Curated by Maria Rita Insolera, Naturopath
A little heat and some exposure to sunlight are beneficial to the animals, but to some extent. All animals know how to adjust their exposure to the sun or heat very well. However, if exposed for a long time to high temperatures with a high humidity, cats and dogs can also suffer from heat stroke .
What is sunstroke or heat in the dog
Heat stroke is an abrupt increase in the body temperature of the dog or cat. It can happen if the animal has been left in the car or in the sun even for a short time, when the sun is beating harder.
The dog and the cat are homeothermic animals, that is, they have a stable body temperature at 38 ° - 39 ° which, within certain limits, is independent of the environmental temperature.
Therefore, if the animal is in a cold environment, it will thermoregulate to produce more heat; vice versa, if the external environment is hot, the thermoregulation will be directed towards the dissipation of excess heat.
The thermoregulation usually takes place through the breathing and the action of the nasal cavities, which represent a real refrigeration system; in the case of great external heat, breathing with the nose will be strengthened by the open-mouthed one.
The thermo-normalizing mechanisms, however, can jam, when the external temperature is too high, and therefore unattainable. In this case the animal is unable to dissipate the excess heat and undergoes a serious clinical condition, sometimes fatal, known as "heat stroke".
Sunburn or heat symptom in the dog
It presents with various symptoms of varying extent depending on the time of exposure to excessive heat:
- initial agitation with breathlessness and depression,
- increased respiratory and cardiac frequency,
- hyperthermia (ie high fever, with peaks between 41 and 44 ° C, while it should be between 38 ° and 39 ° C),
- mucous congestion (intense red color, up to cyanotic blue).
It can also come to outline an altered mental state ("stuporous") up to the occurrence of convulsive crises; in the most serious cases of "sunstroke", which occurs following prolonged exposure of the animal's head to direct sunlight, the onset of cerebral edema, coma and death can be determined.
Find out which Bach flowers to use for your dog
Sunstroke in the dog: cures and natural remedies
You must immediately try to reduce the hyperthermia by swabbing the mantle with cold, not icy water, even using wet cloths (to change as soon as they heat up); it is possible to give water to the animal, as long as it is at room temperature and offered in small doses.
The purpose of this first intervention is to prevent the symptoms from evolving. The very cold bath should be avoided, because the body would undergo a sudden peripheral vasoconstriction, which would make it even more difficult to restore thermoregulation.
During the first aid operation, the temperature should be measured every 5-10 minutes and the procedures can be suspended only when it reaches 39 ° C.
It is good to lead the dog as soon as possible to visit the veterinarian, since the animals that have undergone a light heat stroke can recover completely, while in the most important cases they can have serious consequences, due not only to the direct thermal impact, but also to secondary circulatory alterations. In cases where the comatose state has been reached, mortality is on average 70%.
