Any tips for sunny days? :)

This is Lucas first summer really, she was born in July last year so by the time she was ready to go outside it wasn’t that warm anymore.

She seems to be struggling with the heat a bit now. I mean she non stop wants to sit in the sunlight until she’s panting like crazy and then goes into her crate to cool off for 5ish mins then back out. She’s just kind of sleeping around in the sun all day and is getting tired 10mins into her walk.

Should I not be taking her on walks at all when it’s hot or just maybe limit it to short ones early in morning?
Also is it okay for her to be in the sun all the time? She has many places to go to but is choosing to be in the sunlight non stop just sitting there panting. Surely she would stay out of the sun if it was too much though?

She has her water bowl in the shade and enjoys ice cubes a lot but was wondering if anyone has any ideas or things they do themselves to help their sun loving piglets? I was thinking about getting a doggy pool but afraid she won’t be interested, she doesn’t want to go into rivers and water, she’s a bit afraid of water.

Most staffies that I know including my own are sun babies. There currently lay next to me on a duvet painting because they're too hot! They will take themselves into the shade when they need to. Nothing to worry about. They always lie in the sunny spots in the house as well.

Keep walks in the morning or evening when its cooler. Especially on these hot days. Remember to test the pavement with your hands if your unsure if it's too hot for Luna or not. You dont want her burning her pads! If you cant keep your hands on the pavement for 5 seconds without your hand feeling uncomfortable then it's too risky for Luna.

Paddling pools are the best. We have a plastic shell shaped one from Argos, both filled with water and all the toys they have including the kids plastic ball pit balls. They LOVE it.

Ice cubes are a great way of keeping them cool in their water bowl.

Fill a small bucket or plant pot with water and beef stock, put some toys and treat in there as well. Freeze it. That'll keep her occupied and hydrated.

Put her bed or comfy blankets in the shade in the garden, then if she wants to flop down then she might head to the shade instead if its comfortable.

Hope this helps!

My Nifty is a sun lizard, alternating between hot spot in the sun and lying on the tiles at home to cool off.
Opium just likes to be outside but as active as possible please.

Instead of a doggy pool, I had a low plastic box which I put a few inches of water in the bottom. Nifty does not like water but Opium will play in the water for hours, pawing and scratching the water or ducking her head whilst blowing bubbles from her nose !

Do not try to wet all of her body in water. Dogs do not sweat through their fur so the water will just heat to evaporate in the sun. On a dark coat too, it’s the same problem as people getting sunburnt at the sea by not feeling the heat, not good.
In the height of summer, I’ve also planted a parasol for extra shade and don’t hesitate to call the girls in if I feel they’ve spent too much time in the sun.

As to walking, avoid hot times of the day and don’t underestimate the temperature tarmac can reach heated under the sun.
25 degrees C air temperature = 51.7 degrees asphalt temperature.
30 degrees air temperature = 57.2 degrees asphalt temperature
31 degrees air temperature = 61.7 degrees asphalt temperature  

How much time in the sun would be too much? Like it’s not scorching here it’s only about 20degrees celsius but there’s no wind in our back garden so she’s just getting hit fast. Some people put dog friendly sunscreen on their dogs ears, would that be worth it at all or just a waste of time do you think? Don’t want her to get a sun store or something but she’s just whining at the back door the minute I call her in, she wants to be out the back from morning till evening when the sun goes

I definitely wouldn’t bring her if the pavement was hot, always try to walk her on paths that have grass alongside so she can walk on it instead. I just feel like even when it’s only 17-19degrees she seems to get too hot after a few minutes.. just might try shorter walks in morning and evening and just think of some exercises to do at home instead of a long walk

Luna doesn’t seem to like water, she won’t go into a river or ocean anyway do you think she would like a pool or would she just reject it like the river

TBH, I can’t see the point of sunscreen unless there is pink skin, which is unlikely with a dark coloured dog. A bit of supervision would save you money there, I think.

There’s no set rules for how long, you need to play it by ear taking into consideration the weather conditions and what Luna is doing (sunbathing vs running about). Common sense and you’ll be fine.

As to water, I get Nifty to cross through the water with treats. She doesn’t have to soak but cooling her paws will already help her to cool down.
I didn’t think she was too fond of water either but a trip to the beach in December showed that she is interested in the sea !
Or else it was to show off in front of her breeder and “sister” from another litter

For the walks, in the woods can be great as it generally stays cool there, if you have the opportunity. Otherwise I agree that grassy paths are better than pavements.

Katy loves to lay in the sun but when she gets too hot she moves to a shady spot, when cooled she's back in the sun! They know when they've had enough. I find nice walks that have good cool spot for her. She has a shell paddling pool to cool off in & chilled water & ice pops

Interesting,maybe Luna isn’t against water but just doesn’t like rivers I’ll get her a little pool anyway see if there’s any interest in it.

I did think sunscreen would be over doing it a bit so glad to see no one else seems to be doing it

Unfortunately we can’t really get to any forests now, we usually go to this hill covered in a forest, has a little lake there too but atm the car parks close to it are all closed, most beaches and recreation areas are locked down so sadly for Luna it’s just walks around the village and running around the fields for now