I know we love our pets and want to take them with us whenever possible. I just want you to think about how hot it is when you get into your car after it's been sitting in the hot sun.......the first thing you do is open the windows and start the vehicle because you can't breath inside!
When the air is hot it expands therefore you have less molecules of oxygen in the air space inside a vehicle. Vehicles can get up to 140 degrees F inside within 10 minutes regardless of whether the windows are opened or not as there's inadequate air movement. Your loved one can easily die of heat prostration and suffocation. So please, leave your pet in the comfort of your home with plenty of cool water to drink when running errands.
Want another?
Safe proof your best friend's environment like you would your child's. Tether your dog to the floor of your pick-up truck in the center of the bed. Make sure the lead is too short for your pet to put their paws up on the side of the bed. This will prevent a tragic accident for your friend from jumping, falling or hanging out of the moving vehicle and possibly resulting in death. Remember, it could happen to your family as it happens to so many this time of year.
What about the finned creatures?
As the ambient temperature increases in the spring the bacteria growth in your pond rapidly increases. The bacteria over powers the fish faster than they can gain an immunity (tolerance) as a defense. For a simple and inexpensive treatment add non-iodized salt to the pond to a 0.1% salt water solution (ask your supplier of pond products to estimate the amt. of sodium needed for the size of your pond). Do this once a spring in May.
How about the feathered friends too?
This is the time for weddings. Did you know that uncooked rice ingestion can kill a bird? All of us that have ever cooked rice know how much it expands in the presence of liquids. This is exactly what it does in the stomach of birds. Their stomachs literally explode. So save the rice for the wontons!
Dr. Stroberg carefully checks each dog on every team as one of the head Veterinarians of the Iditarod.
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