Health & Fitness
Keep Your Dog Cool During The Dog Days Of Summer
Keep your dog cool starts with this simple step: Don't leave him in a parked car during a heat wave.
On Friday, weather.com listed the heat index in Cranford to be 114 degrees, labeling the day as severe where “outdoor exposure should be limited.” Facebook was riddled with status after status lamenting the heat, complaining about the crowds swarming the Jersey shore and making a normally cool public pool into a sauna.
Yet, life still goes on. We still run our errands, heading to the post office, the grocery store and the bank. Today, while I walked to the bank to take care of my own business, I crossed through the parking lot behind Wells Fargo. To my surprise, I heard a loud, low barking. In the passenger seat of one of the parked cars sat a large black dog, welcoming all those who passed by. All the windows were down in the car but, all the same, I could not imagine how blistering hot the poor animal must have been!
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I went into the bank and asked the bank teller to call authorities to make sure the dog was taken care of. In this kind of weather, we can’t only stop to think of people who might be suffering from this heat. Animals are wearing a year-round fur coat and leaving the dog in the car was not only irresponsible; it was just plain dumb.
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The website www.mydogiscool.com, dedicated to warning people about the dangers of hot cars, conducted a study where they put a thermometer in a car during a heat wave, measuring how hot it would get inside a completely closed off car, a car with two windows cracked and a car with four windows cracked. For the furry friend that was in the parking lot today, it was probably about 114 degrees in that car. Needless to say, this is unhealthy for the dog.
Want to avoid this for your pooch? It’s quite simple. Leave your dog at home in the air conditioning with plenty of water. Right now, in the midst of a heat wave, the last thing your dog needs is to be caught in deadly temperatures with no way out. As much as your dog loves spending time with you, I’m sure that they would rather the air conditioning and wait for you to get back home.
If you see a dog in a car on a day that you think might be dangerous, don’t be afraid to contact the Cranford Police Department. Their phone number is (908) 272-2222. Don’t hesitate. You might be saving a dog’s life.
Trust me, the dog will thank you.
