- Title: China dog owners ‘heatproof’ their pets from the scorching summer
- Date: 4th August 2023
- Summary: COMPUTER SCREEN SHOWING ILLUSTRATION OF HEATSTROKE IN PETS
- Embargoed: 18th August 2023 02:29
- Keywords: china clothing cooling cooling shirt dog dogs heat heatwave hot pet pet market pets shanghai tech temperature weather
- Location: SHANGHAI, CHINA
- City: SHANGHAI, CHINA
- Country: China
- Topics: Asia / Pacific,Science
- Reuters ID: LVA002060928072023RP1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Mary might be the coolest dog in town, as she struts through downtown Shanghai in her 500 yuan ($70.04) cooling vest.
With summer temperatures soaring in China, pet owners are looking for novel ways to protect their four-legged friends from the heat, buying up cooling mats, clothes, and miniature sun hats for cats and dogs.
For Mary's owner, Mi Jiayi, Shanghai's gruelling heat has become a major concern.
"When we go out, if the temperature is over 30 degrees, I will put on such cooling attire on my dog. You wet the vest and the water will evaporate and take away the heat, then it will not be so hot for my dog, and the vest has a better cooling effect on her stomach area," Mi said. "There are cheaper options but... I want to get her the best product that I can afford."
Mi is not alone. Searches on online marketplaces JD.com and Alibaba's Taobao show hundreds of similar sun and heat protection products costing as much as $100.
Such concern for the well-being of one's pet has become common among many Chinese households where couples have opted to adopt pets instead of having children, and consider their furry friends as family members accordingly.
Last year, a report by Euromonitor and Asia Pet Alliance Institute forecasted China's population of dogs and cats to reach 190 million in 2023, compared with about 170 million five years ago.
Jacqueline Cha, another Shanghai resident who has three dogs, said this is the first summer she felt the need to prepare sun protection shirts for her pooches. She had to adjust her daily walking schedule to avoid peak daily temperatures.
"I didn't know summers in Shanghai could be this hot."
China has registered several rounds of record-breaking high-temperature days in June and July, with the brunt of the heat hitting areas from the northwestern Xinjiang region to Beijing, the capital city in the north. In such hot weather, temperatures on surfaces like asphalt or cement can exceed 65 degrees Celsius (149 Fahrenheit) and cause burns.
Dr. Grace Lin Founder and Vet Director at Advanced Vet Care (AVC) animal hospital, says these concerns are well founded, as the mortality rate for dogs diagnosed with severe heatstroke is 50-56%.
However, she says the best treatment is not any product but simple prevention: staying indoors on super hot days because heatstroke can cause severe nerve or brain damage and epilepsy
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