Cooling down the dog is a challenge for many owners in summer, because it is not just us humans who are affected by the rising temperatures. Unlike us, however, our four-legged friends cannot compensate for this by sweating: dogs have few sweat glands for cooling down. These are located in the pad area of the paws. For dogs, however, the most important cooling mechanism is panting, which lowers the body temperature through the air flow caused and the increased evaporation of moisture in the mucous membranes. It is therefore obvious that the dog loses a lot of fluid when cooling down on its own, which it urgently needs to compensate for by drinking more. Our first and most important tip is therefore to always provide your four-legged friend with enough water. But there are other ways you can help your animal to stay cool in summer.
Cooling down for dogs: How to keep four-legged friends cool in summer
On a hot summer day, dogs - and people - can cool off by swimming in a nearby lake or river, regardless of whether the animal is a real water rat and jumps straight into the cool water or prefers to just splash its paws in the water. So use your daily walk to a nearby body of water. The walk itself is best done in the morning or evening to avoid excessive midday heat. Also, prefer field paths, meadows or the forest: on the one hand, it is nice and shady there, and on the other hand, the natural surface does not heat up in the sun as much as asphalt on the roads.
Apart from walking the dog or bathing, it is best to avoid other sporting activities and physical exertion in very hot weather. Instead, provide dogs with a cool place to retreat to so they can cool down. This could be a shady spot on the balcony or in the garden, for example. In the house, tiled floors, special cooling mats or a damp towel on the floor provide dogs with pleasant cooling. Make sure that your companion recovers after walks, especially after walks.
This opportunity can also be used to groom the dog's coat , as regular brushing of the coat allows more air to reach the skin, which promises cooling, especially for dogs with dark coats, who usually suffer the most from direct sunlight. For four-legged friends with long and thick hair, trimming the coat can be both a way of grooming and cooling down, especially in summer.
Cooling down your dog in the heat – with the right food
Cooling down your dog in hot weather - you can do that with the right food! As a BARF shop, we recommend frozen meat in this context, because even if it is no longer frozen when you feed it, BARF is a very good choice in summer. BARF dog food consists mostly of fresh meat, which is usually easy to digest and does not require your four-legged friend to exert themselves unnecessarily. The ideal BARF meat for high temperatures is light, lean muscle meat, such as poultry for dogs and raw beef . This also has a high moisture content, which in turn is extremely beneficial to the pet's increased moisture requirements.
When BARFing your dog , it is advisable to adjust the amount of food to make it easier for the dog to cool down in hot weather. After all, most animals are already exhausted and digesting their daily food costs valuable energy, which can heat up the body even more and put a strain on the circulatory system. For this reason, we generally recommend dividing the daily ration into several small meals throughout the day.
Keep a cool head with dog ice cream and co.
Dog ice cream is a special treat for the summer months that promises ice-cold refreshment for dogs and, unlike our ice cream, also provides plenty of vitamins and minerals . The dog ice cream from our BARF online shop consists of beef tripe juice, beef blood, beef lung and beef gelatine and can be fed as a dog treat or as a reward between meals. You can also easily make dog ice cream without BARF blood yourself, for example with quark or natural yoghurt and pureed fruit or vegetables .
