With the arrival of warmer weather, our corgis will struggle with keeping themselves properly cool. Shedding, drinking exuberant amounts of water, and always looking for a better spot will once again be their daily routine.
But you can help cool your corgi in the upcoming months with a few tips and tricks we will be showing you today.
How To Cool Down A Corgi?
Cooling down a corgi requires multiple steps. Doing as much of these as you can will ensure your corgi stays chill. The first two points are essential; everything else is a bonus.
1. A Cold Beverage
We, humans, love to chug down a cold glass of water when it’s 1000 degrees out, so do our dogs.
Cold water is the number one best thing you can do for your corgi. In fact, it’s obligatory, never leave a corgi without water on a hot summer day. Some people recommend putting ice cubes in the water bowl but we disagree. The last thing you want is your corgi choking on an ice cube. Just keep the water in the fridge and refill when needed.
If you want, you can get two water bowls for your corgi; always keep one in the freezer and interchange between the two. Also, make sure your corgi always has access to fresh water, dehydration in dogs is extremely dangerous.
2. A Good Cool Spot
The next, basic thing your corgi needs is a good cool spot.
Some dogs are good at finding the right spot on their own. If your corgi isn’t one of them, then it’s on you to find one for him. This depends on whether your corgi is living inside or outside during the summer.
If it’s inside, the options come down to ceramic tiles or buying a cooling mat. If it’s outside, making sure there’s plenty of shade in the yard is essential. One shaded spot isn’t enough since it will get too warm from the corgi’s own body heat sooner or later.
Some dogs like to dig holes to get to cooler soil and just chill there during hotter temperatures. If your corgi likes water, pouring some water into that hole to keep it cooler for longer is a thrifty and a pretty affordable idea.
3. Start Freezing Things
Ice Packs
Ice packs are great; they provide immediate relief and are just really simple to make.
Just freeze a water bottle and put it under your corgi. It’s that simple; your corgi will decide where exactly he wants the bottle to be. Also, you can fill a plastic bag with ice cubes and do the same.
Keep in mind, if you do this, monitor your dog the entire time to make sure he doesn’t swallow any cubes.
Freezable Toys
There’s not a corgi in the world who doesn’t like toys. Freeze them, and you’ll blow your corgis mind away. There’s a couple of options regarding the freezable toys.
The first one is the treat toys. These are amazing when it comes to both keeping your corgi busy and cool at the same time. Basically, you fill the toy with treats, freeze it and then give it to your corgi. The toy should keep him busy for a while. The treats you put in can be anything you want, as long as your corgi likes them.
The second option is a freezable chew toy. It’s pretty self-explanatory, just freeze the toy and let your corgi go at it. These toys should lift your corgi’s spirits fairly quickly.
4. A Fan For Your Biggest Fan
Get a cheap fan, plug it in, and let your corgi decide if he likes the breeze.
Some dogs don’t enjoy this much, so if you have a fan, test to see if your corgi likes it before buying one just for him. Make sure the fan is pointed at his nose or paws. Those are the “sweating areas”.
Just make sure the fan is adequately protected, and none of your corgi hairs can get stuck if he/she gets too close to the fan. Simply put, make sure your corgi is safe when you’re not near to monitor him.
5. Spray Bottles
Spray bottles are an excellent way to freshen up your corgi.
It’s easy and quick, and most importantly, the mess is practically non-existent, so it’s an excellent option for corgis who live inside. When it comes down to the actual spraying, it’s pointless just to spray it on your corgis entire body. It can actually cause the opposite effect.
Instead, focus on spraying the paws and underbelly. Your dog shouldn’t object after he feels the cold water cooling him down, but the initial sound of the spray and the mist it produces might startle him.
6. Take Out The Hose
This one is a little bit tricky. Some corgis don’t really like the hose that much.
In fact, some corgis don’t like water that much. If that’s the case, you can skip this one. If not, give it a try, see how your corgi likes it.
One thing to keep in mind, though, if you have a fluffy corgi or your corgi is above-average hairy; we don’t recommend this. The wet fur can actually prevent your corgi from properly cooling down since it can trap the heat under your corgi’s first layer of coat.
7. Take A Swim (Or A Dip)
One more for the water-loving corgis.
Take your corgi for a swim to cool him down and help him deal with hot weather. If you don’t have access to a beach, a good alternative would be to buy an above-ground pool; there are even ones specially made for dogs.
They aren’t that expensive, and your corgi might enjoy it.
Read More: Why Do Corgis Float In Water? My Floating Corgi
8. Let Your Corgi Inside
This one is for the people living in scorching conditions.
If your corgi is a yard dog, but the outside temperature is such that you can boil an egg on the pavement, consider letting your corgi inside.
