Bulldogs and hot weather are two things that don't mix well. You will need to take extra precautions during the warm months to protect your Bully and save yourself a lot of grief. Because of the Bulldog's throat anatomy, excessive panting is quite dangerous. When the throat becomes irritated from too much panting, it can swell shut, causing suffocation. The preventative measures you take beforehand will be well worth your time.
Heatstroke can result from over exposure to sun, strenuous or too much exercise in hot weather, or from being in a car too long on a hot day. Also, Being confined in a building, room or a crate without proper ventilation or cooling, is asking for trouble. Some symptoms of heatstroke may include difficulty breathing, panting, foaming at the mouth, thick stringy saliva, noisy breathing, tongue hanging out, collapse or unconsciousness.
To help your Bully : First, start by doing your best to avoid heatstroke. During hot weather keep your Bully in the coolest location you have to offer. If you have air conditioning in the home, keep him inside. If you don't have air conditioning, you can wet him down and keep an electric fan going. Put ice cubes in his water, put a kids swimming pool in the back yard and fill it with a few inches of water and teach him to use it. Get a portable evaporative cooler.
We all know how dangerous being confined in a car, on a hot day, is to humans as well as animals. Well all that doubles for Bulldogs. For example, an 85 degree day, inside the car, even with the windows partially rolled down, will heat up to 120 degrees. On warmer days it will go even higher. Your best bet might be to keep your Bully home in a cool place on those super hot days. If you must take him out please be prepared. If your car has A/C then use it. Many Bulldoggers carry a squeeze bottle of lemon juice or 7up to clear phlegm out the Bully's throat if the dog gets respiratory distress. You can stand the heat better than your bulldog, so if you are hot your bulldog is hotter still. Make any sacrifice necessary to keep your bulldog cool.
In case your Bulldog is overcome with heat exhaustion, immediate first aid on your part could save his life. You must bring his body temperature down, and the best way to do this is to immerse him in cold water. Get him into your bathtub or shower and run cold water over him, or take him and cool him down with the garden hose. A cold compress on his head will help reduce swelling of the brain, which could cause brain damage. Normal body temperature for a dog is 101.4 degrees. So take his temperature as needed. If he is gagging on thick saliva, use the above mentioned lemon juice or 7up to cut it, then use a paper towel to clear out the throat. If the tongue is swollen, causing a blockage, pull the tongue to allowing air to flow again. These are just emergency first aid tips, but the important thing also, is to get your Bully to a VET as quickly as possible. Remember, YOUR BULLDOG IS YOUR FRIEND......
