Heat Stroke
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Heat strokes occur because the temperature of an animal increases (due to a high ambient temperature) and it does not manage to cool down. It often happens in situations where the animal is left inside a vehicle, when it is not allowed access to water or doing a lot of exercise, but it can also happen to us at home quietly in very hot weather. It must be taken into account that the temperature of the car rises very quickly, for example on a day with the ambient temperature of 30º and leaving the car in the shade and with the windows half open, after 10 minutes the interior of the car is 39º and after 30 minutes, it is 49ºC. IT IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW that the MAXIMUM temperature compatible with LIFE is approximately 5ºC higher than the normal temperature for the animal, the normal temperature of a dog is 38-39ºC.
It consists of three phases that should make us act quickly:
1a: The animal tries to drink water and looks for a cool place to rest. In this phase we must avoid exercising as much as possible.- 2nd: Intense thirst, weakness, anxiety, malaise, syncope and fainting, very rapid breathing.
- 3rd: Serious illness with alterations of the central nervous system and multi-organ failure. Breathing can be compromised, seizures, coma.
The consequences of heat stroke can be very, very serious (FATAL), the sequelae can be very important: kidney failure, hemorrhages and any type of neurological alteration such as blindness, epilepsy, seizures, mobility problems, etc.
We warn you that they can die in a similar situation in a matter of 10 minutes, it all depends on the ambient temperature, relative humidity and the animal in question (age, breed, diseases...).
If you suspect that a pet is suffering from heat stroke, call your veterinarian immediately and he will tell you exactly and step by step what you should do. If the pet is not yours but is without its owners (for example in a parked car) and presents signs such as respiratory distress, you must notify the Local Police or 112.
You can find more information, notions of prevention and first aid at the following link:
http://www.altarriba.org/animales/salud-animal.htm
From the veterinary center Es cau d'en Pinxo we recommend that whenever you find yourself in a dangerous situation for an animal, call the veterinarian to inform you in a clear way of the steps to follow without trusting 100% what can be found on the internet. In cases like this in which the animal is at a much higher temperature than it should be, it is necessary to cool it down but it is necessary not to do it too quickly, we advise avoiding the use of ice or very cold water. In case of using soaked towels, it is very important to remove them quickly from the animal, as they will take heat quickly and instead of helping it, we complicate it.
It should be added that acting as quickly as possible and acting on the way to the veterinarian (or while he arrives) is essential to reduce the risk of death.