Friday, November 30, 2012

Your Dog's Water Safety

By Allyson Westcot


There are a couple of things to keep a look out for when you take your dog near the water. Employing a life preserver for your pet can help if he is not a robust swimmer. A couple of other things to look out for include youngsters, dehydration, ear problems and contagions.

If you are taking the gang to the lake or the beach, and your dog and youngsters love to swim, ensure that they don't swim too close together. Your dog could scratch a kid without meaning to by dog paddling enthusiastically.

Also, make sure your dog gets lots to drink and isn't kept in the water too long. A dog in water deep enough to hinder him from standing can get tired out swiftly from the constant movement. Offer lots to drink in something similar to a collapsible bowl from EzyDog. Your pet can get dehydrated quickly from the exertion, particularly on a warm day.

By offering enough clean water, you can help prevent your dog from drinking water that could contain things that may cause digestive problems and vomiting. Both chlorinated water and stagnant water can cause disease, so bring bottled or tap water from home.

Apart from employing a life jacket for your dog and making sure he gets enough rest and water throughout the day, you should also be aware of the fact that your dog might need different health care from being in the water. Water that's trapped in the ears could cause ear problems, and on occasion a dog's skin might get irritated from swimming. Also, some bodies of water contain certain microscopic parasites that dogs can catch.

Treated pool water is usually clear of these, but lakes, streams and other bodies of water might expose your pet to parasites like leptospirosis, which can essentially spread from dog to human and make both really unwell. An annual vaccination can protect your pet against that, and other similar measures can be used to prevent ther water-related illnesses.




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