28/05/2026
Excellent article for those that like a more in depth biological understanding and explanations 🩷✍️. Extreme changes in heat matter more than the actual temperature 🥰.
Keep your puppers safe 😘🐾🥵🐾
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1C1fFpPWMp/
Differences in Heat Tolerance between dogs and factors to consider...
There is lots of debate over a safe or dangerous temperature for dogs to exercise in, temperature charts, formulas, people get very defensive or offensive about these things, they don't understand why other dogs can't handle what their dogs can, or the fact their dogs can't handle what others can, you hear people quoting numbers... 15°, 18°, 22°, 30°C.
Within the last 2 years I've seen and helped cool 4 Siberian Huskies in the UK that overheated at events in March, the ambient temperature was between 10-15°C, on the days this happened the temperature had increased rapidly from previous weeks so the dogs were likely not fully acclimated, hydration status may have been a factor also, there were also other dogs on the day that needed to be cooled but also dogs that completed the event without a problem. Also the dogs were working hard (full sprint) so producing more heat internally, humidity would also have been on the higher side making it harder to thermoregulate.
This variation was within the same breed, and also occurred on forest trails.
Then during the hot summer I see 2 German Shorthaired Pointers out running with their owner in full sun 25/26°C, the dogs looked very hot but they were not overheating, they also looked extremely fit, GSPs are known to have a good heat tolerance genetically (more here https://www.facebook.com/share/v/vSXZch8HwRvPNKhN/). It was also later in the summer so they likely had time to acclimate. As the temps were higher the humidity would have been lower. They were also trotting so not working so hard so producing less heat internally, and they were running (trotting) along a coastal path where it is more open to the wind.
Generally in the UK when the temps rise the humidity drops (unless it rains), high humidity makes it harder for dogs to cool by evaporation (panting) which they do more when working hard.
There's also the difference between ambient temperature and "feels like" temperature, many people focus on ambient temperature alone which is just that, and the temps I gave above were ambient. The feels like temperature takes into account the ambient temperature, wind speed, and humidity, even solar radiation, which all affect how a dog experiences heat.
"The temperatures that you normally see represent the temperature of the air, but this takes no account of how we actually experience the temperature. It is our ‘feels like’ temperature that gives you a better idea about how the weather will actually feel when you step outdoors, where wind and humidity can make a big difference."
(https://blog.metoffice.gov.uk/2012/02/15/what-is-feels-like-temperature/)
Nutrition, fuel sources, feed timings, hydration status also have an impact (more here https://www.facebook.com/share/p/WP772dRhH8yrSUwp/
and here https://www.facebook.com/share/v/EDqd271VTXUgUSg3/).
So it's not just the numbers or the ambient temperature, there are multiple factors to consider.
*NOTE - If you have a GSP that alone doesn't mean your dog can exercise in these temps, once again there are multiple factors to consider, heat tolerance is very individual dog dependant.
In Summary: factors that influence Heat Tolerance...
• Genetics
• Environmental Conditions: Ambient Temperature, Humidity, Solar Radiation, Wind
• Acclimation to the conditions your dog with be working in that day
• Conditioning
• Exertion level
• Body Condition Score
• Coat Density?
• Hydration
• Nutrition
Prevention of Heat Injury:
• Understanding the signs of increasing Thermal/Heat Stress and how they present in your dog
• The owner/handler/musher's ability to read their dog while working.
• It really boils down to you knowing your dog, what is normal for your dog while working so you can understand when something is abnormal.
I will leave you with some quotes...
"The most consistant thing available to anybody to prevent Heat Injury in your dog is to train and acclimate your dog AT or ABOVE the expected level of exercise."
"One of the most important preventive steps you can take with heat injury is to have a well-conditioned, physically fit dog that is acclimated to the temperature of the environment he is working in THAT DAY."
"One sign of a good handler is their ability to “read” their dog."
"Handlers can-and-should- also learn to read the signs of increasing thermal stress to help prevent their dog from becoming an actual heat injury."
"Behavioral indicators of thermal/heat stress are an important form of communication that we have to be attuned to receiving and understanding from our dogs."
- Dr. Janice Baker
www.vettacgroup.com
"Number one thing you're gonna see is they start to change their gait, for that we have to know what their normal gait is"
"This is the one danger you have when you drive what I call a really high drive dog, is that they don't care, they don't care about their body, they wanna go go go go and so they let things get worse and worse so you really have to watch out for those dogs, and protect them because they won't protect themselves"
"It really benefits to observe constantly.
You want to see honestly, truthfully what is in front of you, and then assess, and I see so many mushers they put the blinders on, they want to see that there team is doing well so they only look at the dogs that are doing well and it gives them a false image of their team and causes them to make mistakes.
We want honest information so that we can make the best decision from there."
"If I artificially increase the speed, it's only going to exacerbate the issue that caused them to be slower in the first place"
– Dallas Seavey
6x Iditarod winner
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=2aw54Fns6LM&feature=youtu.be
"A dog that's staying aerobic can tolerate higher temperatures better than a dog that goes anaerobic... "
"Dogs are individuals and we were running teams of 16/18 dogs at a time so you gotta be able to read each one of those dogs and what they're telling you... "
– Dr. Arleigh Reynolds
2x Fur Rondy winner
https://youtu.be/4v7PlfHpJ38?si=65wvJ8zZzCgnfdXe
"There's part art and part science when you're running dogs... There are things I can tell you that dogs need and ways that we can support them, but when it comes down to it, you need somebody who can see what that dog is doing and respond to support that dog and you can't learn that in a text book, you gotta just be out there and get in snow or dirt or dog p**p on your shoes, you can't teach somebody that, they have to learn it themselves, and it only comes from hours and hours of really working with dogs."
– Dr. Arleigh Reynolds
https://youtu.be/os3fwygq6qY?si=c6lNMrZkvV3BnEbm
"Recognising Thermal Stress... that's the biggest prevention you can have... "
– Dr. Janice Baker
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=108093635609220&id=100092257509484
● Heat Page: Contents
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