Do you know the signs of hypothermia in cats and dogs? What about the most important steps you can take to keep an outdoor cat warm? We have those and a lot more tips for you in this interview.
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00:00 Now with another blast of bitter cold air on the way for the United States, it's so important
00:05 to protect yourself, your family, your property, and of course your furry best friends. Joining us
00:10 with some tips to keep our pets, livestock, and other outdoor furry friends safe during the extreme
00:14 cold is Associate Professor of Community Practice at LSU. Welcome Dr. Nancy Welborn. We appreciate
00:20 you being here this morning. Good morning. Now let's get right into it here. What are some key
00:26 guidelines for pet owners who want to ensure their pet's safety when it is this cold outside,
00:31 especially in places that you don't necessarily associate with cold weather? Yeah, so this is a
00:38 very fitting subject because it's 17 degrees in Baton Rouge this morning and we're not used to
00:42 this type of weather here. So the most important thing is if you can bring the pets in, provide
00:48 them warmth in your home. Some people aren't able to do that and that's okay. So if you can't do
00:54 that, then you need to provide warm shelter outside. So a heated house, a heated area like
01:01 that. The doghouse or cat house should be elevated off the ground so you have good air circulation.
01:08 You also need to provide bedding for them, a blanket as long as the dog isn't going to chew
01:12 it up and swallow it because that's another problem. Straws, some kind of bedding like that.
01:17 You need to be really careful with heat lamps or things like that, especially if you're packing
01:23 the house with hay or straw because that can potentially catch on fire. So then the next
01:30 most important thing is they have to have a fresh source of water and water can freeze.
01:35 So you need to check that periodically. They do make heated water bowls which are really nice.
01:40 So thinking about those things is super important. I honestly didn't know that heated water bowls
01:46 were a thing. What a great idea. Okay, now what about pets or maybe some livestock, horses,
01:52 cows, etc. that aren't supposed to be in the house? They're supposed to be outdoors. How do
01:56 you support them during times of extreme cold? Excellent, again, excellent question. Probably
02:02 the two big things is providing them windbreaks so they have a place to get out of the wind and
02:07 the rain and the ice. It could be something as simple as a two-sided lean-to. It doesn't have
02:13 to be a barn. Even a stand of trees or something is better than nothing. And then the other thing
02:19 that's most important is fresh water. Water can freeze in stock tanks and so they do make heaters
02:28 for those as well. And then the last thing is providing them food. They need extra food to stay
02:33 warm. So again, those three important things. Now I actually want to go back to a little story from
02:40 yesterday. Tony Labak, one of our storm chasers, was on and talking about his mother who lives in
02:44 Mississippi. She takes care of a stray cat that lives outside the house. For people like that who
02:48 are maybe taking care of some animals that again are not necessarily supposed to be inside or
02:52 generally don't live inside or aren't house trained, any thoughts for them in keeping maybe let's say
02:57 homeless cats safe? Sure. So there's a lot of really cool things you can find online how to
03:04 make really inexpensive shelters for cats using old styrofoam ice chests, cardboard boxes, but the
03:13 key to that is layers. And so if you go online to YouTube or anything you can find that and how to
03:20 make a really easy shelter for the cat. Again, it's got to be out of the weather so make sure
03:25 the opening isn't where the wind and things are blowing in. And food and fresh unfrozen water.
03:32 Now last question for you here. For anyone who, heaven forbid, finds themselves in a tough
03:37 situation with an animal, any symptoms that they need to look for for potential effects of prolonged
03:42 exposure to low temperatures and the wind, the rain, the snow, etc. on pets and anything they
03:47 should do in terms of getting those pets to a vet? Sure. So signs of hypothermia and animals
03:54 and frostbite too are like in people, the animals get lethargic, get quiet, sluggish, whatever word
04:00 you want to use. And then signs of frostbite usually are on the toes, feet, and ear tips.
04:07 And so the skin becomes darker in color and colder. So if you have any concern about a pet that's
04:14 acting atypical whatsoever, bring them in, warm them up. Do not put them in warm or hot water.
04:20 That's not the best way to do it. Wrap them in a warm blanket. Call your veterinarian and get them
04:25 there as soon as possible for assessment. Such great tips this morning. Dr. Nancy Welborn,
04:29 associate professor of community practice at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine.
04:36 I need another cup of coffee, doctor. Thank you so much for joining us this morning. We appreciate
04:41 you. You're very welcome. Y'all stay warm. Same to you.