Hottest day ever (in the UK), luckily I live on the coast, so we do get a bit of a sea breeze, which is a godsend!! The kids have gone to school in their P.E Kits, packed with plenty of bottles of water, and suncream. But my poor beagles…they are not enjoying this heat and I am definitely not taking them out on a walk, It’s not fair to do that to them. It’s simple to hot and the risk of heat stroke is real, as well as burnt paws, it’s just not a risk worth doing. Also, they wouldn’t enjoy a walk in this heat.

Poor Poppy is in season, and she is not handling the heat very well, she was restless all night, up and down, and just couldn’t get settled. She has also been ignoring her water bowl - she ate her breakfast (she’s beagle, so food is everything for her - she would literally eat on her death bed) but I‘ve noticed she isn’t bothering so much with her water. So to encourage her to drink, I drop a cap full of milk into her bowl of water. It works.

Cooling mats don’t work for Poppy and Kiwi, they are not interested in them, unfortunately both my girls don’t entertain them. Additionally, they are not a fan of getting wet, thus, small paddling pools doesn’t work either.

But both the girls love it when I pop frozen peas in a bowl of water. You can do this in a small kiddies pool, or large bowl. Some dogs will get there nose in the water and do a bit of pea bobbing, but Poppy and Kiwi are not keen on water, so I just pop a handful of frozen peas in their bowls, and hey pesto, it works a treat, they can get the peas without having to immerse their noises into the water too much.

i’ve also made some frozen fruit ice cubes/blocks up for them to have later in the day - Kiwi loves blueberries...

We off camping soon, so I will be buying some off the floor dog beds with canopy to take and using the cap of milk in the water bowl trick to keep them safe and hydrated during the heat.

Recap:

• I drop a cap full of milk into her bowl of water.

• Heat mats if your dog likes them

• Paddling pool if you dog doesn’t mind getting wet

• Frozen treats, i.e. freeze strawberries and blueberries

• Drop some frozen peas in a paddling pool, or a drinking bowl

• Make sure there is a shaded area in your garden when they can safely chill

• Never leave them in a car, not even for 5-minutes

Do you have any tips to keep your dogs cool this summer?