Dangers of a Hot Car

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The Danger of Leaving your Dog  in Your Car

With the weather getting nice more and more pet owners are taking their dogs along for car rides. Yet, there is a hidden danger lurking in your car that could affect your pet. Most pet owners are careful about not leaving medication, poisonous plants, harmful foods, and small objects out around their pets but they don’t think twice when they let them hop in for a car ride. 

TempChartDid you know that even on days when it feels cool and the wind is blowing, your Dog  could die of heatstroke? The inside of a vehicle is always hotter than it is outside. Some people roll down windows, but even that is not always enough because they can’t be rolled down too far or your dog could jump out. The Sun beats down on your car and the temperature inside rises quickly. In as little as 5-10 minutes your car can turn into an oven. In a study conducted by the Animal Protection Institute showed the Internal Temperature of a car to be 109* when it was only 82* outside. Even when the windows were rolled down the inside temperature only dropped a degree or two.

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You may think that is not hot since we as people tend to sweat when we are too hot but dogs don’t have sweat glands like people. They have to pant to cool themselves down but panting in a car that is too hot gets them nowhere. A dog’s normal body temperature is approximately 101* and once they reach 106* they are in danger. They will start experiencing problems in the following areas: Nerve Damage, Heart Problems, Dehydration, Heat Stroke, Liver Damage, and Organ Failure. These are not all the problems they could experience but are the main culprits that lead to death in dogs left in hot cars.

You may think you are only going to be inside for 2-5 minutes but we can never predict long lines, slow service, or any other problems that could make us longer than we planned. Even in just 5 minutes you can put your dog at serious risk.

In order to ensure your dog’s (pet’s) safety, leave them at home and surprise them with a special treat when you get back as a reward for their patience. If you absolutely must bring your pet with you, restrict your errands to ones that have drive-thru windows and don’t require you to get out of the car.

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It is also important to remember that these same temperatures can be harmful to dogs left outside without shade and adequate protection. Concrete gets very hot in the sun and if you don’t want to walk on it barefoot then your pet doesn’t want to either.

Don’t let your dog become another statistic. Keep him/her nice and cool at home while you are running errands and save the car rides for days when you don’t have any place to stop at.

Heartworm Disease

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What is Heartworm disease?

Heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) is a parasitic roundworm that is spread from host to host through the bites of mosquitoes. The heartworm is a type of filaria, a small thread-like worm, that causes filariasis. The definitive host is the dog, but it can also infect cats, wolves, coyotes, foxes and other animals, such as ferrets, sea lions and even, under very rare circumstances, humans.[1] The parasite is commonly called “heartworm”; however, that is a misnomer because the adults actually reside in the pulmonary arterial system (lung arteries) for the most part, and the primary effect on the health of the animal is a manifestation of damage to the lung vessels and tissues.[2] Occasionally, adult heartworms migrate to the right heart and even the great veins in heavy infections. Heartworm infection may result in serious disease for the dog and can kill it.

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Heartworms go through several life stages before they become adults infecting the pulmonary artery of the host animal. The worms require the mosquito as an intermediate stage to complete their life cycles. The rate of development in the mosquito is temperature-dependent, requiring about two weeks of temperature at or above 27°C (80°F). Below a threshold temperature of 14°C (57°F), development cannot occur, and the cycle will be halted.[8] As a result, transmission is limited to warm months, and duration of the transmission season varies geographically. The period between the initial infection when the dog is bitten by a mosquito and the maturation of the worms into adults living in the heart takes six to seven months in dogs and is known as the “prepatent period”.

After infection, the third-stage larval heartworms (L3) deposited by the mosquito grow for a week or two and molt to the fourth larval stage (L4) under the skin at the site of the mosquito bite. Then, they migrate to the muscles of the chest and abdomen, and 45 to 60 days after infection, molt to the fifth stage (L5, immature adult). Between 75 and 120 days after infection, these immature heartworms then enter the bloodstream and are carried through the heart to reside in the pulmonary artery. Over the next three to four months, they increase greatly in size. The female adult worm is about 30 cm in length, and the male is about 23 cm, with a coiled tail.[9] By seven months after infection, the adult worms have mated and the females begin giving birth to live young, called microfilariae.

