Readers Respond: Summertime Pet Safety - Share Your Tips For Keeping Pets Safe

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Fear of fireworks and thunderstorms - share what works for your pet

Have you experienced summer weather problems with your pet?

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Winter Pet Safety Tips Share Your Tips

Hot weather coolness

I Keep a wet Bandana on my dog neck and provide cold water and lots of shade

—Guest Kharma2Ya

Cool pets

Frozen water bottles work great,especially for critters in cages

—Guest Kerri

Summertime in TX with my GSD

While we can, we hike in shady nature preserves. Culloden likes to rest at the creeksides, head in water. During the summer, we go swimming at the lake. Forget about dog parks or hiking trails - swimming is the ticket! Afterwards, the dog gets hosed off and dried off, and his ears cleaned. The only way you can spend a summer in Texas! Culloden is strictly a house dog and stays in the house, with the AC on, with the rest of the family. If he wants to go out back, we have a wading pool there for him that we keep cool and clean at all times. In the house, we even take his dog bed away during the summer so that he can stretch out on the cool tiles - Culloden often leaves my bed for the bathroom tiled floor (bathmats have been removed for his convenience). I love Culloden as much as my other family members. Think I'd put my son out in the back yard in 110 degree heat? Think again!

—Guest Ileach

Try the vest out in water!!

My wife and I had a shepherd mix that would just swim in circles for an hour at times without ever seeming to run out of steam. One day the bay seemed a little rough so I out on his life jacket that we bought for when we use to take him on our boat and it lifted his rear end too much that he was exausted after going to retrieve his ball once. I'm just glad we never had an emergency while out on the boat..

—Guest Ted

Camping With MY Pet

When I camp with my dog, I keep him secure at all times. Some people let their animals run loose and that often leads to dog fights and could lead to a car accident. Please keep them contained, everyone else does.

—Guest Cassandra

Never Give Dogs Any Bones at All, Never

Our beloved little 6 month Miniature Pinscher had a cooked beef rib bone splinter, perferate his esophagus, and he died a horrible, painful death that took 3 days over a Memorial Day Weekend. We spent 3 days at the ER and almost 3 K and couldn't save him, We were told that the ER had a constant parade of pets who had splintered bones do damage and kill , especially cooked bones as they are more brittle. We had never been told in our 65 years of pet ownership of this nightmare danger that is so common at vet ER offices. The painful loss will never leave us, now 3 years later, we hate to see Memorial Day. If only a vet had told us our puppy would be alive. The guilt we feel is even worse, knowing that he didn't have to die, and seeing it so horrible and painful before our eyes. No Bones for Dogs or Cats. Not a one, Never. Not any bone of any kind.

—Guest Miami

Get fleas out your home.

Well me and my family we put Borax on the floor and also on the matresses and other things like couches then we sweep very well.

—Guest DaNay

Heat issues

I freeze water bottles & put them in my dogs' water buckets on hot days, then re-freeze them & re-use. Should they decide to chew on them, they are only filled with water, not any toxin. I put out multiple buckets/bowls in case they spill one or just need extra water. I also water the area behind my shrubs where they chose to lay on hot days, the damp shade helps cool them. I also have a baby pool (in the shade) that they can play in as they want. One of my GSDs loves it.

—Guest inc

Bulldog with Inflatable lifejacket

The following is from an e-mail I received about an English bulldog: Dear Critters Inflatable, I had to write and thank you for a fantastic product! I have spent three years trying to find a suitable life jacket for my 57 lb. English bulldog, who loves to swim but of course tends to sink like a rock without flotation assistance. I bought and tried several different kinds of canine life vests. None offered this barrel-chested, compact dog the kind of support her body needs for swimming. Additionally, most standard canine life vests do not go beneath the neck and help keep the chin above water----which was the factor that caused Truly the most trouble while she swam. I am thrilled to report that Truly, now outfitted with a Critters Inflatable life jacket (with manual cap and orally inflated), is one happy pup! Instead of quickly tiring and having to continue going to shore to catch her breath and snort out nosefulls of water, Truly spent the afternoon swimming easily in her Critters

—Guest Dan McCormick