Cooling Apparel

Keeping your dog cool in the summer heat is absolutely vital for their overall health and longevity. Dogs with a heavier coat are most likely to get hot more quickly than a dog with little to no coat to speak of.

However, lugging around ice is cumbersome. Not only that, but if you are indoors and your dog is overheating then melting ice could make puddles and get everything wet. The same goes for the interior of the car.

You can avoid having to clean up puddles and spills and use a garment with evaporative properties. You simply place the garment under water to moisten it, wring out the excess water, and put the garment on your dog’s body. These shirts, vests, or collars will actually cool your dog off as the water evaporates out of the fabric.

If you don’t want to use a shirt, or if your dog is resistant to the idea of wearing a shirt, you could also accomplish the same goal of keeping your dog and their vital organs nice and cool through the use of a cooling harness, which gives the added bonus of giving you a better sense of control over your dog if you are somewhere like the beach or the lake. A cooling harness often relies on ice packs instead of ice, or water to cool your dog. A panel stretches across your dog’s chest, which you can then insert an ice pack inside to directly apply the cooling sensation to your dog’s fur and skin.

Always remember that even if you are using a cooling garment, it is never ok to leave your dog in the car alone. On a hot summer day, the temperature can soar to over 100 degrees Fahrenheit in a matter of a few minutes!