Today is officially the first day of Spring. The dogs have been waiting patiently through the freezing cold winter to get back out about. We still do our walk every day but it’s been a while since we’ve been able to go walk the nature trails at our local park, hang out at softball games or play at our friends’ houses. The warmer weather allows us to get outside and do more fun activities but that also means there are more things to prepare for. That’s where the dog bag comes in.
Last year I hosted a 31 party and purchased the organizing utility tote with this fun pattern. I love that it has pockets around the bottom for smaller items. Of course I had to get the boys’ names embroidered on it because it would be holding all of their stuff. A little overboard? Maybe, but it actually is very practical.
My dogs are young and high energy and tend to get dirty on their adventures. I have towels that are specifically for dog use and I always bring one with us in the bag. Last year on a dog park visit Ares found this hole in the dirt underneath a picnic table. He decided to claim it as his very own dirt hole and made himself comfortable. Of course this entailed a little digging and throwing some dirt around, rubbing up against the sides and then wiggling his belly around to find the perfect position. Needless to say he got a bath when we got home but I was really glad we had that towel to get most of the dirt off him so we didn’t have to take it home with us.
A lot of people don’t know that dogs can get sunburnt and even skin cancer just like people. Their fur does offer them more protection but dogs with short, fine hair like Chaos or white fur, especially on the head and face like Ares, are at risk for sunburn. Human sunscreen without zinc, which it toxic to dogs, or salicylates, is okay but try not to let your pup lick it! There is a brand of sunscreen made specifically for dogs from Epi-Pet that is water and sweat proof and nontoxic if licked by your dog and ingested. Remember to always make sure a shady area is available for your dogs when you are outside in the heat.
When you have a dog like Chaos with severe environmental allergies it’s important to know how to be proactive as well as reactive. Spring allergies are his worst enemy so I carry baby wipes to wipe him down and try to keep as many particles from the air off his skin. We also bring OFF for dogs. I purchased ours at a pet store because the formula is specifically made to be safe for dogs. The line for humans is separate and is NOT safe for pets so be sure to read the label. Spraying the dogs down with OFF deters the bugs from stinging and biting but precautionary measures only go so far.
Of course, other than putting him in a bubble, wiping Chaos down won’t prevent him from inhaling the tree and grass pollen. And OFF won’t keep every bug away. So we bring a bottle of Benadryl. Yes, Benadryl for humans is safe for dogs. The dosage depends on the weight of your dog. Our vet recommended 1mg per 25lbs of dog but be sure to check with your vet first. I bought the bottle of capsules at Walgreens so we would always have some on hand and it would be easy to throw in the bag. Last summer after a walk on our usual route Chaos started sprouting hives. I recognized them immediately because he had gotten some when we first found out about his allergies. On a dog they look like raised patches of fur but if you touch them you can feel the bumps. They were spreading all over his body quickly so I gave him Benadryl and then took him down to the emergency vet. Luckily it’s down the street from us but it still felt like it took forever to get there. Aside from the hives all over him, you wouldn’t have known Chaos was having an acute allergic reaction. He was still his happy, waggly self at the clinic. The vet saw him immediately and they took him to the back room. A technician asked me some questions and then finally the vet came in. He said we would never know but most likely Chaos was having a reaction to an insect bite or sting. It was great that I had dosed him with Benadryl because they may have had to shoot him up with epinephrine otherwise. Instead they just gave him a massive dose of steroid injection and kept him in the back for observation for half an hour. His hives started to disappear so after 2 hours I got to bring him home. It was intense and scary to experience and I will never forget that helpless feeling I had. So the Benadryl always comes with us. Even if it’s not the whole cure, it could definitely help the situation should he have another reaction like that.
The other items in the dog bag are pretty standard. A plastic water bowl, tennis balls and treats are staples for outdoor play time. Since dogs can’t sweat to cool down like we do, they need extra hydration to keep their body temperatures cool in the warmer weather. Tennis balls are fun to play fetch with if you’re Ares. Chaos has a love/hate relationship with tennis balls. One day he wants to catch them in his mouth or even play fetch, the next day all he wants to do is destroy and eat them. And of course we always bring treats for training opportunities or as lures if the boys pretend to forget their names when it’s time to go home.
Do you have a dog bag? What’s in it?
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