Heat Stroke

[Chukar12]

I had a scare, or a nightmare with this yesterday and it is not over yet. In spite of my paranoia about over heating dogs I had it happen yesterday. I was training in the desert at daylight and the temperature when I turned my dogs lose was 71 degrees. I was working some valley quail near stock collection areas/tanks in some rolling sage flats north of Reno, NV. I had done bird work the morning and evening before and I had spent the night out with hopes of running Sonny and Patch together in the morning before the drive home in a simulated trial. When I blew the whistle both dogs were feeling exceptionally good and really broke away hard...too hard. They went over a hill into a drainage and i lost signal on the Garmin. I moved as I would in a trial singing and in 7 minutes Patch appeared to the front. I let him work another 10 minutes singing to Sonny who I never saw and could not re-establish GPS connection with. I have not yet figured out why his collar never re-connected.

I decided to gather up Patch and look for Sonny. I drove out a fence line he had roughly went down and in the name of time will save you the search details, but I found him visually 30 minutes later with my binoculars walking up a shaded draw. When I got to him, i saw immediately he was in trouble. His saliva was very thick, his legs wobbly and his eyes blood red. I got us in the shade and turned him over using the six gallons of water i had on the ATV to soak his belly and chest and alternate with dousing his pads. He revived quickly and I checked his temp with a digital thermometer I keep in my kit; 105.6. I laid him across my lap and got back to the truck keeping air flowing around him, when i got to the truck (7 or 8 minutes) his temp was at 102. I started the truck and turned on the air, cooled him with some water from the ice chest and checked again temp was 100.5. I put Sonny in the front seat and let the air blow on him and loaded the rest and started home.

Sonny vomited a half dozen times coming in. I took him to an emergency hospital. They started him on IV fluids and ran blood work. The blood work shows signals of liver issues but the kidneys are fine. This morning I visited him and he seems a 100% visually though he is not out of the woods yet. I have two close friends that are vets that I trial with and they are conferring with the staff where Sonny is being treated. I may be fortunate and have a full recovery and then again, there may be residual long term effects.

I offer this partially for therapy and partially as a reminder. I was ready for this and still had a disaster. When I got in the truck the temperature was still only 80 degrees, I have run trials and hunted when it was substantially warmer. There are no guarantees but maybe my story will remind someone to be prepared and to educate themselves if they are not on the signals of heat stroke and how to react.

Joe

[RoostersMom]

Joe,

Thank god you were thinking to find him. Heat stroke is nothing to mess with. I hope you get a full recovery. Thanks for the reminder, so sorry it had to happen.

Elsa

[AZ Brittany Guy]

Joe,

I have never met you but I am familiar with your dogs as they evolve in their field trial careers. It is safe to assume they are very High Drive dogs with big motors and high pain thresholds. I have one of those and find that I have to keep an eye on him because he does not know when enough is enough. I just hope your boy is able to recover fully and continue his successful career.

I wish you the best.

[deseeker]

I hope Sonny gets back to normal and has no lasting effects from his heat stroke.

[Sharon]

Sorry to hear that. Some folks think that if there is a pond/lake in the training area , the dog will be fine. Not so. A soaked with water coat can still = a very hot dog. With temps. in the 30s here + high humidity , I don't take any chances.

[Gertie]

I'm glad you were so well prepared and knew how to treat the dog as best you could in the field and get him to emergency help. Thanks for the reminder, it's been awfully hot lately and I don't think one can be too prepared. It would be great if you could update if you figure out what happened with your Garmin. I hope Sonny makes a full recovery and is back running soon!

[kninebirddog]

That is scarey..
I have seen dogs over heated and it is scarey ....One female over in Nebraska I spent 5 hours with cooling the Belly Ears and Paws and giving very small amounts of Pedialyte to. I don't think the owner ever did take her to the vet but he did say a couple years later that she never did handle the heat well after that
Hope Sonny bounces back 100%

[Chukar12]

Thank you all for the kind replies, I will certainly reply when the prognosis has more detail.

