Your Dog Does NOT wear shoes!

The temperatures in San Diego are over 90 degrees, do you think that walking your dog at noon on pavement is a good idea?  If you are not sure, take off your shoes and put on a fur jacket and go for a walk and maybe that will help you to decide. Us dogs do NOT wear shoes and I think many people forget how HOT the pavement, sand and many other surfaces are.  Recently mommy  broke our rule of not going hiking after 9 a.m. but it was a special day, Mother’s day, and we were heading to water so I could do my favorite thing, SWIM!   It was a very HOT day and I didn’t even think about the dirt being hot because I was so excited to go swimming!  Getting to the water we had to walk on a sandy/ dirt trail.  The ground was so hot that I was bouncing around and running to the shade.  Lucky for us, I am  only 20lbs so daddy picked me up and carried me.  Of course swimming felt good and it was well worth it but what would have happened if I was say 80 pounds? That would not have been an option!   There are a few things you can do:

• Wear booties.  They are not the most comfortable things but they will protect our feet from the heat, snow and rocks.  You can buy many different brands so find the ones that fit your dog the best.
• Keep our feet (and bellies) wet.
• Walk on grass or stay in the shade.
• The obvious–DON’T WALK IN THE HEAT OF THE DAY! Walk in the mornings or evenings when the ground is cooler.

A few areas that you many not think about it being too hot:

• Walking to dog beach. The sand is HOT especially if you leave in the afternoon.
• Across parking lots.
• Dirt walking trails.

Of course we want to go EVERYWHERE with our parents but sometimes it is just too hot and better to stay at home or go to a pool!  For more tips on heat and keeping your pups safe, see our other posts:

• Running with your dog in the heat.
• Exercising in the heat 
• Other tips.

Thanks for reading, we know that you would NEVER intentionally hurt your dog, sometimes you 2 leggers just need a gentle reminder that we are not people and we do things a little different than you.