Dog Day Afternoon

The Dog Days of summer are finally here, and Dexter was definitely feeling the heat yesterday.

The term "Dog Days" comes from the ancient belief that Sirius, the dog star is in close proximity to the sun at this time of year, and responsible for the hot weather.

After a friend of mine recently lost her dog to heat stroke and dehydration, I'm being very cautious.

That's why Dexter is in the pool. He has his very own life jacket and is looking cool in Chanel sunglasses!

After cooling down in the pool, he was quite content to nap in the shade.

Since hot weather can be dangerous for pets, here are a few tips to keep them cool:

Obviously, keep cool, fresh water available at all times.

Provide shelter from the sun. On very hot days, keep them inside.

Do not leave your dog in the car, even for a minute.

A kiddie wading pool can help cool down your dog, but supervise, please.

Consider a cooling dog bed which uses gel or water.

As mentioned, my friend recently lost her dog. She wrote about it here in an attempt to alert other dog owners to the dangers of extreme heat for pets.

Warning: you're going to need tissues....