Who's A Good Dog Winnipeg

06/20/2026

GSD Otus will be performing tomorrow with the X-Treme Dogs team for the East Saint Paul community party! Show starts at 2PM. Would love to see you there!

🩵🐾

06/19/2026

Dog training is a conversation with your Dog. What will you say to yours?

I worked with a client’s dog last week who had been choked out by their previous “professional” trainer. For what? It doesn’t really matter, force is never appropriate for training pet dogs, but in this particular case it was for being nervous of stairs. The previous trainer threw a sliplead on this dog and physically dragged her, screaming, up the stairs. She was a four month old Puppy. The owner is full of guilt for what he allowed to happen to his dog.

Needless to say, the dog is still deeply uncomfortable -even moreso, with stairs. We did make a ton of progress with 💀 THE STAIRS OF DOOM 💀 last week, as well as rebuilding the relationship based on trust with her owner. 🩵

Dog training is a completely unregulated field. Please look closely at who you are hiring and what they are doing in order to motivate your dog to change their behaviour.

06/17/2026

EXCELLENT advice for preventing Too-Hot Dogs!

When is it Too Hot?

Let’s talk about the Real Factors.

With the hot weather, there's always lots of posts and graphics floating around online about when it’s too hot to exercise your dog. Most of these are well-intentioned and follow the same or similar charts, sometimes a formula, such as take the temperature, add the humidity, and if it equals more than X number, it’s too hot. Easy, right?

Well… not really.

While it’s great that people are being mindful of their dogs' wellbeing in the heat, these blanket charts and formulas often miss some critical factors. Dogs are individuals. What’s too hot for one might be just fine for another — depending on a few important variables that these things rarely mention.

So let’s take a look at what really matters when evaluating whether or not it’s too hot to exercise your dog.

1. Fitness Level of your Dog

This is probably the biggest factor that gets overlooked. A fit dog that’s been in consistent training (and I mean fitness training/conditioning), gradually conditioned through spring and into summer (or throughout the year), can handle heat a lot better than a dog that’s not been training for weeks or only getting occasional light exercise or walks. Just like humans, the more conditioned they are, the more efficiently their body can handle exercise — even in extreme weather.

That doesn’t mean you can push a fit dog to the max in any condition, but it does mean that they’re generally going to recover faster, cool more efficiently, and regulate their core temperature better than an unfit dog.

So instead of asking “Is it XX degrees?”, ask yourself “What kind of shape is my dog in?”

2. Body Condition Score (BCS)

This is another variable that the charts and formulas completely ignore. A dog with a BCS of 7 or 8 is going to struggle a whole lot more in the heat than one with a BCS of 4. Carrying excess weight is a major heat burden. Fat acts as insulation and more dead weight to carry (meaning they have to work harder, meaning more heat generated) — a real disadvantage in the summer. Heavier dogs are more prone to overheating, have slower recovery times, and may struggle to cool down effectively after exercise.

So again, blanket temperature guidelines don’t take into account that the heavier dog, and the leaner, more athletic dog are having two very different experiences in the same weather.

3. Acclimation to Temperature

Here’s a big one that’s almost never mentioned: what is your dog used to?

If a dog has been living and working in 25–35°C heat every day for the last few months, they’re going to handle it much better than a dog who’s been in a mild 15 degree climate and suddenly faces a spike. Their body has adapted. Dogs living in hot climates tend to handle it more effectively. Their recovery improves with exposure over time. But if your dog is coming out of a mild-weather stall or has had several days off due to rain, travel, or whatever, and then you ask for work in 30 degree heat with high humidity, you’re going to run into problems.

Acclimation takes time — it's often said upto 14 consistent days (or more) of exposure and light work for a dog to begin adapting. So always consider how sudden the heat is and how long the dog has had to adjust.

So what do you do instead of following a Chart or Formula?

Instead of following a chart or plugging numbers into a formula, I encourage people to observe their dog. Watch for signs of increasing thermal (heat) stress.
Know their normal panting rate and how quickly it returns to baseline after exercise. Controlled vs uncontrolled panting.
Their tongue length and shape, their panting smile.
If they're retrieving, how does the recovery phase differ from the drive phase, watch for that change.
Are they shade seeking?
How do they normally do their work? Is there a change?
Are they listening to you?
If you are running how is their movement, gait, tailset, is there any change?
Learn and pay attention to what is normal for your dog during work/exercise. How's their recovery?
Sporting and Working dogs – what are their normal resting and working temperatures? How fast do they return to baseline?
Monitor mucous membranes and hydration.
Know how long it takes for their skin to snap back when pinched.

READ your dog and what your dog is telling you.

These are the kind of tools that will tell you far more than a temperature-humidity chart or formula ever could.

Also, adjust your work intensity to the conditions. If it’s very hot, maybe today isn’t the day for hard work, high intensity intervals and retrieves.
Maybe it’s a short, low intensity, slow in the shade just to keep them mentally tuned up kind of day.
Exercise earlier or later in the day if it's very hot, but at the same time understand if working dogs are involved, dogs that may have to work in hot conditions such as Search & Rescue, they also need to train in the conditions they may be deployed in, otherwise they will run into problems when it comes to going to work.
Keep the sessions short, make sure there's shade and airflow if possible, actively cool during exercise, and always cool your dog down properly.

And don’t forget to look after yourself too — because if you’re heat-stressed or dehydrated, you’re in no condition to make good decisions for your dog.

Every Dog is an Individual

At the end of the day, there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to dogs and heat. You have to know your dog. You have to take into account fitness, body condition, acclimation, age, and recovery. A 3 year old fit sporting/working dog that’s been working in the heat all month is not the same as an 8 year old overweight pet dog being walked for the first time in a week.

I’m not saying ignore the charts and formulas — I’m saying they’re a starting point, not the whole answer. Don’t treat them like gospel. They can give a false sense of security.

If you want somewhere to start with when it comes to numbers, look at the average high numbers (temp & humidity) over the last few weeks, and if there's an increase of about 8°C (15°F), or 15% humidity on the day your going to work/exercise, then understand your dog is more at risk, it doesn't mean don't work, just be mindfull, take extra breaks, and cool them off more frequently.

Stay safe, stay hydrated, and most of all — listen to your dog.

● Related Posts:

• Differences in Heat Tolerance between dogs and factors to consider
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/19fqv5rQfw/

• Conditioning
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1a39GMfgsC/

• Acclimation
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1JnoYpvQGM/

• Reading Dogs
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ANUjobPsX/

• Making a Heat Tolerant Dog
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1LeMVoFsyh/

• Cool Dog: The benefits of active cooling during exercise
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/14JGgdYNTAP/

• Hydration
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BStvQWijX/

● Heat Page: Contents
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BojisnpPE/

06/17/2026

We absolutely love it here!!

Highly recommend the trip to Fraserwood 🩵 🐾

06/12/2026

These classes are all taught by a highly skilled, certified professional Dog trainer: it is always worth the trip to Fraserwood!

💥 ATTENTION‼️
The new schedule for July -August classes is out. Classes are running for 6 weeks. PM me for questions or to register.

06/10/2026

Clean and dry me?! How dare you!

~ 🐾

06/08/2026

Absolutely beautiful work from a terrific team! And what a gorgeous Dogo Argentino 🇦🇷