Cats and summer heat: how to deal with high temperatures in 7 steps
Does your cat suffer from the heat? Here are seven helpful tips to help your kitty get through the heat distress successfully.
Cat enjoying the coolness of the fan
High temperature? Summer heat? Unbreathable air? Even our feline friends suffer like us humans from the sultry summer climate, already from the first warm spring days. The fundamental difference is that our four-legged friends have a higher body temperature than ours and therefore suffer more from the heat than we do. Here are 7 useful and very simple tips to implement to help them and make the summer season suffer as little as possible.
Index
Heat for the cat? A real suffering
The possible consequences of heat on the cat
Heat stroke
Shot of the sun
Which cats suffer from heat the most?
7 tips for dealing with the heat
Shorten the coat
Shaded areas
Diet
Waterfall
And the bowl?
Don’t leave it in the car
A wet rag
Cool house
Heat for the cat? A real suffering
Over time, man has come up with various remedies to suffer from the heat as little as possible: air conditioning, fans or even rudimentary fans have relieved that unpleasant sensation of unbreathable air. Cats, of course, do not have the opportunity to enjoy the coolness alone, unless they get under a source of cold air. But even here the consequences could be disastrous: colds, ailments and heatstroke could be due to too low air conditioning in summer. Furthermore, our feline friends have a body temperature that is around 40˚: therefore, if exposed excessively to the sun, they could go into hyperthermia which can be fatal.
The possible consequences of heat on the cat
A cat suffers more than humans from high temperatures and the consequences, especially in puppies or older cats, could have a lethal effect. Here are the risks we expose our cat to if we do not pay attention to his needs during the hottest periods of the year.
Heat stroke
Excessive exposure to sunlight can cause the cat to hyperthermia with consequent difficulty in breathing, wheezing, increased body temperature and therefore high fever, vomiting, redness and, in the worst cases, death.
Shot of the sun
Sudden and prolonged exposure to sunlight can also burn the most sensitive and delicate parts of our cats: nose, ears and belly (if the cat has a habit of lying on his back to better enjoy the sunlight). In short, cats can get sunstroke if exposed to sunlight: better keep them sheltered before it’s too late.
Which cats suffer from heat the most?
As you can imagine, the cats that suffer the most from heat are those with long and thick hair. Those with black hair attract more sunlight, but those with white hair also have their difficulties: in particular, a light coat is a symptom of sensitive skin. So even if you choose to shave the hair it is good not to do it excessively to avoid the sun going directly to burn the skin of the cat.
7 tips for dealing with the heat
Seven helpful moves can help your cat get through the summer and high temperatures without too much discomfort. Constant attention to his needs will be enough to avoid running risks and dangers that can even prove fatal.
Shorten the coat
Before the great heat it is necessary to take care of the cat’s fur and cut it to give it some relief. It is good not to overdo it because the hair increases body heat but also acts as a cover against sunstrokes and sunstrokes. Beware of light-haired species: the skin is more sensitive and is easily exposed to sunburn.
Shaded areas
The cat likes to enjoy the warmth on the edge of the windows
Not only the kennel but also the areas in which our cat usually seek shelter, it is important to create shaded spaces. Do some small jobs with cardboard and a little glue: create small kennels under which our cat will take refuge, or put up curtains if he likes to lie down on the edge of the windows.
Diet
Even the summer diet must necessarily be different from the winter one: it does not need so many proteins to protect itself from the cold. Instead, fresh foods will be useful that can give him some relief from the heat, without weighing him down. It is essential that the diet includes both proteins and minerals. Another solution could be to break up food into different phases of the day so that digestion is not too tiring. Beware of foods to avoid in your diet!
Waterfall
Cats need to drink a lot during the hot hours of the day
That it is fresh and constant. It is important not to forget to fill the bowl of water and to let the cat use it whenever he feels the need. There are also automatic water dispensers for cats on the market, so that it is always available and fresh even when we are away from home for whole days.
And the bowl?
The bowl also has its importance. Iron ones are preferable as they keep the water temperature better. Especially if we know we are missing several hours during the day it is important that the steel bowl always has a reserve of water that does not heat up over the hours.
Don’t leave it in the car
Never leave a cat in the car!
If you think that leaving a cat in the car for a few minutes is not a very dangerous operation, we are very wrong and we could find out at the expense of our feline friend. The cat should not be left inside the car in the hottest sun of the day. The machine can become a real oven and without the possibility of going out, the feline would remain as if trapped and could die of asphyxiation.
A wet rag
The cat cools off under a wet rag
If your cat has a damp, cool cloth available, she may curl up under it or wrap it around her body. It may seem like a small detail but in reality even a wet rag can have a very valid function against the suffocating heat of the house.
Cool house
Lower the shutters, unfold the curtains, use fans: these are all elements that make our home a cooler and more pleasant place during the hot spring and summer afternoons. This will also affect the agility of our cat: a cat that suffers the heat of the day will certainly be more exhausted than one that has remained cool.
