Hot pavement is no good for dog walking

Have you ever noticed how dogs that spend most of their time outdoors will always find a place in the shade, under a car or something else, and limit how much they move during the hot months? Well we see that very often here in Thailand and it is for most of the year since it is hot basically year round here.

This is not my image but it is a good reference for knowing whether or not it is ok to take your dog for a walk

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Often, people will assume that dogs have much stronger feet than humans do and therefore they can handle any sort of pavement no problem. If that is the way you are thinking it is time to change your mind about that. Dogs foot pads are indeed stronger than human skin, but there is a reason why unless beckoned to do so, they will avoid hot areas during the day.

It might not be evident straight away but the burns that happen to your feet also happens to dogs when on hot pavement. They are just a lot better at handling it and not complaining because they are distracted by going for a walk with their best friend (you.) In reality, the burning of dogs' paws is one of the most common things that people visit the vet for worldwide and this is because of owner error.

Sometimes the pavement here in Thailand is so hot that you can easily fry an egg on it but since we don't all carry eggs with us the above statement by Blue Cross is a good rule of thumb. Dog's paws are roughly 5 times tougher than human feet so all you have to do is take your shoes or flip flops off, stand directly on the pavement in the sun and if you have to move your feet in 5 seconds or less, this is not a good time to take your dog for a walk.

It kind of irritates me when I see people taking their dogs for exercise on a day because it is somewhat overcast because to them, the person wearing shoes, the day is a lot cooler than it normally would be. This doesn't mean that the pavement isn't dangerously hot though.... most of the time it is.

If we are going to take on the responsibility of having a pet, one of those things need to be timing our exercise time with our dogs to times of day where it isn't going to hurt the animal. Dog's can't tell you when they are in pain very easily and like I said before, they are just happy to be spending time with you and doing one of their favorite things.

Paw damage can end up causing permanent damage for dogs, particularly if they are older. Let's not put our little fur friends into the situation ok?

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If you would like to see how you can help out or simply spread the word, please visit our website at

http://krabianimalwelfare.org

_{Krabi Animal Welfare is a charity run entirely by volunteers and are a registered non-profit organization in Thailand and the U.K.. We aim to relieve the pain and suffering of dogs and cats within Krabi Province.}

เป็นผู้สนับสนุนรายเดือนหรือบริจาคครั้งเดียวได้ที่:

http://krabianimalwelfare.org

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