[eskielover]

Summer heat has hit....just almost immediately.....I had a bad day yesterday.....was supposed to have a Dr's appointment in the city....but didn't have the gas to make it there....but I had gas in my gas can......so I decided to pour it into my truck so that I could make the long drive (truck only gets 12 miles per gallon & I had 5 gallons in my can).

I had let my dogs out to do their potty walk before putting gas in my truck & when I opened the door to the truck....they all piled in. Well, the gas had expanded so much in the heat that when I went to pour in into the tank....it went POOF....all over everything....including me. No way I was going to make it to my appointment even if I did get the gas in my tank now....covered in the smell of gas.....so I called to reschedule for next week after I get money for gas.....the rest of the can will go into my lawn tractor!!!!

Anyway...my neighbor has been great with having my farm yard mowed.....after falling off the horse when we were riding in March getting ready for an endurance clinic...I fractured my back....& have been unable to do anything stressful for 3 months.....my appointment yesterday was with my ortho to check on how my back is doing. Well, the guys who mow her farm showed up in my driveway right at that moment about getting my area mowed.....gas all over the grass & I wasn't thinking real clear at that point. My dogs had jumped out of the truck by that time. Leo was running around barking at the guys cutting the grass along with Tawny....& Celia who doesn't jump out of the truck waited to jump into my arms & let me lower her to the ground. They ended up getting so messy that I didn't want them in the house.....& I needed to get a shower to clean off the gas & horrible fumes that were covering me.

So in my infinite wisdom, I put my dogs on leashes on the front porch to that they wouldn't get hit by the mowers & I could get cleaned up.....then clean up my dogs so we could settle down in the house for the rest of the afternoon. I put water in a bowl & put a frozen water bottle in it to make sure that as the water melted...they would continue to have water while I took a 30 minute shower.

Sweating so bad, the shower was also a hair wash & then because I was sweating so bad, the shower washed loose the pain patched I use. I took a rather warm shower to clean off the gas & smell which meant I needed to end with a cool shower or I would never stop sweating to dry off...couldn't get dry anyway, then had to figure out how to tape back on the patches.... & dry my hair......I was exhausted by the time I got done with that.....but my cloths smelled of gas so bad.....I immediately took them down stairs to where I had a load of laundry waiting to go in anyway.

As I walked down the stairs....I could see out the window of my front door & Celia was laying down quiet...not at all like her....she is always bouncing around & growling at Tawny for something. I threw down the cloths & swung open the front door....ran to Celia. I unfastened her leash & she stumbles across the front deck. I could see she was drooling....but no convulsions that I had seen so far.

I grabbed her up in my arms & headed for my master bath shower...it was the only thing I could think to bring down her body temperature. While I was getting the shower to work by hand, she stumbled into the dressing area......hooked the shower hose up while I went to get her......then put her in the large sower & started covering her with the cool water......think I kept the water on her for at least 15 minutes at that point.....then called my vet...said to bring her in...they would have all her paperwork ready (it was already almost 5:30pm).

I was so afraid that I was going to loose her being that she is 13 years old...I had no idea what her body could take....but no convulsions...was definitely praying that I had caught her in time & that nothing would happen to her as time passed. She had enough energy in her little body to do the dog shake with the water.....but was more or less laying down when she did it. I got a huge towel & wrapped it around her....getting the towel all nice & wet to continue keeping her cool.

Grabbed my purse & truck keys with Celia wrapped in the huge towel in my arms. went to the front porch & tried to get Tawny loose from her leash & Leo had jumped off the porch & was down in the flower bed, keeping himself cool & barking his head off at me while bouncing around so I could hardly get his leash unfastened. I headed Tawny upstairs into my bedroom & put the gate across it & headed Leo into the truck....& flew to the vet. Got there & realized that I didn't have a leash for Leo.....but parked in the shade of the building & left the widows open enough that he couldn't squeeze out trying to find me but enough to last until I could borror one to get him into the vet with us.