Joe

[ezzy333]

Good luck Joe. Will be thinking of you all till we hear more.

Ezzy

[slistoe]

Best of luck with your dog. I had one that never could run much heat ever after - she could run 1/2 hour stakes and hunt like the "bleep" where pace was not an issue.

[cjuve]

Glad to hear that things are all right so far, I tend to stay away from mornings around here it heats up pretty fast and it is easy to loose track of time. It is normaly in the high 50's to low 60's in the mornings north of Reno so 71 is pretty warm.

[Chukar12]

Sonny’s liver numbers are still elevated, his clotting numbers are normal and an ultrasound shows no signs of chronic damage. As I understand it may take a while for the liver numbers to clear as the toxins flush. I could have taken him home last night but I chose to leave him so that he could stay on IV fluids to keep him flushing. I will bring him home this afternoon, and we will take it slow and rehab between now and the National Championships…thank you for the well wishes.
Joe

[Munster]

Joe, very glad to hear he is on the mend. I bet that you have been a wreck! Keep us posted.

[Kiki]

Great to hear things are improving. Thanks for sharing your experience with the forum. I'm sure it'll help all of us be more aware.

[steamer]

good to hear your dog is doing better. that would be a scary thing to go through for sure. this is a trial dog in top shape. I assume you have trained in this type of weather before. what do you think was different this time to cause him to over heat? good luck and I hope he is able to make a full recovery.

[Chukar12]

I assume you have trained in this type of weather before. what do you think was different this time to cause him to over heat?

That is a good question and one I am not exactly sure of the answer. He was gone for maybe 45 minutes or an hour...It is sort of a blur now. While the heat was not extreme the air was very still. The following points are the things i am trying to be aware of and use as reference in the future more or less in the order that I find most accountable.

I was trying to handle two all-age dogs together, both young males, in great physical condition. They broke away so hard and fast that it was clear to see that they were competing with each other. Though I got one back I put the other at risk because they both needed my attention. Instead of 2 on 1, i.e. handler and scout, we had 1 on 2 dog to human ratio.

My tracking device failed on the dog that got lost.

We were on new ground that they nor I had used before.

Though I don't think its a factor he could have hooked a deer or antelope and pursued...something occurred that caused him to rum too hard for too long and his internal temp could not be controlled by panting and air flow. He had no water out on his own and by the time it hit him to slow down it was simply too late.

I do know this, I took my dogs, their training, the weather and my equipment for granted in the sense that could handle the situation either through their training, good equipment (atv, et...) or modern technology. It turns out we aren't that good. I do feel good about how we handled the problem once we were in dire straits. Knowing what to do and being prepared to do it probably saved the dog's life.

[roaniecowpony]

Joe
Sorry to hear you had this occur. I had a brush with heat stroke with my lab several years ago, but was very close to the dog and was watching for over exertion and othe signs. Still, it happened very quickly. One wounded bird chase and it was a problem.

Regarding your GPS failure...which model do you have? Was the collar still on when you found the dog? The reason I ask is that I've encountered collars shutting off while my dogs were running with my Alpha. Others have had this happen too.

[Tooling]

Wow...knew heat stroke was bad but did not realize it could have residual and life-long effects..scary!!

This brings up a question...my pup who is now nearing 16 mos. (GSP of course : ) runs hard in the field but will take breaks if it's just a casual hunt or the excitement's low. When another dog is in the mix or when he is just in a particularly great mood on birds he is totally in the game but his mouth seems to dry up and his saliva thickens dramatically ending up all over his snout/face. When this happens I call him in frequently for water and will keep him by my side for a moment or two longer than I normally would before re-releasing. It appears to me that this happens when he's just uber-excited to be doing what he's doing plus maybe competition/nerves as it most frequently happens during hunt tests and when he is just absolutely enveloped in his element doing what he loves to do. I've looked at some of the "hydrating" supplements but don't know much about them nor know for sure that it would be helpful. I provide copious amounts of water before/after...any advice?

