Mary said:
I just read somewhere that getting them wet all over is not a good idea as the hair in the coat heats up and turns to steam on them...just cool water on their bellies to cool them down.
thanks--i never knew that and i was just about to get in the shower with zack to cool both of us off. It's so hot here, has been for a few days, and seems hotter each day. I have two strong fans going in the living room where i spend most of my time in waking hours, and in the kitchen which is zack's bedroom, i have another oscillating fan going. After reading this thread i sprayed zack's belly and chest--is the chest ok? and also sprayed the bottoms of his feet. He seemed invigorated after that, wanting to play lots of fetch.
i dont' know if it has anything to do with the heat, but tonight, Zack who has been house trained for months, made a huge pee in the middle of the kitchen floor. :yikes :yikes :yikes Anyway, i think it was a pee. It had no odor at all but it was light yellow on the white paper towel. Anyway, where else would a huge puddle come from?
i think it might be because normally i leave the sliding glass door to the backyard open so he can go in and out at will, and the kitty too, but because of the heat i think there's a chance that there could be more wild animals coming to where people live, in search of water, and i think that squirrels, or some kind of animal in the trees, has been causing Zack to run outside and bark at night, so rather than give him the opportunity to do a 'bad' behavior (barking), i closed the screen door preventing him from going out. I guess he hasn't had to ask to go out in so long, he didn't think of asking. That's my theory. Even in the winter, i leave it open.
My neighbor called tonight to say there was a raccoon in her backyard. Our yards are adjacent and just separated by a fence. She said it had been up on the fence between our yards. she said she had heard it fighting with a cat. So, i think it's wise to keep the door closed. but i need to convey to Zack that he needs to ask to go out. I'll take him on walks more, that should help.
anyway, blaming it on the heat.
I was surprised to hear it was so hot in England. and just when i was thinking it was a world heat wave, i hear the report from Iceland that it's freezing.. weird planet...
i appreciate all the keeping cool tips and the keeping cool product info. i tried to get a wading pool today but couldn't find one yet, all sold out. But if it's bad to get them all wet, maybe that's not a good idea in this much heat.