Are dogs able to know if they're getting too hot?

We can tell if dogs are starting to feel too hot. There will be signs of exhaustion, excessive panting, and increased breathing rate. In some cases, dogs won’t know how to stay out of the sun if they’re getting too hot, so we, as pet owners, need to step in, especially if they’re overheating.

3 Signs that your dog is overheating

Unlike humans, dogs only have a few sweat glands, which means they’re very inefficient in keeping their body cool, especially if they’re exposed to heat for longer periods of time.

As much as we want to bring them along with us when we take brisk morning walks if we aren’t careful, our dogs might start to show signs of overheating. Listed below are the most common symptoms that your dog needs to take shelter to avoid dehydration.

Excessive panting and drooling

As mentioned earlier, dogs only have a few sweat glands on their paw pads and noses. Without these glands, dogs won’t be able to use the water inside their bodies to cool down their skin, which is why they pant.

Panting is an activity dogs do to let cold air in and warm air out of their system - kinda works like an internal fan.

However, when you see your dog excessively panting and visibly struggling to keep up with their breath, this is a sign that their body is having a hard time regulating their temperature.

With excessive panting also comes drooling, especially if they usually don’t drool a lot.

Increased heart rate

Your dog’s heart is one of the organs that get overworked when they feel excess heat.

This is because their bodies push the overheated blood away from their organs and into their limbs and other body parts, which can cool down quickly.

You can check your pup’s heart rate by placing your hand on the inside of their rear leg. Here, you can feel their femoral artery. You can then count your dog’s heartbeats within a span of 15 seconds, then multiply that number by 4, and now you have their average heartbeat per minute.

“What’s the normal number?”

Well, for bigger dogs, the number is typically lower. The range for healthy dogs is between 60 and 140 beats per minute.

If your pup’s number exceeds this, you might want to cool them down first.

Disorientation and lethargy

If your dog’s gait is a bit skewed or they’re feeling less energetic than usual, you might want to check on them. These are symptoms of feeling overheated.

What usually happens is that your dog might bump into you while walking, or if you’re indoors, your pup might hit the furniture while walking around.

How do you treat an overheated dog?

The best thing you can do is to bring your pup to a cool shaded area to let them rest. You can also slowly pour tap water on their neck, ears, and legs.

Reminder: Don’t use cold water to avoid shocking your dog’s body. Going from one extreme temperature to the other can be harmful to your pets.