Make sure walking your dog isn’t hurting your four-legged friend

UPDATE: 6:36 p.m.

It’s the dog days of summer for Michael and Aubrey Williams, and their furry friend Oliver.

“He still gets ancy to go outside, but we can’t take him out for most of the day because it’s too hot,” Williams said. “So, we try to at least find shady spots to stay outside with him.”

Meanwhile, Lyndi Biggi said she’s been having a ball playing with her foster pups and beating the heat at indoor dog parks this summer.

“With dogs, they really need to go outside to relieve themselves, and they need energy absorbing exercise,” Biggi said. “So that’s kind of tough when it’s 115 degrees out.”

While temperatures continue to remain steady in the triple digits, local organizations like Loving All Animals in Palm Desert said the heat could be a concern for man’s best friend.

“Dogs actually sense things through their feet,” Loving All Animals Office Manager Lynne Lockwood said. “So, when you take them out on the hot asphalt, on those hot rocks, unfortunately your green AstroTurf is another hot surface. Dogs are unhappy. But they don’t tell you that. They’ll just keep walking as long as you have them out there, until they actually get blisters on their feet.”

While at parks in Palm Desert Thursday, we measured how hot surfaces like pavements and blacktops were. They measured on average about 30 to 50 degrees hotter.

Which is why residents say to stay cool, and keep the paws off the pavement.

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” Biggi said. “If you wouldn’t like your dog walking you in the hot weather, you shouldn’t walk your dog in the hot weather.”

Lockwood said ways to tell if you’re dog is overheated is if they’re panting excessively. If it starts to sound like a cough, take them inside and lay them on their belly. Do not just hose them down with water.

Some other tips to keep your dogs cool include walking on natural grass, feeding them ice cubes, and even maybe investing in some booties to help with their feet.

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ORIGINAL STORY: 2:07 p.m.

Walking your dogs obviously keeps them active and healthy, but while doing so in this desert heat, you need to be aware that more than just calories may be getting burned.

Your four-legged friend most likely loves going for walks, but most likely doesn’t wear shoes as well.

Surface temperatures were reading up to 160 degrees on some of the blacktops we tested Thursday afternoon at Civic Center Park in Palm Desert. Walking your dogs on hot pavement can be very harmful for them.

KESQ and CBS Local 2’s Zak Dahlheimer spoke to an official with Loving All Animals to learn some of the best tips for dog owners to make sure their good intentions aren’t actually hurting their pets.

Experts said if you feel your dog is overheated, one tip to consider is listen for excessive panting. If it sounds like a cough — get your dog home and on its belly to cool it off; do not just hose it down with water.

We’ll also give you a sneak peek at a brand new indoor dog park that will definitely help keep your dog out of the heat while staying active.

Watch the full report on CBS Local 2 at 5:30 p.m. and on KESQ News Channel 3 at 6 p.m.