Took Celia back immediately....temp was actually NORMAL for a dog (ah, I must have done something right with the shower). Her panting showed up rattling in her lungs so he wanted to get an x-ray....said that can happen with heat exhaustion. If the x-ray showed up fluid in the lungs, they would give her lasics to take the fluid out of the lungs & give her IV fluids to rehydrate her body He seemed to indicate that I had caught the problem in time....but they would look after her overnight...sometimes they go from needing cooled down to needing a heating pad while regulating the body temp (ah, I can relate to that...I have had heat exhaustion so much myself....my body doesn't regulate temps at all. I can be sitting in a room 89F & be sivering & wrapped up in a blanket to get warm.

I was so worried that she might have a heart attack or something....at her age.....& her leg still has the pin in it from whern she broke her leg years ago (the pin broke off when they were taking it out when it healed after her surgery).....I just didn't know how much more she could take. You would never know that she is 13......she bounces around the house even more than a puppy. She has always been one that would JUMP into my arms rather than get picked up. I have a little chair next to my bed so she can use it to get up onto my bed & she BOUNCES onto the chair, onto my bed & then right in the middle of ME...no matter what I am doing. She has really been through most everything with me...got her when she was 8 weeks old from my horse trainer. She was even in the car crash with me when I fell asleep & crashed my car across the Antelope Valley Freeway....almost into oncoming traffic...but landed in the huge barrier in the middle of the sage.....was so disorinted at that point, I ended up calling the fire department rather then the highway patrol from the call box...so Celia & I got to ride in a huge firetruck......then onto the hospital. We also spent many wonderful afternoons visiting the local nursing home.....everyone wanted to snuggle with her. She has always been my sweetheart.....can't imagine life without her.

The night went well without any call from the vet....& the call that she was ready to come home was the best news I have heard in a long time. She is resting comfortably at home & no more afternoons out on the front porch....mornings & evenings ONLY.

The vet said that because it happened this time it could more easily happen again......they suggested having a bottle of rubbing alcohol & if it happens again....pour the alcohol on her back & lay her in front of a fan.....guess it cools the body off faster than the cold shower....but the vet originally said that he likes the body temp to come down slowly the way I did it. Maybe the alcohol doesn't get her as soaked & evaporates quicker than the shower water.

I keep thinking back....if I had been distracted & had not taken my cloths downstairs at the moment that I did....it might have been too late for Celia....the fine line can be only seconds away. I am just so glad to have Celia home safe & sound & even bouncing around again

Beware....things that don't seem to be so hot to us are way too hot for our pets......it's important to always have water....& unfortunately....I thought I did have water...but they managed to drink all the water & knocked the ice bottle out of the bowl & who knows where it ended up????

Don't take chances.....going into a store when it raining & cool...so keeping the windows closed.....coming out to the storm being gone, the sun out & the car......boiling. Summer is the worst time for animals.

Take care & Beware for your babies

[arcangel]

That was a close call. Glad you caught it in time. It was good of you to post as a warning also. One of my cat "friends" has a terrible time with hot weather. Boy is he in the wrong part of the country This time of year 90-95 degrees is about the best you can hope for during the day. When it really begins to heat up and the cool nights are gone I'm not sure what he's going to do. He lives down the street but hangs out down here a lot. The last couple of weeks I've been coaxing him out of a culvert down the street. I thought he was taking refuge there out of fear even though he's perfectly safe in the backyard. I realized day before yesterday that he's actually seeking relief from the heat. I tried bringing him inside but he's just not comfortable being inside. I don't have a solution. All I can do is let him stay in the culvert until it's cool enough for him to come out.
Take care

[sundog]

(((((eskie))))) I'm so glad Celia is ok!! That must have been a horrible scare! Thanks for the reminder to all. You are so right that just seconds too long in the heat can be the difference between life and death. Hugs to you and your furries

very scary!

also you can place wet packs on their groin or inside their armpits & thighs as there are blood vessels there..this will increase cooling as well...

when in doubt leave your dog inside with lots of ventilation & water available...especially those breeds with smsuhed snouts..or those with health issues or who are elderly.

