[Woody Taylor]

Anyone here in a climate as drastic as mine? Or experience with transitioning a dog from very cold to very hot? We are having bizarre weather these days...it was 96 or 97 with high humidity today, but only a few weeks ago...well, this is Minnesota. The change is definitely affecting her.

Are there particular guidelines to follow (i.e., keep the intense exercise in morning and late night, offer water frequently) beyond the common sense stuff I would apply to myself? I think I'm doing everything right, I'm just not used to her panting for 20 or 30 minutes after a session...not much panting at all when it's -5 out at 5am. :lol: Not that I'm complaining.

And she's learning to swim, which is a blast, and raises hell with the urban kayakers on Minnehaha Creek. She scared one young kayaker into a tangle of roots and branches today...Annie was just paddling up to say hello, I guess the teeth can get misinterpreted.

 

[Woody Taylor]

Ditto with Nancy on keeping only the underbelly wet. this can be critical if the dog will spend a lot of time in the sun. Their coat is actuall an insulator against the sun. If the coat is wet to the skin, it transfers the heat right to the skin. That's especially rough on dark colored dogs.
It was in the mid 90's here today at the Terrier Races and Earth dog Trails at Purina Farms. Some of the earthdogs didn't want to come out, once they discovered how cool it was in there. LOL! The racers had it rough, but we kept plenty of cool water by the track for belly cool downs and short drinks.

Man, St. Louis. Why do people live there again? All of the nasty weather of Houston without the ocean? :lol:

Thanks for these suggestions, I'm open to whatever. Again, it may sound funny, but I'm just not used to labored panting like this. Even when she was breaking deep snow, she'd get tuckered out but none of this tongue-dragging-on-the-floor stuff. Wanted to make sure I wasn't working her too hard.

 

[Woody Taylor]

Quote:Fat isn't a macronutrient that feeds canine cancer the way starch (sugar) does.

However, when fats in dog food turn rancid, they become simple sugars. Most of the preservatives in dog food listed on the bag only last about 25-30 days. Take into consideration how long they sit in warehouses before getting to the local petshop, and most of the time your thirty days is up. This is the big reason so many people see a difference with a small, hard to get dog food company. You have a chance of getting the food before the fats go rancid.

I cannot believe I posted to a stupid nutrition post. How bored am I?? :twisted:

If your trying to make us think your mellowing out, we ain't goin for it! :lol: :wink:

I'm a little shocked myself. :lol:

 

[Woody Taylor]

I am really not crazy - my undergrad degree, albiet from a LONG time ago, was biochemistry with an emphasis on lipid metabolism.

Nancy 1, Camel haters 0. Nice post Nancy! 8) You just totally outed yourself as a chem geek. ;-)

Imported dogs blow their coats at the first month upon arrival, leaving only innercoats for the rest of their stay. They get acclimatized after 3-4 months. Surprisingly, local-born pups do have normal coats, some even lush.

That is really interesting, Al.

What kinds of physical signs do you look for with your pups to ensure you're not over-working them? You work in different environments constantly...that's different from my situation, where I can play two-ball with Annie and notice her sprints starting to slow down, etc. and back it off a bit. What do you look for?

 

[Woody Taylor]

With my research, it is true that many large predators go for the hindquarters first. From wolves to lions, the dominant animals seek the best part, which happends to be the hindquarters. True, the do eat the stomach, and the contents which gives them the variety of grasses and other nutrients they need, but that is usually later on when they go back to snack on the kill.
I do agree that dogs need some PLANTS in their diet, but I prefer natural grasses, herbs, and seeds instead of commercial grains. Also, however, the grain levels in commercial dog foods are much higher than the animal needs, and would recieve in the wild. Remember, wild dogs eat POUNDS of meat at a time, and that stomach matter is only a tiny amount of the nutrients they recieve.

What about all the plants dogs chew on? Dogs always seem to mouth/eat roughage...not just grass...my dog in particular loves chewing at leaves that grow on vegetation by our creek.

 

[Woody Taylor]

Interesting - heat related - experience yesterday during a search.

I had upped my dogs' fat intake by adding 1/4 cup monounsaturated vegetable oil to their kibble for about a month ...
Got home after being in the heat from 9am-4pm and I crashed. She wanted to play.

That is an interesting story. Just curious....1/4 cup of oil has around 400-500 calories in it, right? Did you back off calories or up activity to compensate? Exercise in warm weather should burn more calories...I know this is true in humans, I assumed the same in most mammals (as the body tries to regulate internal temperature, etc.)...but that's a substantial uptick in overall energy consumption.

Glad it's working out for you!