Will my dog be ok in my back yard on the hot days this summer?? (Austin: construction, farm)

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

JayBrowne, we didn't always live in the country, and our first Great Pyrenees lived in the city with us (albeit with daily trips to the ranch we boarded our horses at).

As for how I care for my animals, I've been accused of being overly concerned with their welfare, even by vets, who have said I'm more conscientious than even they are, so that particular arrow flies far afield of its mark. Also, I'm on the board of a national equine rescue group, and daily work with that group to rescue horses who are on their way onto the truck headed for Canada, plus working with horses that are not at that stage yet but are at risk of being so if we don't help out the horses AND their people, often as not, so I'm not unfamiliar with what neglect actually looks like.

Funny thing about me, I don't anthropamorphize my animals and think that because I'm cold, they should put on a sweater. (Tried not to do that with my kids, too, for that matter.) Instead, I pay attention to the animals and what they, and their reactions, and their health, are telling me. Seems to work better for them that way, go figure.

Yes, Austin gets hot in the summer - I don't think anyone here is denying that. However, we should also be careful, when giving advice such as the OP is looking for, not to indulge ourselves in hyperbole, lest our advice not be taken seriously for that reason.

Which is why I said it's great that you are a good pet owner who arrives at her conclusions thru observation. Or did you miss that part of my posting as you desperately searched for something to become insulted about?.

What "arrow flies far afield of its mark"? The one where I said, that while I don't agree with you, at least you are checking on the welfare of your animals and making sure they are okay?

Not everyone is always attacking you THL, hard as it may be to believe that. I recall specifically saying that not ALL pet owners are as conscientious as you.

You can say it's hyperbole when I say 110 degree weather, and go "oh no, it's only 108!" I disagree. We can let the OP decide. I feel that I am giving good advice. Or the OP can just ignore both of us and look it up themselves.

Average High/Low Temperatures for KATT : Weather Underground

Newsvine - Austin Weather: 2009 shatters heat record; Cool Pacific, bad breaks cause hottest summer ever.

[capcat]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

capcat, I live outside of Jarrell, as well. Our dogs, in the heat of the day, seem to be cool enough on our porch, but, then, our house is set on the land to take advantage of the prevailing summer breeze (and there always is one - one of the reasons we bought the place in the first place), and the porch provides shade, and, as said, there's always fresh water.

Trust me, if they appeared to be in ANY distress, they'd be inside. But so far, in the almost 14 years we've been out here, none of the dogs have given any indication of being so.

I know you would. Their house gets so much wind they almost need a wind break, but not so much of a breeze in the summer to compensate for the heat.

[woodinvilleguy]

Originally Posted by JayBrown80

Which is why I said it's great that you are a good pet owner who arrives at her conclusions thru observation. Or did you miss that part of my posting as you desperately searched for something to become insulted about?.

What "arrow flies far afield of its mark"? The one where I said, that while I don't agree with you, at least you are checking on the welfare of your animals and making sure they are okay?

Not everyone is always attacking you THL, hard as it may be to believe that. I recall specifically saying that not ALL pet owners are as conscientious as you.

You can say it's hyperbole when I say 110 degree weather, and go "oh no, it's only 108!" I disagree. We can let the OP decide. I feel that I am giving good advice. Or the OP can just ignore both of us and look it up themselves.

Average High/Low Temperatures for KATT : Weather Underground

Newsvine - Austin Weather: 2009 shatters heat record; Cool Pacific, bad breaks cause hottest summer ever.

um if you check the averages button you'll see that last year was not "average" and the temps are normally much cooler.

Why does it seem that if someone disagrees the line "well you are fine but not the other guys". I'm sure you'll shout this down too.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by woodinvilleguy

um if you check the averages button you'll see that last year was not "average" and the temps are normally much cooler.
.

Um...um...um...if you check the figures, as you suggest, you will see that the last 3 years in a row have been above "average". How many years before the average is the new norm? That's why I offered the website. Peruse it yourself and reach your own conclusions. You have reached the conclusion that it won't be hot again. More power to you.

Originally Posted by woodinvilleguy

Why does it seem that if someone disagrees the line "well you are fine but not the other guys"..

