The long-awaited warm weather is FINALLY here! Warmer days ahead mean longer dog walks, more trips to the dog park, and lots of time in the sunshine for many pups and pup parents. Woohoo!
Making sure your pup is prepared for warm weather first is highly recommended!
Do you have the right dog walking gear ready to use? This is an all-year-round suggestion!
Have you visited your local vet to ensure your pup is up to date on shots and vaccinations?
While it is truly glorious, warm spring (and summer) days typically pose a higher risk for allergies, fleas and ticks, and your pup being exposed to unsafe plants/chemicals.
We know you’ll want what’s best for your pup this spring, so follow our tips below to help your pup be completely prepared for the spring season!
Protect Against Spring Allergies
Is your pup all of a sudden gnawing at their paws? Constantly scratching? Rubbing at their face? Or, have any other symptoms of the common cold?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, your fur baby may have spring allergies. But don’t cue the sad music just yet! There are lots of steps you can take to make your pup feel more comfortable during this time of year.
Control & Prepare Your Environment
Controlling your environment to prevent allergens is difficult if your pup is a walker (which he/she should be!), coming into contact with the surrounding grass, trees, and flowers are unavoidable.
If possible, avoid walking your pup in the early morning or late afternoon, when pollen levels are typically highest. We suppose it helps that most of our dog parents have us come to walk their pups in the late morning/early afternoon, though it’s total happenstance.
Also on walks, try to steer clear of fields and parks, where pollen-heavy plants commonly reside.
While most of the outside environment is often out of your control, there are many steps you can take to make your internal environment/home more comfortable for your allergy-prone pup.
- Regularly change air filters to cut down on airborne allergens that enter through open doors and windows. It is recommended that you change your air filter about every 60 days if you or your dog suffer from severe allergies. Consult a local expert if you are not sure what air filter is best for you and your home.
- Run an air conditioner or a dehumidifier to remove moisture from interior air, making it harder for mold to grow in your home.
- Regularly vacuum or wash areas that may carry allergens. This includes carpets, bedding, pet beds, and toys. Pollen tends to stick to fabrics, so make sure you are washing those materials regularly!
Take Extra Good Care Of Your Dog
When your pup gets back from a walk or playtime in the yard, wipe their body and paws with a cool, moist cloth or a hypoallergenic, fragrance-free grooming wipe from your local pet store. This will remove the extra pollen and other allergens from your dog’s fur and skin. While grooming wipes can’t replace the glorious magic of a good bath, they will get the job done if you don’t have time for a full bath after every walk and game of fetch.
However, if you do have the time, it’s always a good idea to treat your pup to a bath. A bath is healthy for your pup’s fur and skin, but is also just a good way to make them feel special and cared for. Every pup deserves to feel bougie every once in a while, so why not treat yours to one of the many fancy and affordable grooming packages at Our Grooming Spot. Try the Mud Bath Package or Blueberry Facial to really make your PAWfect pooch feel totally pampered!
Overall, paying special attention to those paws is key, as the sensitive skin there is often easily and highly affected by allergens.
If your pup’s allergies come to really bother them and impede on their ability to live and play normally, the best thing to do is take your pup to the vet. Your vet can prescribe long-term relief for your fur baby such as antihistamines, mild steroids, or even dietary supplements to help combat those nasty allergens. If you take this route, make sure you follow your vet’s recommended dosage and especially resist the urge to take matters into your own hands with over-the-counter medications.
Prevent Fleas, Ticks, and Bugs
As your pup spends more time outside, take steps to prevent your fur baby from contracting fleas and ticks. It’s a much easier task to be proactive about stopping these pests rather than trying to solve a full-blown infestation.
Just like with allergens, try to wash all blankets, pet beds, and toys regularly to prevent pests. Get into the habit of regularly checking your pets for fleas and ticks, which are typically found around the head, neck, chest, and forelegs. If you see them itching those areas regularly, it can be a telling sign! Most importantly, when your pup comes back inside from a walk or playtime in the yard, make a point to look for ticks in the bodily areas mentioned above.
If your pup already has fleas and/or ticks, don’t worry too much… It happens to the best of our fur babies! Try the Flea and Tick Treatment Package at Our Grooming Spot. They will remove ticks and give your pup a medicated bath specialized to your fur baby’s individual needs. How PAWsome is that?!
If you’re in the Akron area, we recommend Wizard Of Paws. They’ll take great care of your pup. They use superior dog grooming products and have a ton of fun extra services like nail polish for your pup! Try it out; your pup deserves to be pampered.
Update Your Pup’s Vaccines And Get A Microchip
More time spent outside means more opportunities for your fur baby to wander off and meet new friends. While we all love to witness a sweet animal friendship, it’s important to take precautions to make sure your pup doesn’t contract diseases from other dogs or wildlife when coming into contact with them.
The most important thing you can do is check in with your vet and make sure your pup is up-to-date on all their vaccinations.
We also recommend making sure your dog is microchipped and has/regularly wears an ID tag. A dog’s instinct is to wander and explore everything in their surroundings, which can sometimes, unfortunately, lead to them going missing. Make sure that if they do get lost, they can be identified (by name and owner’s number) by whoever ends up finding them.
Reduce Exposure To Unsafe Chemicals
As the weather gets warmer and you begin to open your windows and clean out those junk drawers, make sure to double-check that your cleaning products are pet-friendly. If they are not, keep them hidden in a safe and secure location, so your pup doesn’t get exposed!
Almost all cleaning products, even all-natural ones, contain chemicals that may be harmful to dogs. The key to using them safely is to read and follow label directions for proper use and storage. There is likely a pet protocol or another on the back of such products – just be sure to follow this accordingly!
Spring is also a popular time of year for home-improvement projects. If you happen to be completing one that involves the use of hazardous products ranging from paint to power tools, try to keep your pup in a safe location away from all harmful materials. Keep them in a separate room, their kennel, or better yet just ask us to take your dog on a walk while you get those spring to-do’s accomplished.
Keep A Safe Yard
Whether you’re a seasoned gardener, picked up gardening over this past year, or are trying it for the first time this spring season, we recommend ensuring that your yard is pet-safe!
When planting a garden, select plants that are safe for dogs. Avoid plants like tulips, daffodils, or azaleas, and make sure your yard is free of fungi, which at worst can be fatal if your pup decides to nibble it. When planting, be conscious of your fertilizer use. While helpful to plants, chemicals in fertilizer can be very toxic to dogs. Make sure to store them in a safe area (as with cleaning products for inside the home, as mentioned above) and follow all pet protocols contained in the fine-print instructions on fertilizer packages.
Now Go Out And Enjoy This PAWsome Weather!
At best, we hope that our advice can help you and all your FURiends have a fun and safe spring (and summer)! Start taking preventative measures now for allergies, fleas, and ticks. Make sure that your pup is healthy, vaccinated, and microchipped before they head out to the park and meet new playmates. And, if you’re getting ready to take on spring cleaning and yard work projects, (go you!) take precautions to make sure your fur baby doesn’t come into contact with any harmful chemicals, equipment, or plants. Even though your fur baby might not show it, they are truly thanking you for looking out for them!
Disclaimer: We are not medical professionals. These are just our best recommendations to better equip you for the spring weather as it relates to your pup’s health.
If you found any of this blog to be insightful and/or helpful, please share this post with your FURiends and help us be a resource for as many pup parents as possible!
