Heat Stroke

[pazzo]

Just a warning, and a reminder about our dogs in the heat! On Saturday Nando (my GSD) suffered from Heat Exhaustion. He is ok!

It had been 80 and not that sunny with a bit of humidity. Nando was in our air conditioned car before I brought him out to work on the field, he warmed up a bit and then he did protection work. Not very much...a few bark and holds and a few short bites.....I know this is the most straining to the dog, but Nando was working longer and harder in California in warmer temps than this. Also, he was the last dog on that day, that others did ob and prot. Nando just did prot. They were fine, he was not.

Here is what you need to look for!
I knew something wasn't right when I took him off the field to walk him out after work.....2-3 min's in his back paws were having a problem righting themselves, his eyes were distant and he became wobbly (like he was waking up from anesthesia), the inside of his ears were bright red and his tongue was swollen and bright red and he was panting horribly! His heart rate was extremely high and thank GOD I had people around me with vetinary backrounds!!! We IMMEDIATELY took him into the shade, grabbed the hose (which water was not too cold!) and hosed him down, his main arties first and then the chest cavity. We gave him SMALL amounts of water with electrolytes and he responded fairly quick to all of this. (to me it felt like hours!) after awhile he was back to normal. I was fortunate, many times this IS NOT the case!

Nando was ok because we caught this instantly, with in minutes this could have been fatal! I did a search on the site and I didn't see too much about it. That is why I am posting. I think everyone should know what to look for and what to do for your dog, read about it and know it!.....I'm not sure I would have kown what to do had I been alone! This happened in a matter of 15 minutes! Please be aware and realize that this does not only happen in the summer, alot of cases happen in the spring when it is cool.

Thanks for reading and I hope everyone stays safe!

[BostonRott]

THANK YOU for posting this. Here is an example of a dog who is conditioned, who is acclimated to warm temperatures and who STILL had problems. This is a perferct example of the reasons for my comments regarding running an AD in 85 degree weather, with a dog not acclimated to those temperatures.

[Tank's Grandma]

Thank you for the warning and all of the signs. It's something we should all be aware of. I know that Kody heats up faster than Tank because her coat is much thicker.
I tend to think about it because I had a kid who played sports in the heat and we were all about hydration long before they ever stepped foot on the field, but with dogs, especially the tough ones doing something they love to do, it's not so easy to know when they need to stop and cool down.

[MontanaRott]

Thanks for posting the warning Dana and I am so happy Nando is ok! We are very aware and mindful of heat stroke and signs of it, because of living with Pugs who can over heat in seconds.
But many are not and this is a great heads up.

[Gunsey'sMom]

Thanks For the reminder- It helps. And I hope your Nando is doing well!!

Goes to show, even being careful-you have to be careful!

You stay safe too, thanks again!

[fbkeays]

I live in a cool clime- a HOT day for us is 70 degrees. With all of the micro climes in the SF bay area, I can be in 90-100+ degrees in just 10 miles. For some of the spring-summer venues, you just don't know what the weather is going to be like from day to day. I remember one show where it was over 100 degrees. The next year at the same weekend, it didn't get over 56 degrees.
Because my dogs only see heat at shows, I am extra careful to make sure that my dogs are kept cool. I have been made fun of because of the steps I take. Well, their dogs are used to 80- to whatever degree temperatures. That is 20- to whatever more degrees then my dogs are used to.
I have had to get my dogs cooled down quick after stays that were done in sun. I have been made fun of because I yelled at someone that was taking the large buckets of ice water away (for some stupid reason they were told to get rid of the buckets) as I was hustling my dogs towards it.
I have also been told that my dogs should be able to work in 100 degrees and that I was babying them by not insisting on it. I have been made fun of for putting ice packs on my dog's testicles. Believe me, he didn't mind.
If I was a weaker person, I might be cowed into not insuring that my dogs don't get heat stroke. To all of the stupid people that make fun of me, well I hope you never have a dog seizure and die on you because you were too embarrassed to get your dog cooled down.

[StephanieandToby]

Just this morning I was reading on what to put into a doggy First Aid kit. It mentioned rubbing alcohol...and also mentioned that if you suspect your dog has heat stroke, you can apply some rubbing alcohol to the pads of his feet to help cool him down before you get him to the Vet.

A terrible thing that can happen soooo quickly!

[GraceAAA]

Dana,
I am so sorry to hear about Nando's heat exhaustion and I am so glad he is okay.