I don't understand what you mean here? Your sentence is a fragment, so I don't want to guess at your meaning. I didnt say you were fine and not the other guys. I said you weren't fine too. I said I didn't agree with you. But since you insist that you are watching your dog to make sure there are no problems, I begrudgingly conceded that at least you are informed and present. I still dont' agree. You are not fine in my book. But you have made a decision based on the facts as you see them and at least you are thinking it thru. You didn't reach the same conclusion I would, but it's your life and your pet.

Originally Posted by woodinvilleguy

I'm sure you'll shout this down too.

I haven't raised my voice once dear. Unless you mean "anyone who disagrees with me is shouting me down!!! But when I disagree with someone it's just an opposing view point!!"

In that case, then yes, I will shout this down too. Don't get sarcastic if you don't want sarcasm in return.

[MasterOfPuppets]

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[TexasHorseLady]

Here, this might be a chart that's a little bit easier to read.

Note that the average highs in June, July, and August are 90.9, 95.0, and 95.6. These were taken at Camp Mabry (in the middle of town), over 30 years.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

Here, this might be a chart that's a little bit easier to read.

Note that the average highs in June, July, and August are 90.9, 95.0, and 95.6. These were taken at Camp Mabry (in the middle of town), over 30 years.

Keep in mind when looking at averages:

The average doesn't tell you what the high is. The high is what is important. If it's 110 degrees at noon and 80 degrees at midnight then the AVERAGE is 95. You shouldn't plan your day, or your dogs, around what an average is, b/c an average of 85 or 90 doesn't mean a thing when it's 110 at noon.

But that's really all I have to say on this subject. I am not going to go round and round with people who are trying to suggest that Texas isn't really that hot, you know, if you really think about it.

[TexasHorseLady]

JayBrowne80, that's not how it's figured. The high for the month is the highest temperature that was reached that month - so if it never got above 95 on any day in June, the high for that month would be 95. If it were 110, the average for that particular June would be 110. Then you average that with all the other Junes in that 30 year period to get the average high.

[JayBrown80]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

JayBrowne80, that's not how it's figured. The high for the month is the highest temperature that was reached that month - so if it never got above 95 on any day in June, the high for that month would be 95. If it were 110, the average for that particular June would be 110. Then you average that with all the other Junes in that 30 year period to get the average high.

For months yes. I agree. Your link also allowed people to break down by days. And I was speaking about daily averages.

There is a difference between average high, the high, the average and so on and so forth. What you mention above when you say

If it were 110, the average for that particular June would be 110

Is not the finding the average, it's finding the high.

That's why numbers can be so confusing. And not particularly good for the originial discussion, which is "is it too hot for my dog to be outside?".

With that question, averages don't matter at all. The heat your dog experiences is not adding up and aggregated out slowly over a period of a month. The only thing that matters in this particular case is the HIGH, how hot it actually gets. Which is why I warned against people reading your link and thinking "oh, 95 is not toooo bad", when in reality, an average of 95 could still theoretically include one day at 250 degrees.

Averages are not really helpful in this particular case.

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by JayBrown80

For months yes. I agree. Your link also allowed people to break down by days. And I was speaking about daily averages.

There is a difference between average high, the high, the average and so on and so forth. What you mention above when you say

If it were 110, the average for that particular June would be 110

Is not the finding the average, it's finding the high.

That's why numbers can be so confusing. And not particularly good for the originial discussion, which is "is it too hot for my dog to be outside?".

With that question, averages don't matter at all. The heat your dog experiences is not adding up and aggregated out slowly over a period of a month. The only thing that matters in this particular case is the HIGH, how hot it actually gets. Which is why I warned against people reading your link and thinking "oh, 95 is not toooo bad", when in reality, an average of 95 could still theoretically include one day at 250 degrees.

Averages are not really helpful in this particular case.

In this particular case, which is clearly a very concerned dog owner asking:

Originally Posted by Switch10

I have a german shepard mix, she's almost 1 year old. I have been leaving her in my fenced in back yard during the day when I'm at work. She has a gallon bucket full of water, and we have 3 large trees that provide plenty of shade.

I moved here from a very high elevation where the temps rarely reached the low 80's and there was practically 0 humidity. So leaving my dog outside in the summer was not an issue.

implying that 110 degrees is common in Austin is not really helpful, either (and is really hyperbole, as previously mentioned). Providing factual information about what is statistically likely is more helpful, in my opinion.

I seriously doubt, reading their post quoted above, that the OP is going to leave their dog out, barking, for 9 hours a day on a day that is predicted to be in the 110 degree range (or, probably, even 100 or over).