For pets that are sensitive to heat, the steamy summer months are more than uncomfortable. Excessive heat and humidity pose a serious risk of heatstroke, a condition that needlessly kills thousands of pets every year.
Observing the following precautions will help keep your pets out of harm’s way:
Make sure they have plenty of shade all day long. Just because your dog or cat is in a shady spot in the morning doesn’t mean the same spot will be shady once afternoon comes around. Pets also need a cool surface to stand on, as asphalt or concrete can quickly burn the pads of their feet.
Make sure they have plenty of shade all day long. Just because your dog or cat is in a shady spot in the morning doesn’t mean the same spot will be shady once afternoon comes around. Pets also need a cool surface to stand on, as asphalt or concrete can quickly burn the pads of their feet.- Make sure your pets have plenty of water throughout the course of the day. At the same time, avoid giving them ice water.
- NEVER leave your pet in a parked car. The temperature on dark, leather seats can reach 180 degrees Fahrenheit and hotter.
Would you recognize signs of heatstroke if you saw them? Copyright 2012 . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
At first you’ll notice heavy panting, rapid breathing and bright red gums and tongue. Once your dog begins showing signs of heat stroke, you should try to cool it down immediately.
More advanced levels of heatstroke include unwillingness to move, noisy breathing, and uncontrollable body functions.
To help your pet recover, the AKC urges you to apply ice packs to the groin area, douse it with water and allow it to lick ice cubes. If your pet cannot be cooled down, take it to an animal hospital immediately.
While the inside of your house will never reach 180 degrees F on even the hottest day of the year, things can get awfully uncomfortable for pets and humans alike should you incur a problem with your central AC system. To ensure that doesn’t happen, contact Absolute Air today and ask for our AC preventative maintenance service. We’ll clean and inspect your system inside and out and, in the process, alert you to any problems in the making so they can be taken care of now before causing even a temporary system shutdown. That way, you get to stay just as cool and comfortable as you like inside your home, even when conditions aren’t nearly as pleasant outdoors.
Today’s high-efficiency air conditioners use about 30% to 50% less energy than made about two decades ago. As such, you could cut your energy costs by up to 40% by replacing your older system now.
Do you turn the thermostat up to 76 or even higher during those summer days when no one’s going to be home? Lots of people do to cut down on their air conditioning energy costs. But the second you get home, especially on a hot, humid day, chances are you make a mad dash to the thermostat to cool things off for a nice relaxing evening.
Heat-related illnesses, such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke, occur when your body can no longer cool itself off. As the air temperature rises, your body stays cool when your sweat evaporates. On hot, humid days, the evaporation of sweat is slowed by the increased moisture in the air. When sweating isn’t enough to cool your body, your body temperature rises, and you may become ill.
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On the brighter side of that same coin, a well-maintained air conditioning system and a companion whole-house air filter can provide more than relief. That combination can actually rid your home of the very pollutants that have caused or continue to aggravate whatever breathing problems you might have.