Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

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Oscar 12345
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Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Oscar 12345 »

I have noticed with Otto at nearly 11 months now that he really does flag in the heat. My previous schnauzer also didn't like the heat and he was clipped in Summer so this would have made a difference but I don't recall him panting quite so much or getting so hot that he wanted to lie down on the grass for a quick cool down when walking back home. I don't tend to walk my dog in the mid day heat but needed to go out today so had no choice and it doesn't take long before the little lad is panting. Has anyone noticed a difference between schnauzer colours, does black absorb the heat more and therefore more likely to make a dog hotter or is this a downside of not clipping I wonder.
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Violet Turner
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Violet Turner »

Yeah Doris is a chocolate/black schnauzer so she does pant more and her fur gets hotter than my p/s schnauzer so yeah i think it does matter about the fur colour. You can buy cooling coats for dark coloured dogs.
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Schnauzer Sam
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Schnauzer Sam »

Hi Julie,

I've only ever had S&P but even they suffer from the sun. We tie a damp (not dripping) bandana round Rosie's neck to help her cope and I try and walk her in the shade or late in the day but it is difficult as there are times you have no choice.

I reckon a stripped dog copes with the heat better than a clipped dog as it's the soft undercoat that would be the better insulator. From a scientific point of view the black dog should absorb more heat. Maybe some other black owners could comment.
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mikegoodson1
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is a: B/S Mini Bitch
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by mikegoodson1 »

We have exactly the same problem with Oscar, our Black mini who is clipped, we tend to walk him early in the morning in the Summer wherever possible and if it isn't, we wait until the evening. Sasha, our Black and Silver mini, doesn't seem to suffer as much but in all honesty, Oscar is a lot heavier. So i think his extra weight doesn't help :(

But even when at home in the day, Oscar can suffer in the heat, even when sleeping in the kitchen on the tiled floor. What my wife tends to do to help him, is lay a cold flannel over him to help him cool down. The flannel isn't dripping but damp, he seems to like this. We also make sure their large water bowl is changed regularly and I also pop some ice-cubes in there too, just to try and keep the temperature down.

It must be tough going for them in the extreme heat having to wear a fur coat, bless them.
Oscar 12345
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Oscar 12345 »

Very interesting posts, thanks. I will use a damp flannel when he lies down that's a really good idea, not sure he will take to a damp bandana, he is not one for clothing of any sort. Otto loves ice cubes, after every walk he gets a good drink and a large ice cube to crunch on.
Man cannot survive with wine alone...
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Violet Turner
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Violet Turner »

You could buy an ice tray and put a dog treat or fruit in each tray hole and then fill with water or bone broth then freeze its a great way to cool them down.
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zeta1454
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by zeta1454 »

Unlike humans, dogs only have sweat glands in their nose and the pads of their feet which means their only natural way of cooling their body temperature is by panting (or going into cool water / shade). It is quite natural for dogs to pant as soon as they start to feel warmer than is comfortable for them for this reason. It may not mean they are seriously overheated.

A stripped jacket should be better than a shaved / close clipped one as the weather resistant harsh coat hairs are less dense and help air to move through cooling the skin and also reflects the suns rays back to some extent. If a dog is clipped, the weather resistant top coat hairs are removed leaving the denser undercoat which absorbs heat, and does not allow cool air to circulate. A clipped coat will also get wet through in rain unlike a stripped jacket.

If your schnauzer is getting seriously overheated, a cool coat or cool pad are the best solution (although you can improvise as suggested above) and definitely do not keep them outside in the middle of the day and always make sure they have access to shaded areas and water to drink.

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Re the black dogs feeling the heat more, although we only have P&S schnauzers, we do have eight other black coated dogs and I would not have said I have noticed any differences in how they cope with the heat.
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zeta1454
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by zeta1454 »

I am sure there are individual differences between mini schnauzer coats and heat tolerance. The advice about not shaving / close clipping double coated breeds of dog is not unusual among many professional groomers and vets. See these links for a better explanation than mine :D
https://www.doghealth.com/grooming/skin ... -keep-cool

http://animatch.ca/blog/why-you-shouldn ... coated-dog

Re our black dogs, they are affenpinschers so not as high maintenance grooming wise as schnauzers and smaller! They do shed their fur too so some people advise to just scissor the jackets (and shave their coats in summer! ) but we can definitely see the difference in look and feel if they are regularly given a grooming session with a stripping knife or furminator type tool as well as just combing/ brushing. The coat looks healthier and darker and just feels so much better too - we never shave them in summer either. Our latest puppy has a very soft fluffy coat but is about to have it all stripped out to encourage the harsher hairs to come through. It is always a difficult time when you know that cute fluffy puppy is going to look bald for a while and they are on the way to adulthood now.
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

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Schnauzerluv
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Schnauzerluv »

Lol I know this is older, but I was reading for Ozzy and the heat and once I read Julie's post I had to check the poster user name and read the post 3 times because I never knew Julie had affenpinchers haha!
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zeta1454
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by zeta1454 »

Schnauzerluv wrote: 28 Jun 2021, 19:39 Lol I know this is older, but I was reading for Ozzy and the heat and once I read Julie's post I had to check the poster user name and read the post 3 times because I never knew Julie had affenpinchers haha!
I had forgotten about this :D It was a glitch and I have removed the duplicates now to avoid confusion in the future =))
Dogs are not our whole life, but they make our lives whole. ~Roger Caras

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Schnauzerluv
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Re: Black dogs and the heat - just wondered?

Post by Schnauzerluv »

Oh it was no worry, just got me confused for a second until I read further. Always helps to read things ha! But thank you :)
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