From one extreme to the other! Dog advice

[amanda509]

Well, I'm going from eskimo to desert dweller!

Don't get me wrong, Alaska will always feel like home, and I'll definitely be back, but certain events are causing me to move to Tucson, Arizona.

Now, I have a retired sled dog. I'm not leaving him behind. He will have his winter coat by the time we move...What can I do to make sure he is okay in the heat until his coat sheds out??

I've considered just shaving his belly so he can lay on the cold tile floor to help cool down, or should I shave him completely? I've heard not to do that because the undercoat helps them too, even in heat. He also needs to run, he gets a little crazy if he doesn't. I'm worried about the hot asphalt on his paws...I'll be walking him mostly in the evenings, but he still has to go out during the day to go to the bathroom...

Any advice? It's going to be stressful enough for me (given I hate the hot, and the desert) but it's going to be twice as stressful for him...

 

[Scout]

Your best bet would be to find a park near your house and take him their in your car. That way he can run on the grass if the asphalt gets too hot. I would just brush him heavily for the first few weeks, his body should naturally recognize the heat difference and there for start to shed pretty hefty amounts. If he starts to pant a lot while being inside or in the back yard, you can take a 2 liter bottle of soda and fill it with water and freeze it. Then you can lay it next to him so he has a huge ice pack. Hope this helps! I wish you the best of luck.

 

[junglefries]

I have a thick coated cocker who loves getting his hair clipped. I use the 1/8" guard and it is a little short at first. In about 10-14 days it is perfect length. I had a husky here in VA, too. I know the desert is different, but have seen many happy thick coated dogs in those enviroments. My dog utilizes the different temp zones in my house. Most of the time on the bed, directly in front of the 20" standing fan. He moves to the cool bathroom floor (on the rug), to the hardwood bedroom floors, to the rug by the door, to soaking up direct sunlight from the skylights. Just depends. For paws, they make a sap (wax?) that is sold at Petsmart. It comes in a silver dip looking can. It smells good, too. It cures and prevents cracked dog paws from pavement, etc... of course, last but not least water! Buy him his own yard sprinkler and kiddie pool, and you are done. You'll enjoy and keep him away from the slot machines.

 

[absolutbill]

There's a brush for dogs and cats, called the Furminator (no, I'm not making this up, though it does sound like a joke). It's a metal comb designed for getting at the underlayer of their coats, and it works like a charm. I don't use it on my dog, because as a boxer her fur is fine enough, however my cat has the thickest coat I've ever seen on an American Shorthair. She loves being brushed with this, and we get a lot of her under fur out with it, cutting down on hairballs, and dust bunnies. I'd hold off on trimming his coat until you speak to a vet in the area, maybe they have some ideas? Good luck with your new pup and the big climate change!