In addition to releasing heat with those dangly tongues, doggies also sweat through the pads of their feet. Now imagine what that would be like if they were trying to get rid of their own excess heat . . . onto already scalding sidewalks. Hot pavement can burn puppy paw pads – and since animals are much closer to the ground, they heat up quicker than we do and can be in special danger.
When walking your pup in scorching climates, try to stick to shady sides and save longer strolls for when the sun is low, like morning and evening. If you're not sure how sizzling the street or sand is, test it out on your bare foot or hand – if it feels too hot for you, it's probably also too hot for your pet!
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Dog Days of Summer: Sidewalk Dangers
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Oh how well I know this. About a month ago we were taking our dogs on their nightly walk around the block when our Mastiff just laid down in the middle of the street and started biting her feet! I was concerned that she had stepped on something sharp (and wondering who was going to carry our now 140 lb. girlie girl home) but she popped back up and has walked on the grass every evening since then!
1Yea B-Bop darts for the shade if the ground is too hot. We don't take walks during the day at all anymore (he hates the 110+ weather) so it's not much of an issue.
2I ALWAYS worry about the ground being to hot for Wiley becasue I know how much it hurts to stand on hot pavement and i'm not sure if dogs have the ability to hop from 1 foot to another like us bipeds. If i have to take her out I put shoes on her (she also wears them in winter when she needs to walk through mud)
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