D.TOMLINSON
Dogs,asweknow, don’tsweat somakingsure they staycomfortablein hot weather is vital. David Tomlinson looks at the best approachHuskieshavethickfurthat
insulatesthemfromthecoldsothey
arewellequippedforsurvivalin
suchanunforgivingenvironment.
InsouthernIndia,wherethe
temperaturerarelydropsbelow20ºC
andoftenrisestotwicethat,thelocal
pie-dogsareinvariably shorthaired.Snooze
Dogsseemremarkablygoodat
remainingcoolevenonthehottest
ofdays,butthetruthis theyrarely
domuchduringtheheatoftheday
exceptsnoozeintheshade.Astheold
songremindsus,onlymaddogsand
Englishmengooutinthemiddaysun.
Theyarenotgoodat copingwith
excessiveheat,forunlikeusthey
don’t sweat. They do have sweatASA STUDENTOF
caninebehaviour,I’m
alwaysinterestedinseeing
howdogscopewhen
temperaturesrise.Manyyearsago
I madea JulyvisittotheNorthwest
TerritoriesofCanada,intheArctic.
HerealltheInuitsettlementsaround
theBeaufortseahadworkingsled
dogs.Thedogsareunemployedinthe
summerandaresimplyleftchained
onthetundra,neatlyspacedsothey
can’tinteractwitheachother.
Duringmyvisitthetemperature
wasa remarkable30ºC(winter
temperaturesgobelow-40ºC).The
dogscopebydiggingthemselvesdeep
holestheycanalmostdisappearinto,
relyingonthe permafrost to keep
them cool.glandsintheirpads,buttheydolittle
forheatloss.Onemethodtheyhave
fordealingwithheatis byconduction,
suchascontactwitha coldsurface,
whichis whytheyliketosprawlout
oncoldtilesorflopintoa puddle.
Convectionalsoplaysa part;the
transferofheatfromhottocooler
molecules.Asthebodytemperature
rises,bloodvesselsintheskindilateto
increasebloodflow,helpingheattobe
lostfromthebloodaroundthebody.
Themostfamiliarmeansofheat
lossis throughpanting.Technically,
thisis describedasevaporative
coolingthroughtherespiratorytract.
Bypantingthedogcirculatesair
throughitsbodyina bidtocooldown.
Manypeoplewronglyassumethata
panting dog needs a drink, but a long,GundogsKeep that canine coolOna hotdaydogs
willoftenseekout
a puddleasa way
of keeping cool78 • SHOOTING TIMES & COUNTRY MAGAZINE