrollable panting, foaming at the mouth, agitation, and sometimes even loss of consciousness. Richards said a dog's tongue and gums can also turn blue or gray, which is a sign of possible heat stroke.

Most dogs, she said, have pink gums, but some breeds do have black or dark gums.

In the case of dogs with pug-like faces including bulldogs, Pekingese, and St. Bernards moderate temperatures can even bring on heat stroke, said Richards.

"They have a harder time breathing. Even different cat breeds Himalayans and Persians the same thing is true. They have real short noses."

If possible, she said, a dog should be kept inside in a well-ventilated or air-conditioned area. A dog kept outside should have plenty of water.

Richards said the wrong action to take when a dog keeps dumping his or her water is to refuse to refill the container. The right action to take is to make sure the dog can't upend the water bowl or bucket.

"They just need to make sure that water is secured. They can put bricks at the bottom of the water bucket, or some other way to make sure the dog can't tip it over because it's really not the dog's fault," Richards said.

She said dogs knock over their water for a couple of reasons: either they're trying to get their head in the water to cool off or they're trying to get attention.

Other ways to keep a dog from getting too hot, she said, is to not lock the animal in a car in the sun and don't walk or exercise them in the middle of the day. Those activities should be done in the early morning or put off until later in the evening.

Dogs don't sweat, said Richards. The only way they remove excess heat from their bodies is by panting, she said.

"They're just not going to cool down very quick if they're overexerted."

Richards said most of the rules for dogs also apply to cats, though more people keep their cats indoors. As for barn cats, she said, they shouldn't be put in a barn and forgotten. The cats need the same attention and care as any other animal.

A dog that has developed heat stroke, assuming it can be restrained, should first be bathed or hosed with cold water until its temperature goes down, Richards said. Richards said an alternative is to take the dog to a cool, well-ventilated place and wrap it in a wet, cold sheet. Its head should also be packed in ice until it stops panting.

Once the dog's temperature is reduced, Richards said, a veterinarian should be contacted.

A dog with heat stroke can reach a temperature of 105 to 110 degrees, she said. That temperature should be reduced to about 103, said Richards. If a dog's temperature gets too high, she said, the dog, like a person, can suffer brain damage and possible organ damage.

Richards said the Humane Society has had people transport puppies or kittens to the kennel in the trunk of a vehicle. The situation is extremely dangerous for the animals because they can suffocate or suffer carbon monoxide poisoning, regardless of how far they are driven or how much time they spent in the trunk, she said.

"We do not hesitate to tell people, `Don't ever do that again,' basically. The chance too is always there that you will get in an accident, the car will break down and you'll forget about the animal; a lot of different things."

About three weeks ago, she said, nine Labrador-mix puppies were left in the Humane Society's overnight dropoff pen in a small cardboard box that was taped shut. Richards said she just happened to be at the kennel late that night. Had the dogs remained in the box until the next morning, she said, they would have been found dead.

"By the time I opened it, you could just feel the heat radiating from their bodies. Some of the puppies were only kind of semi-conscious."

Under state law a first offense of animal neglect is punishable by one to 15 days in jail and a fine of up to $300. A second offense can bring up to six months in jail and a fine of $500.