Short answer: give them a cool surface, keep water fresh, and keep them off hot ground. Air conditioning cools the room, but a dog wearing a fur coat cools down mostly through contact with cool surfaces and through panting. Here are seven things that actually help, roughly in order of how much difference they make.
1. Give them a cool surface to lie on
This is the big one. Conduction, direct contact with something cooler than the body, pulls heat out far faster than air does. It's why your dog lies on the tile, the bathtub, or the concrete garage floor in July. A self-cooling mat gives them that surface anywhere: crate, car, sofa, patio, with no freezer or power. Read more on how cooling mats work.
2. Keep water fresh and within reach
A bowl that has been sitting out all afternoon is warm and dull, and many pets drink less from it. Refresh it a few times a day, add a second bowl in the room where they nap, and drop in a couple of ice cubes if they like chasing them. On walks, carry water rather than waiting to get home.
3. Close the blinds on the sunny side
Direct sun through a window heats the floor and the air in that room by several degrees. Closing blinds or curtains during the hottest hours keeps the surfaces your pet lies on cooler, which matters more than the air temperature.
4. Move the air with a fan, low and aimed at them
A fan helps a dog more than a person expects, but only if it's moving air across them at floor level. Fans work by speeding up evaporation from the tongue and any damp fur, so a fan plus a lightly damp towel or bandana on the neck is a real upgrade. A fan aimed at the ceiling does nothing for a dog on the floor.
5. Wet the belly, paws, and neck, not the back
Dogs shed heat through the thin-furred belly, the paw pads, and the blood vessels in the neck. A damp cloth on those spots cools them faster than soaking the thick fur on their back, which can actually trap heat. Use cool water, not ice.
6. Move the walk and skip midday play
Before 8am or after sunset. Press the back of your hand to the pavement for seven seconds; if you want to pull it away, it will burn their paws. Keep indoor play calm during the hottest hours. Exercise is the fastest way to overheat a dog.
7. Know who overheats fastest
Flat-faced breeds (Frenchies, Pugs, Bulldogs, Boxers, Persian cats), double-coated and dark-coated breeds, puppies, seniors, and overweight pets all struggle on days other dogs find merely warm. If yours is on that list, start cooling earlier and watch more closely.
What not to do
- Don't shave a double-coated dog. The coat insulates against heat as well as cold and protects the skin from sunburn.
- Don't submerge a hot dog in ice water. It constricts blood vessels and traps heat inside. Cool water on the belly and paws, then a fan.
- Never leave a pet in a parked car. On an 85°F day the interior passes 100°F within about ten minutes, windows cracked or not.
When to call the vet
Frantic panting that doesn't slow at rest, bright red or very pale gums, thick ropey drool, wobbling, confusion, or vomiting are heat stroke signs. Cooling gear makes a hot pet comfortable; it does not treat heat stroke. Our 2-minute heat guide lists the early signs and the emergency signs side by side.