Help animals of all types beat the heat

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/07/2017 (3228 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

We’ve all heard the “don’t leave your dog in a hot car” public service announcements hundreds of times, so another one of those would be redundant.  

But its not just dogs that can suffer from the extreme temperatures, be they hot or cold.
These extreme conditions means that transporting cold blooded animals can be a challenge. Cold blooded animals (fish, reptiles, amphibians, insects) get their body temperature from their surroundings. Most have a range of temperatures where they are comfortable, and a wider range that they can survive. Beyond that range, they die. Mammals and birds can generate heat when cold, and can shed excess heat by sweating or panting, making the range of temperatures they can comfortably survive much broader.  

Fish are transported in a bag of water, which can buffer temperature change, meaning it will take longer for the water to heat or cool enough to kill them. But even so, a significant change in temperature over a short period can cause stress that will weaken them, and make them more susceptible to disease. A very healthy fish that is left in a car while you shop, may look fine in the bag when you get home, but if they are not slowly cooled down, it can damage or kill them. To avoid problems, please take the fish directly to their new home. If your trip is more than an hour, please advise your pet consultant so that they will be able to package them properly for the trip.

Once you arrive home, float the fish in their new tank for five to 10 minutes. After this, open the bag and add water from the tank, doubling the water that is in the bag.  Let them float for another five to 10 minutes and then release them into the tank. I do not recommend netting the fish out of the bag, or pouring them through a net. This only adds to the stresses on the fish. The water in the bag should be good, clean fresh water, and should not adversely affect your tank. But even following these directions for receiving a fish will not prevent it from getting sick or dying if it was allowed to overheat on the way home.

Most reptiles love the heat, some enjoy temperatures up to 130F in their basking areas. But that does not mean that all reptiles can tolerate these temperatures. Crested geckos are a prime example. They prefer a cooler environment, room temperature or slightly above. Temperatures over 85F can kill them, so transporting them on a hot day requires an air-conditioned vehicle. Even animals that like extreme temperatures need proper hydration to make a trip, both before and during. They can dehydrate quickly and perish.

Every summer, we see a large number of accidents that happen with crickets being exposed to excess heat, causing them to die.  Because they are so small, and have so little body mass, they heat up very quickly. In a sealed plastic bag, its like a greenhouse, and all it takes is a minute while you run in for a Slurpee for them to overheat, especially if they are in direct sunlight. Heat also makes shipping them in to the store difficult, as most of them come from the southern U.S., and just the brief time sitting on the runway waiting to be loaded into the cargo area can be too much for them.

Oddly, it is the larger crickets that suffer more from the heat, they tend to “sweat” and then drown in that humidity.  

Whether your animal has fur, feathers, scales or fins, its not difficult to treat it with proper care and respect during times of extreme heat. A little forethought can avoid a tragedy.  

Contact Jeff with your questions or ideas at aardvarkpets@shaw.ca or visit www.aardvarkpets.com