We know a lot of people prefer their dogs to live outside, and we completely understand. However, if your corgi is clearly struggling to withstand the scorching temperatures, maybe let him spend the hotter hours of the day inside.
Find him the right spot and let him know you don’t want him roaming around the house. Make sure he has access to plenty of water and check up on him every now and then.
How Do Corgis Cool Off Naturally?
Sweat Glands
Contrary to popular belief, dogs sweat and have sweat glands. It’s just not their most effective way of cooling down; we’ll mention that one a bit later.
The sweat glands are located on their paws and ears. This is one of the reasons why dogs are always looking for cool surfaces/spots to sleep on during hot weather.
The dog absorbs the cool temperature of the surface, thus lowering its own body temperature. Over time though, that spot gets warm and loses its appeal. That’s why, in the previous section, we advised you to make sure your corgi has several cool spots he can chill in when it’s hot outside.
Panting
We humans don’t pant because we have our body’s biggest organ keeping us cool…our skin. It cools our blood vessels and lowers our body’s temperature.
Dogs, on the other hand, don’t have that luxury, and instead, they pant. They pant because their major blood vessels are located in their head and are very close to their nose. Dogs absorb the cool air by panting, which cools their blood vessels and virtually their entire body.
So if your corgi is panting, don’t worry; it’s just cooling itself down. If it’s panting heavily, there’s a good reason for concern; we’ll cover that in the next section.
Coat
Yes, believe it or not, their coat also cools them down, to an extent. It repels the heat and acts as insulation. This is also true for double-coated breeds like our corgis. Which brings us to: “what not to do with your corgi during hot weather”.
What NOT To Do!
Do Not Shave Your Corgi
We’ll say it one more time, don’t shave your corgi; it’s not going to end well.
First of all, as we mentioned, a corgis coat acts as insulation; by shaving it, you’ll achieve the opposite of what you wanted. Also, most owners who have shaved their corgis reported that the coat never grows back properly.
It gets too coarse and even tangled in some instances. Adding to that point, the coat is there to protect your corgi from sunburn. Remember that, since you want to protect your corgi from heatstroke, by all means necessary, as they tend to be fatal in some rare instances.
Please Don’t Leave Them In A Car
The so-called “hot house” effect can also be fatal to your corgi. The complete lack of proper ventilation and the excess of heat can indeed cause a heat stroke. This doesn’t pertain solely to cars but to all closed, poorly ventilated spaces. You wouldn’t leave your child like that; the same goes for your pup.
Don’t Walk Them When It’s Still Too Hot Outside
Another thing you should avoid at all costs. Some owners have trouble estimating whether it’s too hot to walk their corgi. The good old “five-second rule” can be applied here.
We don’t mean the one where if something touches the ground, you can eat it if it’s been there for less than 5 seconds. We mean the one where you touch the pavement with the back of your hand and see if you can hold it there for more than five seconds.
Choose the part of the pavement directly exposed to the sun. As you now know, corgis have their sweat glands on their paws, so exposing them to hot surfaces would be the same as us putting our hands on a hot stove.
Water Intoxication
Water intoxication can happen if your dog swallows too much water too quickly. It doesn’t happen very often, but it’s still something to watch out for. This can happen when your dog is swimming, gets tired, and starts swallowing too much water.
Signs of water intoxication can be similar to that of a heat stroke:
- Vomiting
- Bloating
- Loss of coordination
- Pale gums
How to avoid this?
Keep a close eye on your dog when they’re in the water. If they get too tired and start swallowing water, take them out to rest. Ten to fifteen minutes in the water before taking a break should be fine. If you do notice any of the signs of water intoxication, take your dog to a vet.
The Danger Of A Heat Stroke
Before we conclude this topic, we have to talk about the dangers of heatstroke and why you should protect your corgi from it at all costs.
Heat strokes can cause various medical problems. Neurological and kidney issues first and foremost. These can be long-lasting problems for your pup.
Some of the signs your corgi is experiencing a heat stroke are:
- Extremely heavy panting
- Uncoordinated movement
- Sudden loss of consciousness
- Agitation
- Vomiting
If your corgi is showing any of these signs, take them to a veterinarian immediately. If you’re not 100% sure, use a rectal thermometer to measure your corgi’s body temperature.
Not the most pleasant thing in the world, but neither is a fatal heatstroke. Anything above 104˚F is a sign you should take your corgi to a vet asap.
How To Keep A Corgi Cool? – Conclusion
We’ve given you the information necessary to keep your corgi cool during hot weather. Most of the things we’ve mentioned on the list are relatively simple and don’t require much money or extra effort. Keeping your corgi cool should be your priority as hot weather is getting hotter every year for some unknown reason.
