Please leave out daily clean, fresh, cold water for possible feline visitors.
❄️Tip: Freeze water bottles and leave them in a bowl.
Cats risk heat exhaustion and stroke if left outside in severe heat with no water or shade or in a house that is too warm. Cats do not sweat to cool down and don’t normally pant until they are already in distress. A cat may become trapped in a hot area like a greenhouse, garage, shed or car.
Tips to Keep Cats Cooler:
☀️Containers: Use lighter-colored bowls; darker-colored bowls will absorb the heat quickly. Use a narrow bowl instead of a wide bowl, as they are slower to heat up.
☀️Food: Keep food bowls in the shade. If it’s too hot for you to stay in the sun, it’s too hot for a cat. Wet food will spoil quickly in the hot summer sun.
☀️ Water ????: Provide clean, FRESH water in multiple shady areas.
☀️Shade: Outdoor cats will appreciate an escape from the blazing sun. If you have some of your children’s old playhouses in the garage, drag them out and put them in the yard for the community cats.
☀️TNR: Be mindful of trapping conditions: remember how the heat affects the cat’s safety in the trap. If they are confined in the trap too long, they could die of heat stroke.
☀️Garages: Animals can not be kept in garages without an air conditioner. Fans do not work and only blow hot air around.
☀️Pets: Do not shave your cat’s fur to keep them cool. A cat’s coat can keep them both warm and cool. Additionally, shaving the coat increases the risk of sunburn.
????Signs of heatstroke:
* Body temperature of 104 degrees or more
* Rapid breathing, panting, or respiratory distress
* Vomiting
* Diarrhea
* Anxiety or restlessness
* Lethargy
* Dizziness and disorientation
* Dark red gums and tongue
* Rapid heartbeat
* Sweaty paws
* Drooling with thick saliva due to dehydration