The microfilariae circulate in the bloodstream for as long as two years, waiting for the next stage in their life cycles in the gut of a bloodsucking mosquito. When ingested by a mosquito, the microfilariae undergo a series of molts to the infective third larval stage, and then migrate to the salivary glands of the mosquito, where they wait to infect another host. The incubation period required to reach the stage where the microfilariae become transmittable to another host can be as little as two weeks or as long as six weeks, depending on the warmth of the climate, and the larval life cycle ceases entirely if the ambient temperature drops below 14°C (57°F).

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How to Prevent Heartworm disease

The first step is to see your veterinarian for a heartworm test. It is best to have your dog tested after the last frost in spring, typically April or May.  If the disease is not detected your veterinarian will prescribe a monthly prevention treatment. This is typically a pill or a tasty chew you give your dog every 30 days.

It is best to keep your dog on prevention all year long because of the unpredictable weather in Michigan. At the very least, your dog should be tested between April or May and remain on the prevention until December.

While treatment of canine heartworm disease is usually successful (though very expensive), prevention of the disease is much safer and more economical. There are a variety of options for preventing heartworm infection, including daily and monthly tablets and chewables, monthly topicals and a six-month injectable product. These products are extremely effective and when administered properly on a timely schedule, heartworm infection can be prevented.

The American Heartworm Society is now recommending year-round prevention, even in seasonal areas. One reason for this is compliance – to make sure the medicine has been given properly by the pet owner. In addition, most monthly heartworm preventives have activity against intestinal parasites. Many of these same intestinal parasites that infect dogs can also infect people, with estimated infections occurring in three to six million people every year. So this added benefit of monthly deworming makes great sense.

Dog Safety and Fireworks

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We are coming into that time of year when neighborhood parties bring fun, food and fireworks. While we may enjoy the time honored tradition of viewing fireworks, our four legged friends often have a different opinion.

Here are some tips to keep your dog safe this firework season.

  1. Keep your dog secured. Even if your dog doesn’t have a tendency to be fearful around fireworks, you never know when they may decide they have had enough. Keep your dog on a leash or secured in your home.
  2. Don’t encourage the fearful behavior. If your dog shakes, runs or hides from the noise and lights of the fireworks, don’t make the common mistake of coddling them. Our love and affection should be given as a reward for good behavior, not as a reward for fearful or nervous behavior.
  3. Exercise your dog. Studies have proven that a well exercised dog often exhibits fewer stress related behaviors.
  4. If your dog shows over the top nervous behavior during thunderstorms or fireworks, you may want to talk to your veterinarian.
  5. Avoid fireworks when possible if your dog has a known tendency to be fearful around them. Just like humans, stress can put the heart into overdrive and create health problems later down the road.
  6. Keep up to date ID tags on your animals. Talk to your veterinarian about microchipping.

We hope you and your four legged friends have a happy and healthy Summer!

Dog and Puppy adoption event! 2/11 at SeaWorld – 29800 Gratiot Avenue From 12-4

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Are you looking to add to your pack? Are you looking for a new best friend? Are you looking for a walking partner? If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you need to come to Home FurEver’s adoption event on Saturday 2/11 from 12-4 at the Roseville SeaWorld! Many of our wonderful dogs and puppies available for adoption will be there for you to meet.

Not quite ready to make the life long commitment? Then try fostering a dog or puppy! We provide you with everything you need! You just need to supply the love, a ride to the adoption events and maybe a ride to the vet.

If you’d like to donate some time, bring a leash; the dogs LOVE new volunteers! The dogs are happy to repay you in kisses for taking them out of a walk.