I don’t know about you but this heat has me feeling a bit like my buddy here. I think I’m melting…. And I know Twister feels the same (Believe, well she’s crazy and will gladly lay out in the summer sun on a day like today unless I make her come in – and I do, no worries). And with temps predicted in the 90’s all week, I thought I would share some of the things I’m doing to help my dogs stay cool (and sane) on these HOT days.

Some of the simplest ways of keeping our pets safe in the summer heat, hopefully, don’t even need mentioning (but I’m going to anyway 🙂 – not leaving your dog in the car (even for just a minute), walking early in the morning or late evening when the temperature is a bit cooler and making sure they have access to water at all times.

But what to do with high-energy or just plain bored dogs when this heat stretches on and on and on… Here are a few things that I like to do to keep everyone sane on these hot days.

• We make sure to get a good play/training session in early in the morning before the sun is up and the heat is on or my guys will be crazy all day.
• I have lots of frozen marrow bones and stuffed Kong toys to chew on when they’re stuck inside. Licki mats and snuffle mats are another great option to keep their minds and bodies occupied.
• We play foraging games inside and out. What’s a foraging game you ask, instead of putting their food in a bowl, simply scatter it in the grass outside or on the floor inside and let them hunt it up. Or take some yummy treats and hide them around the house and let your dog use his nose to find them.
• I make doggie frozen treats, by freezing bone broth (from the pet store) with some treats in a small plastic bowl. Pop it out of the bowl to serve and let them stay cool while enjoying a healthy treat.
• Since we’re cooped up in the A.C, now is a great time to work on teaching a new trick or two and working on their fitness exercises. Wait, what there are canine fitness exercises??? Yup! My dogs play agility, so we have some equipment that we work on but here are 4 simple exercises that you can do right at home with your dog from the comfort of your air-conditioned living room.
• SWIMMING! My dogs LOVE to swim. Especially Believe, she will stay go out and just swim around forever, especially if I’m out with her. You do need to be mindful of water quality issues, especially the risk of blue green algae blooms in this super hot weather. But this is the ultimate way to beat the heat. Your dog not the swimming type? A wading pool or just a run through the sprinkler can be great ways to cool down.

So those are my top ideas to keep you dogs cool and occupied during this heat wave. What are some of your ways to help your dogs beat the heat?

Want more info on this topic, here is some great information from the ASPCA

1. Get down on their level.  While you can take really cute photographs of your dog looking up at you adoringly :-), you’ll usually get much better results from a lower vantage point.  I’m usually kneeling or lying on the ground during my sessions. 2. Choose an uncluttered background.  Look for an area without distractions or clutter behind them to keep the focus on your beautiful dog. 3. Natural light is best.  Indoor lighting can give strange color casts to your images.  Play around with both bright sunshine – great for black dogs – and shady areas to see which you prefer.  4.Fill the Frame.  Don’t leave a lot of empty space around your subject unless it’s part of your composition. Get up close and personal.  Since I’m typically photographing dogs I don’t know well, I use a long lens during my sessions so I can zoom in closer without having to get into the dog’s space and maybe stress them out.  5. Get their attention.  I use treats, toys, noisemakers, kissy noises (sometimes making quite the spectacle of myself 🙂 to get the dogs to look at me with a happy expression.  6. Capture their uniqueness.  Does your dogs have a quirky smile, a floppy ear, a favorite toy –  make sure to capture and celebrate all the wonderful things about them.   7. Remember to get photos of you and your dog together.  They’re never with us long enough, remember to capture and celebrate the bond you share. 8. Let them play. Sometimes the best photos aren’t the posed shots but just dogs being dogs. Make sure to capture the candid moments that you share. 9. I saved the most important tip for (next to) last – PATIENCE. Dogs do things on their own schedule, we can’t ask them to “look at the camera and smile”. Patience is probably the biggest key to pet photography. Keep it fun, take your time with lots of breaks for sniffing and belly rubs. 10. And last but not least, if all of the above don’t work, hire a professional ;-).