There’s nothing like spending a beautiful winter afternoon dashing through the snow with your pet dog. But the increasingly heating system and cold weather warrants an abundance of precaution – for you and your pets.
Here are a few tried and true ways to help keep them safe:
Home Sweet Home
During extremely cold weather, the safest place for your pet is indoors. Outdoor pets can get lost, become exposed to disease, and even freeze to death. If you do let your dog or cat out during inclement weather, keep it short and sweet. And remember, if it’s too cold for you to stay out, it’s too cold for them, too.
Bundle Up
Just as you protect yourself from the elements with a warm coat, hat, boots, and gloves, your dog needs a little extra protection, too, especially short-haired breeds and older dogs. While his fur provides some warmth, a coat, sweater, or booties would make him much more comfortable on those sub-freezing days.
Potty Break
When it’s raining, snowing, or especially cold out, your dog might resist heeding nature’s call outdoors – and understandably so. Make them more comfortable by outfitting them with a rain jacket or simply holding an umbrella over them while they take care of business.
Stow-Away Guests
When the temperature drops, outdoor cats will look to take shelter anywhere that’s warm and dry, including behind your car tires and even under the hood. Before getting in your car, bang on the hood a few times to give any strays a wake-up call and chance to escape.
Dry Off
While playing outdoors, cats and dogs can pick up salt, anti-freeze, and other dangerous chemicals on their paws, legs, and bellies. To prevent them from ingesting any of these poisons, dry them thoroughly and check the pads on their paws for bleeding, cracking, or irritation.
And now a word or two on how to take great care of your family and pets indoors this winter. First, if it’s been a year or longer since your heating system was last cleaned and inspected, you could have a problem waiting to happen. To prevent that, simply contact Air Professionals to request our heating preventative maintenance service. Next, you’ll be glad to know we offer 24/7 emergency repairs should you encounter any loss of heat this winter. No matter what the day or time, we’re on call for just such emergencies throughout our service areas in New York State and Connecticut.