Protecting your dog when the weather is nice and warm is important, and this is especially true for those with a certain type of coat. Our tips for protecting your pooch from the harmful effects of the sun.
Protecting yourself from the sun is essential to avoid sunburn, heatstroke, sunstroke, and also the risk of skin cancer. While everyone knows the message, we are sometimes less aware that our pets also need to be protected. As veterinarian Lisa Troise explains to Free Midithey won’t catch “a sunburn, strictly speaking”but “prolonged exposure to the sun can lead to skin cancer.” This is true for all animals, including dogs.
The veterinarian says that this risk is particularly high in dogs (and other animals) that have white fur and pink or white mucous membranes around the nose and ears. Dogs with short hair are also at greater risk, while those with long fur are better protected. You should also be careful with animals that have pink or white skin and like to lie on their backs, because their stomachs are less covered and more exposed to the sun.
But then, how can you protect your dog from the harmful effects of the sun? Well, we apply the same advice as for humans! We favor outings in the shade and at times when the sun is less strong, such as in the morning or evening. If the ball of fur spends time outside the home, in the garden for example, we set up a corner for him sheltered from the sun. The other preventive measure is to put sunscreen on him, especially if he has pink or white skin and mucous membranes.
It will be applied to the nose and ears as well as, if necessary, to other areas of the body where the fur would be less abundant and will not provide sufficient protection. The ideal is to choose a sunscreen suitable for animals, which will have the advantage of having a formulation that is not harmful to the animal if it licks itself. Here again, as for yourself, you choose the highest protection index and a product that protects against UVA and UVB.