DON"T give ice cubes or ICE WATER> this can cause bloat..a life threatening condition involving torsion (twisting) of the stomach..which if not caught quickly & treated by a vet & usually surgery will result in death. also ice cubes can damage teeth.

regular cool water is ok...

you think i want to take my dog swimming on the beach...ok...THE SAND IS REALLY FRIGGIN HOT. LIKE BURN YOUR PAWS HOT. maybe wait until the sun goes down....

pools have chloriine...be sure to rinse your dog off..so that the chlorine doesn't linger & irritate them.

if your dog doesn't want to eat..don't pressure him..it's hot..it's ok...make sure it gets plently of fluids...pedia lite is on ok substitute if you are concerned as well as some chicken broth diluted so it's not too salty. but when in doubt call your vet.

always pack some bottles of water with you when you venture out ..never plan on there being a fountain when you go someplace..it could be broken ...i usually freeze the bottle 1/2 way & use it as ice for my cooler...plus this way some dogs have issues with water from different places...& you cut down on those issues

carry first aid packs too..always:
benadryl (a life saver!)
gasX
gauze pads etc
your shot records etc...

if staying someplace info on local vets ..better to have it & never use than to need & be scrambling.

take a local pet first aid course.

it's hot but you can still do stuff with your dogs if careful...my guys go camping each year & play at the dog park...but i am careful & watch therm to make sure they don't over do it...

stumpy

[Rohag]

You had me on the edge of my seat...so glad Celia is OK!

[Indie'sOK]

((((((((((eskie)))))))))))))))) I'm glad she's ok!

[eskielover]

Thank you all for your caring thoughts

arcangel - hope your kitty friend is ok.....they can usually find the moist damp areas to lay in to stay cool.

Stumpy - thank you so very much for so many wonderfully detailed suggestions. I didn't know that Ice reacted that way in dogs. I freeze water in the bottles & let it melt into their dog bowls so they have cooler water to drink....my dogs WON'T drink water that is a bit hot in the house & yet they drink all kinds of yucky hot water outside

think of it like the ice cream headache...it causes problems with dogs stomachs...especially those breeds with big full chests...know the signs of bloat...& then keep the signs of bloat posted & keep the gasX handy...it can buy you some time...trust me!. because when in doubt..drive like there is no speed limit to a vet. bloat is a killer. but gas X can at least give you a little lee way.
and once a dog has bloated or maybe bloated the odds are high it will happen again so usually vets will surgically tack the stomach to the body wall to keep it in place..in some instances they do this when the dog is being spayed or neutered as a preventive effort on breeds where it is likely to happen...

it's hard..you think..it's hot..i'll just give them a big ol' ice cube or bowl of ice water..i've done it...& then something happens..& you step back...& go damn...wait a minute.

i always try to remember nothing in extremes...especially in the summer heat...it just seems to make everything a little harder to handle..at least when you have short stumpy legs..and that's just me..never mind the dogs!

stumpy

[Fresia]

So glad Celia is ok. (((((((Eskie)))))))) Thank you for the reminder and to everyone for all the tips.

[Queen of Chaos]

Originally Posted by Fresia

Thank you for the reminder and to everyone for all the tips.

I've owned Chinese pugs for over 25 years AND I live in a region known for brutally hot, humid summertime temperatures. It's supposed to be 100 today! Pugs are one breed that absolutely cannot tolerate heat and humidity.

Hot weather really isn't the only summer heat danger for dogs. If you live somewhere where the temperature may not be what you'd think of as dangerous BUT the humidity is high, be very careful.

We hear tragic stories every summer. Two years ago a young mother left her children home alone just long enough to run a quick errand. Not knowing any better they went outside to play, taking a young pug puppy with them. The dog went into heatstroke, started seizuring and died a very painful death...all witnessed by heartbroken children.

So much of the country seems to be in the grips of unseasonably hot weather right now - I hope pet owners who maybe don't have to usually think too much about heat or the heat index will be very cautious.