Managing Heat Stress in Hunting Dogs: A Veterinarian's Guide

Ask A Vet - How do you deal with heat stress in a hunting dog? 

By Seth Bynum, DVM

Dr. Seth Bynum is an accomplished veterinarian, writer and photographer as well as an avid outdoorsman. His veterinary practice is currently limited to canine reproduction, although he loves tackling sporting dog and internal medicine cases at his home base of Hayden Pet Medical Center. A devout follower of the “work to live” philosophy, Dr. Bynum keeps his clinic schedule as lean as possible to pursue his passion for bird dogs and upland hunting. He can be found afield with a fly rod or shotgun, accompanied by his crew of German Shorthaired Pointers and lugging around a camera.

Canine athletes are incredibly efficient metabolic machines that can create tremendous amounts of heat while burning energy. It’s a physiological trait that helps them achieve impressive feats of athleticism, but in hot ambient temperatures it can also become a liability. Because of this tendency, the canine body has to get creative in how it manages overheating. While we share many biological processes with dogs, methods of heat mitigation are certainly not among them.  

How do dogs get rid of excess heat?

In the absence of any appreciable concentration of sweat glands (beyond those found on their pads), dogs rely on their respiratory system to facilitate cooling. We’re all familiar with the panting of a hunting dog at work, but few of us consider how the process serves as an efficient means of expelling hot internal air and replacing it with cooler atmospheric oxygen. The upper airways and oral cavities of dogs—even in hot, dry conditions—are naturally moist to assist the air exchange process with additional evaporative cooling. It’s not uncommon to see saliva dripping from the tongue of a working dog in the peak of physical output even when they’re approaching dehydration. 

How can I tell if my dog is overheating?

Keep in mind that not every dog that’s panting is undergoing heat stress. Rigorous exercise and occasionally stress will also trigger this unique reflex. Instead, pay special attention to the tongue in hot, dry conditions, as it’s a far more reliable indicator of a dog’s internal temperature. A dog approaching heat stress will have a long, wide tongue to enhance the surface area of evaporative cooling. As conditions turn more severe, the tip of their tongue may develop a cup-like shape that should prompt you to consider pushing the pause button on your early-season outing.  

As internal temperatures rise, dogs undergoing heat stress may progress to heat exhaustion. Those that have been pushed to this threshold are often lethargic and may act confused or disinterested in continuing hunting or pursuing game. If you notice these symptoms in the field, it’s past time for a mandatory break and cooldown. No matter how good the hunting is, it’s a potentially deadly flirtation with heatstroke to continue working at this same pace.

How do I cool down an overheated dog?

Cooling and rehydration often go hand in hand in managing an overheated hunting dog. Cool or tepid water helps safely reduce internal temperatures and assists in replacing fluids lost to muscle activity and consumed while moistening the respiratory tract during panting.

Additionally, dogs also rely on certain zones of their bodies to function as radiators to assist in cooling. Their ears, armpits, groin and feet are all zones that bring warm blood close to the surface of the skin for cooling. You can enhance this process by wetting these areas with water from a squeeze bottle or swim. In severe conditions, an application of rubbing alcohol will further speed up cooling in these areas. Just make sure there are no abrasions or open wounds before dousing them in alcohol.

While it may be tempting to rapidly cool your hunting dog, slow and steady is the safest method of facilitating a return to normal body temperature. Ice bath dunks can contribute to body-wide peripheral vasoconstriction, counterproductively trapping hot blood in the body’s core where it’s more dangerous to vital internal organs.

In conclusion

Heat stress and heat management should be sharply dialed in on your early-season hunting radar. Fortunately, sporting dogs give us numerous visual cues that hot conditions and overheating are taking a toll well in advance of a serious injury. Watch for a long, cupping tongue as a sign to call for a water and shade break before more severe symptoms like disorientation and collapse jeopardize your hunting companion’s well-being. Make sure you cool your dog down gradually with cool water and shade. And most of all, keep your expectations in check. While there’s a lot of temptation to take advantage of those first hunts after a long offseason, it’s best to play it safe until we finally welcome the return of chilly fall mornings.