Horrible about your dog...thank goodness you were well prepared w/necessary items as well as an understanding of what to do...I'm not as well prepared and maybe had better become so..it would kill me to have that happen and the situation made worse because of my own ignorance!!! I think I can speak for nearly all of us w/working dogs when I say we owe it to them to do the best we can for their safety in any situation....they do lack thumbs you know..(I think they really hate that fact...lol)

[roaniecowpony]

Joe's event reminded me I need to ensure I have a thermometer in my field kit.

[Chukar12]

Wow...knew heat stroke was bad but did not realize it could have residual and life-long effects..scary!!This brings up a question...my pup who is now nearing 16 mos. (GSP of course : ) runs hard in the field but will take breaks if it's just a casual hunt or the excitement's low. When another dog is in the mix or when he is just in a particularly great mood on birds he is totally in the game but his mouth seems to dry up and his saliva thickens dramatically ending up all over his snout/face. When this happens I call him in frequently for water and will keep him by my side for a moment or two longer than I normally would before re-releasing. It appears to me that this happens when he's just uber-excited to be doing what he's doing plus maybe competition/nerves as it most frequently happens during hunt tests and when he is just absolutely enveloped in his element doing what he loves to do. I've looked at some of the "hydrating" supplements but don't know much about them nor know for sure that it would be helpful. I provide copious amounts of water before/after...any advice?Horrible about your dog...thank goodness you were well prepared w/necessary items as well as an understanding of what to do...I'm not as well prepared and maybe had better become so..it would kill me to have that happen and the situation made worse because of my own ignorance!!! I think I can speak for nearly all of us w/working dogs when I say we owe it to them to do the best we can for their safety in any situation....they do lack thumbs you know..(I think they really hate that fact...lol)

Tooling, Google "canine heat stroke" and review the numerous sites to educate your self on the signs and signals. Dehydration is a factor but moreover it is the dog's core temperature simply rising beyond what the cooling system can handle on its own ... when simply panting and air aren't enough. Knowing the signs and more importantly the actions to take are critical. The blood vessels are more near to the skin on the dog's underbelly and pads. Having water over these spots and allowing air to circulate over the water with the cooling effect of evaporation helps and getting the dog in cooler air, shade or better yet A/C. During activity keeping the dog wet will keep the temperature from climbing. In this instance I would guess that if Sonny would have run across water a couple of times to get cooled in we would not have had the issue.


Roanie,
A thermometer is critical, it takes the guess work out of where the temperature is, thereby dictating what action is needed immediately.
My collar is an older DC30, I still have not messed with it to see what the problem is.

[kninebirddog]

http://www.gundogsupply.com/ruff-wear-swamp-cooler.html

I have a couple of these vests that I use on my dogs while guiding here in AZ when it gets warm...I have found them to make a HUGE difference in how my dogs hunt and handle the warmer weather

[AZ Brittany Guy]

http://www.gundogsupply.com/ruff-wear-swamp-cooler.html

I have a couple of these vests that I use on my dogs while guiding here in AZ when it gets warm...I have found them to make a HUGE difference in how my dogs hunt and handle the warmer weather

I wonder how the field trial community would feel if you strapped that on your dog at the break away?

[kninebirddog]

http://www.gundogsupply.com/ruff-wear-swamp-cooler.html

I have a couple of these vests that I use on my dogs while guiding here in AZ when it gets warm...I have found them to make a HUGE difference in how my dogs hunt and handle the warmer weather

I wonder how the field trial community would feel if you strapped that on your dog at the break away?