Another word of caution to others, as I know you mentioned he was in the air-conditioned car (and many do use that as a means to keep the dog cool before exercise) but veterinary literature has concluded that a dog kept in an air-conditioned environment prior to work is at more risk for heat stroke. The cardiovascular system of dogs (and humans) requires a great deal of time to adjust to the huge temperature ranges that occur between air-conditioned and hot/humid environments. I know you mentioned he was warmed up but the literature suggests the time to be hours that is needed between being quite cool and being worked up. And so according again to veterinary literature (JAVMA), it is best to allow the body to acclimate (on a day-to-day basis as well as long term basis) to the demands of temperature regulation...and of course, assist with shade, water, luke-warm wetting, etc.

Again, I am so glad Nando is okay! And, thank you for appropriately cautioning others on the forum!

Another very important place to check on our dogs that does show signs of imminent heat exhaustion is the sclera (white of the eye)...some pink is to be expected given warm temperatures, but any changes towards red is a very dangerous sign.

[damp]

I have learned the hard way, not to do hard physical works, even with super conditioned dogs, when the temperature is higher than 65 degrees.

Hard work is all from bicycling, bite work and tracking.
(In an old book by Wolfgang Gleiss - “Raise and train the Boxer” he says, that while tracking, the dog’s body temperature can rise 2-3 degree Celsius. We know the dog’s normal temp. is about 101 and while tracking it can raise to about 106)
Neither you nor the bystanders will notice the signs before your dog is in great danger.
It can very well be to late, when you recognize something is wrong no matter how much you watch your dog.
No one knows the individual dog’s limit for heat.

Glad to hear your dog is OK!!!

[debbiej]

thank you for the timely reminders and advice.

a few summers ago, my vet thinks Hilda had heat stroke while swimming.

Sounds odd, I know, but she collapsed in the pool and I had to drag her to the deck. According to the vet, she was unable to stop swimming, since the water was deeper than she could stand in. She had the hot sun beating on her back and top of her head, and she couldn't properly pant, as she was swimming in the water, and would have inhaled water. She wasn't swimming that long, but we had been swimming laps together, but apparently long enough. She swam to my arms and just begain to sink as I grabbed her. I got her up and out and into the house under the ac, called the vet and by then she seemed ok. I still took her in and although not sure what caused it, heat stroke seemed most likely. she is very intolerant of the heat now.

[Rene Allegrini]

[QUOTE Another word of caution to others, as I know you mentioned he was in the air-conditioned car (and many do use that as a means to keep the dog cool before exercise) but veterinary literature has concluded that a dog kept in an air-conditioned environment prior to work is at more risk for heat stroke. The cardiovascular system of dogs (and humans) requires a great deal of time to adjust to the huge temperature ranges that occur between air-conditioned and hot/humid environments. .[/QUOTE]

Thanks Andria for mentioning this. I was about to as well. When we trained in Schutzhund in the summer months, we were told not to leave our dogs in the van with the air conditioning running. The dogs were; of course, crated and we were told to leave all the doors and windows open for good air flow with our vans/cars/trucks parked in the shade.

We always had plenty of water, ice, and a first aid kit handy. The dogs were worked for short periods; and, we tried to work either very early in the morning or late in the evening when the sun wasn't nearly as hot as mid day or early afternoon.

I am so glad to hear that Nando is okay, and thank Dana, also, for reminding us all that we need to be cautious when working in the heat.

[pazzo]

As for the Air conditioner, I wondered about that AFTER
Nando will be seeing out vet (from U of Penn) on Tuesday, I want to discuss this with him. I will post for everyone any other Info. that could be valuable.

Francis, I'm glad your a tough cookie! Far too often, people are left CRYING after the fact, I would NEVER push my dog for any amount of money or titles, NOTHING is more important than my DOG!

Also, just too add, too cold of water in this situation is not good! It needs to be cool-warm, then once the dogs body temp comes down it can be cooler. COLD water (if I am rememberieng correctly) constricts the arteries and will actually inhibit correct blood flow, causing more problems.

......and THANK YOU all for your well wishes, and I will post more if I need to on Tuesday!

Dana

[Dugganmom]

thank you for that...it is 95 degrees here today and my dogs want nothing to do with being out there today!!! Thanks for the warning signs!!

[reno2040]

Pazo i am so glad you posted this, it has been in my mind all week, i've been concerned about how i can keep my dogs cool in the summer,it gets very hot out here and sometimes i leave them out with my family in Palmdale Ca. (its a desert area) Its over a 100.......Thanks,,,and the the best too you

[JJBrent]

I think that my Max has heat stroke. How do I get electrolytes into him in a hurry? Would GatorAde work?