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  1. #1
    Senior Dog Snowshoe's Avatar
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    Scary Walk, Had to Pick Oban up and Carry Him

    Oban doesn't handle heat well but neither do I so I always figure if I can go so can he. We did go early as we are in a hot spell. Guess what I didn't account for was him running so much. Down the trail, back to me, several times. The last time he caught up to me he seemed fine but I looked back and he was staggering around and then he fell. I went back, he recovered, we continued, he fell again, could not get up and was crying. I immediately thought heatstroke, because I've had it. And I thought of Tanya and Rocky.

    I picked him up, 67.5 pounds as of last Vet visit, and carried him about 1/4 of a kilometer before I needed a rest. Put him down, let him walk a bit, still staggering. So picked him up for about another 1/4 km, till I could see the main trail ahead where it turned out he could walk. And then he was feeling better and wanted to run again so I smartened up and leashed him.

    AC on max in the car, heavy panting. I ice his sore leg anyway as soon as we get home and I added a bag of frozen corn to his side while I iced his legs. That really helped, put the fan on and in about 45 minutes he was not heavily panting and was much better.

    According to the doggy/human equivalent age chart that accounts for dog size Oban and I are exactly the same age, 9.5 Ok, 65. He seems to have more energy than me but it cost him today so from on he's being treated like a much older fellow, earlier even than today if it's hot, shorter and leashed if need be to protect him from himself.
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  2. #2
    Senior Dog janedoe's Avatar
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    So glad Oban is OK. Fran used to do that. We realized she was only good for a certain number of ball throws when it got hot. She would have killed herself if we hadn't restricted her.

  3. #3
    Senior Dog smartrock's Avatar
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    Wow, I'm impressed that you could lift and carry him so far. I'll have to keep that in mind for mine, especially Chase, who at 10 1/2 years of age doesn't tolerate heat well and at 87 pounds, I'm pretty certain I can't lift him. We'd just sit and cry. I hope Big O is feeling better.

  4. #4
    Best Friend Retriever
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    I'm glad Oban is o.k! These days I just take Molly for a walk down to the end of our road & back once a day in the morning. The others are just short walks outside to potty & sniff around a little. She is 13 now, I'm 64, she weighs 82 lbs & I know I could never pick her up & carry her. She has the hind-end weakness going on, so we bought her a lifting harness, although since she has been on the new arthritis drug, Galliprant, she is doing much better getting up & I haven't felt like I've had to put the lifting harness on her lately. It's so sad when they get old, and they have no choice but to slow down......yet they remain happy and uncomplaining, and seem to accept the aging process with much more grace than what I'm feeling......

  5. #5
    Senior Dog
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    That happened with Scully once - she was younger at the time, but it was also hotter. We ended up finding a shady spot, let her rest, and wet her down from our water bottles. Took a few minutes but she recovered okay. Scary as all get out though.
    Annette

    Cookie (HIT HC Jamrah's Legally Blonde, UDX, OM2, BN) 6/4/2015
    Sassy (HIT Jamrah's Blonde Ambition, UDX, OM2, BN) 6/4/2015

    Chloe (HIT HC OTCH Windsong's Femme Fatale, UDX4, OM6, RE) 6/7/2009

    And remembering:

    Scully (HC Coventry's Truth Is Out There, UD, TD, RN) 4/14/1996 - 6/30/2011
    Mulder (Coventry's I Want To Believe, UD, RN, WC) 5/26/1999 - 4/22/2015

    And our foster Jolie (Windsong's Genuine Risk, CDX) 5/26/1999 - 3/16/2014

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  6. #6
    Senior Dog POPTOP's Avatar
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    Scary is right! Know I could never pick up Archie who is 77 pounds. The next 4-5 days are predicted to be over 90. Short walks and/or trips to BassPro are on the menu. Also like going to the marina early morning or evening. The good part about evening trips is the ice cream shop.

    Mollysmamma has a good idea. It might be a good idea to carry around a walking/support harness on the hot days just in case.
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  7. #7
    Senior Dog Berna's Avatar
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    So scary! I think older dogs don't handle heat as well as they used to when they were younger. I found out Cookie does better when he gets wet, so we walk only in places where there is water nearby during the hot summer months. I can't wait for autumn to go hiking around the woods.
    Cookie Black Snowflake
    July 12th, 2006. - May 25th, 2023.

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  8. #8
    Senior Dog
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    We knew our first Lab Brutus "had problems with the heat" (reason he was rehomed to begin with...owner was moving to Florida). Soon after we got him, we took him for a short walk in temps in the very low 60's...it was July but the sun was going down and we figured he'd be OK. No. We got to the park...a walk so far almost all shaded...when he suddenly stopped and stayed stopped. Bru was at that time about 120 lbs. (we'd just had him about a month and had just started our journey toward having a 90 lb. dog), so there was no carrying him. He shook it off just as we'd decided that Bob should just go home and bring the car. We basically crawled home. I guess that was what the previous owner was referring to as Bru's problem making itself known. Our Akita had no issues with that kind of temperature/short walk.

    We never took Bru out in the full sun after that...except in winter...yard was OK, walks were not. I had no idea cooling jackets existed (about 1987), if they even did back then.

    Bru later came to have petit mal, then grand mal, seizures...not even prompted by exercise or high temps. Based on what our holistic vet later told us about our Honey's seizures, I presume Bru's were from internal overheating. He was eating lamb-based kibble...something I now know was not a good idea for him.

    Many good thoughts for you and Oban....he obviously needs to be a chillier dog now.

  9. #9
    Senior Dog Tanya's Avatar
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    oh wow that is so scary. Sounds like you've had your workout for the week - that is impressive to walk that distance with a dog that heavy (and not sure if he is generally good with being carried or was just so woozy he decided to allow it!)

    Very glad he recovered (and go figure he wanted to just go back and run around again!). Summer is hard on many dogs it sounds like!

  10. #10
    Senior Dog
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    Glad he recovered. I had this happen with Kendal a couple of times in the winter. One time I picked him up carried as far as I could, set him down, rested a bit picked him up, made it to our local gas station and rested a bit more. Thought he might make it home, but we'd only gone a little ways and I knew he wouldn't make it the rest of the way. Turned back to the gas station and asked if I could leave him there while I went home and got the truck. Literally just around the corner. Of course, they said yes. They were the people that I got Kendal from. His paws likely got salt and ice on them making it painful to walk. Once we got home he was fine.



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