Keeping your canine cool.

The day of our bulldog gathering was on a hot Sunday afternoon. I was worried all those short nosed doggies would be too warm. I remembered a milk jug modification I read about and made to use for a DIY garden waterer. It was just sitting in our garden shed. It was simply a milk jug with small holes that I drilled in the top. I grabbed the sprinkler jug full of water and another full jug for drinking and headed to Keene Creek Dog Park for the meet up. When the doggies were warm, or I thought they were warm I just held the jug over the dogs and the water comes out in a nice steady stream, but not so hard that it startles them. I used it on quite a few dogs, with their owners permission, on two different dog park visits. The vast majority of dogs either enjoyed it or tolerated it, of course a little hard to tell for certain. Only a few avoided it. I invite you to try making one of your own for cooling your dog when away from home. I now keep the sprinkler jug with water and just bring that one to the park and it is fine so long as I don't let it tip over and I use it both for sprinkling and putting drinking water in a bowl. You could also just have two caps, one without holes for transport and one with holes for sprinkling and switch as needed.

For those that want something a little spiffier and that doesn't require any tools there are similar things you can buy. At the dog park rummage sale one of the shoppers with a dog had a water bottle with a great shower head for wetting down her dog. She bought it at A Place for Fido and it looked like this. They are $10.99 at A Place for Fido. It really put out a nice shower spray and would be good for cooling your dog and also rinsing if your pooch is dirty or muddy.

For those that may be new to Keene Creek Dog Park, there is the very nearby Keene Creek for letting your dog cool off. Directly across the dog park entry is a short, worn path that takes your pooch to Keene Creek. At this time of year it is 6-12 inches high and just perfect for letting them cool off during dog park time or when you leave. It is a gradual walk in entry, not a drop off. Monty always heads straight there when we leave the dog park for a cool down wade before we go home.