Places where the temps get warm ..I think the field trial community should consider these for the health of the dogs since they wouldn't be running if it wasn't for us putting them in those temps. If we really cared about the health of our dogs this is one way we can help them. But I know some dog trial communities say no to the use of the vests

[AZ Brittany Guy]

http://www.gundogsupply.com/ruff-wear-swamp-cooler.html

I have a couple of these vests that I use on my dogs while guiding here in AZ when it gets warm...I have found them to make a HUGE difference in how my dogs hunt and handle the warmer weather

I wonder how the field trial community would feel if you strapped that on your dog at the break away?

Places where the temps get warm ..I think the field trial community should consider these for the health of the dogs since they wouldn't be running if it wasn't for us putting them in those temps. If we really cared about the health of our dogs this is one way we can help them. But I know some dog trial communities say no to the use of the vests

I'm afraid you are probably right.

[roaniecowpony]

Arlette
Is there some test data available on how well those vests work?

[kninebirddog]

Arlette
Is there some test data available on how well those vests work?

All I can say is from my personal experience with the vests and how much better my dogs do when I put them on for guiding here in AZ on a pheasant preserve as some people like to come out in the afternoons to hunt and here in winters afternoons can be in the 80's So yes there is a big difference with the dogs that are wearing the vests versus those that aren't and from other people I know who also use them on their dogs and how much better they do training and hunting with them on versus when not using them.
I got mine after a friend of mine told me about the vests as he has a dog that does horrible in warm conditions.


You can feel the difference in the dogs body temps as I was showing a friend of mine how the vests keep the dogs body cooler after we had run the dogs and they placed their hand under the vest comparing to another dog that didn't have a vest there was a substantial difference in the dogs body temp..The dog with out the vest was searching for shade to lay down the dog with the vest was ready to hunt again

Other then this personal observation I do not know of any other data

[roaniecowpony]

Thanks much.

[RCB]

Joe, glad to hear that thinks are on the upswing and Sonny looks to be greatly improved. Your situation sure sounded scary but you were prepared for the worst and saved your dog's life. I am going to google this topic and make sure I am up on the emergency treatment as I run in the heat here in So Cal a lot and this could easily happen to me. Thanks for posting as this will educate us all.

[DoubleBarrel GunDogs]

I have been fortunate enough to avoid heat stroke in my dogs. The only bit of advice I can add to what's been offered is to keep ice in a cooler, and insert some ice into the dog's anus in the event of an emergency. You need to quickly lower the dog's body temperature if it reaches 104 degrees, and cooling one down externally takes time. A dog that isn't in great condition, is a dead dog at 105 degrees.

Close call Joe. I hope all is well.

Nate

[Chukar12]

I am happy to say that Sonny appears to have 100% recovery. His blood work has all returned to normal and he seems to have the old pop back in his run...we will see this weekend when he starts his fall run in Madras, Ore. I gave he and Patch a little tune up Saturday in the pasture.

[ACooper]

That is really great news.

[Chukar12]

[AZ Brittany Guy]

Great News !!

[dreamrr]

A good reminder. Thanks for sharing and I hope the dog gets well soon and has no long term affects.

I took my GSP out yesterday for some preseason training here in Las Vegas. The temp was about 100 degrees. By the end of our 30 minute training session, my dog was exhausted. The heat can really take a toll.

[ezzy333]

One comment that is late but the vests talked about probably work very well out in the SW where the humidity is very low but can be useless or even a detriment where the humidity is high. They work because of evaporation and to have that low humidity is required. We seldom have conditions that will let them work in the east and Midwest. Just another example of one size does not fit all and why broad rules and laws seldom work.

Like everything else you must be aware of the conditions before finding a remedy.

Ezzy

[Chukar12]

I am obsessed now...note there are no dry dogs in the picture? I think I will rig a battery operated sprayer on the back of my saddle this week that I can attach a hose to ...about thirty gallons. I wonder how my all-age race is going to look with me hacking a dog into water it every 7 minutes?

[Vonzeppelinkennels]

That is very good news indeed!!

[RoostersMom]

Thrilled that he seems to be back to normal. I hope his prognosis continues to be excellent.