Make Your Dog a “Cool Cat”

Make Your Dog a “Cool Cat”

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Last winter Ruff Wear became a gear supplier for our Expedition Paw Prints series. Keegan was decked out with hiking boots, camp pads, life jackets, fleece coats etc. Now that summer has arrived, we needed some gear that would cool him off.

For summertime fun Ruff Wear sent us a Swamp Cooler™ cooling vest. Here is how it works:
Just soak it in cold water, wring it out, and fasten around your dog. Evaporative cooling (like an actual swamp cooler) exchanges the dog’s heat with the coolness of the stored water in the coat to keep him comfortable and ready to run that extra mile.  Auto-lock buckles on each side of the jacket provide easy on/off.

Uses natural evaporative cooling to keep dogs comfortable

Three-layer construction maximizes cooling effects:
- Top air-mesh layer generates evaporation, releasing heat
- Middle layer absorbs and stores the cool water
- Bottom layer cools the dog

wet the Swamp Cooler down with cold water

wet the Swamp Cooler down with cold water

Seeing as it was a slow day at the office and the temperature outside was a lovely 96 degrees with a heat index of 114, Keegan and I thought it would be the perfect day to see how the Swamp Cooler™ worked, so out the door we went.

I turned on the water and grabbed the hose and soaked the vest down. Once I had the Swamp Cooler™ saturated I proceeded to wring out the excess water and slipped it over Keegan’s head. Keegan is getting used to putting on clothing and gear so I had the vest over his head and buckled up in seconds.

Keegan is easy to get dressed!

Keegan is easy to get dressed!

The only thing left was to get Keegan active. That is a very simple task, all I have to do is have a ball in hand.

After a few minutes of fetch I had Keegan head inside and took the Swamp Cooler™ off of him. It seemed to do what it was supposed to do. Keegan was not overly hot to the touch. He actually felt like he had a normal body tempurature. Now mind you this is a very non scientific test but with Keegans black coat, he normally gets VERY warm to the touch when he is in the direct sun.

Play Ball!

Play Ball!

Keegan now has another piece of gear to add to his camping equipment. Ruff Wear has another winner in our book. The Swamp Cooler™ cooling vest will comein handy on those hot days, camping, hiking and backpacking. It will be great for him to wear under his life jacket while boating or paddling. If you have ever been in a boat, canoe or kayak on a hot summer day, you know how hot and uncomfortable it makes you, imagine being covered in fur.

A note of caution for everyone, the Swamp Cooler™ WILL NOT KEEP YOUR DOG FROM GETTING HEAT STROKE! By no means is this a substitute for stupidity. You, the pet owner, still needs to moniter your dogs health. I keep activity down in the extreme heat. When we are out, we keep the activity down to short intervals. Remember, a dogs intelligence starts at the top of the leash and works its way down. If you see signs that your dog maybe overheating, stop immediately and take the neccessary steps to insure your dogs safety and health.

We would like to thank our Travel Tails, and Expedition Paw Prints sponsors and suppliers:

Ruff Wear Performance Gear For Dogs: www.ruffwear.com
To read other Ruff Wear gear reviews click here.

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5 Responses to “Make Your Dog a “Cool Cat””

  1. Dee

    22. Jul, 2010

    I’m confused as to how an evaporative-type product works on a dog if it doesn’t cover the belly? As I understand it, dogs primarily release heat through their stomachs and the pads of their feet. In which case, how could the Swamp Cooler Cooling Vest work with the dog’s physiology?

    For dark colored dogs I could definitely see how a reflective coat could be beneficial, as you described. Material that reflects the sun’s rays could prevent them from reaching the dog coat, thus reducing the potential heat gain. But water would be useless or contradictory in this process, no?

    I’m always looking for cooling products to recommend to clients here in Southern California. Thanks for trying this one out.

  2. dsmith

    22. Jul, 2010

    Dee,
    you may have asked a question that is above my pay grade.:-) I am going to forward this to Ruff Wear and I will get you an answer as soon as possible. Unless someone is on vacation, we should have the answer posted by the end of the week. Very great question. Keep the comments coming!

    Thanks,
    Dale

  3. Dale E Smith

    22. Jul, 2010

    Dee,
    Leanne Champion from Ruff Wear sent me this email.

    She wrote: “In terms of the swamp cooler, it operates on the theory of evaporative cooling. As the heat rises from the dog, it is absorbed into the cool water in the mesh layer and spreads over the length of the jacket. As the water turns to vapor, it evaporates into the air, cooling the dog. It is much like a human perspiring or water evaporating into a cloud. The drier the air, the quicker this evaporative cooling takes place. Hopefully this helps answer the question. When I post to your site, I will also include a graphic that may help illustrate the point better than words alone.”

    They will be back in the offices this coming Monday, so look for their post then.

    Hope it helps,
    Dale

  4. Leanne

    27. Jul, 2010

    Hi Dee:

    I thought a bit more about your question, and have additional examples that might help.

    Have you ever noticed how cool it feels near a waterfall on a hot summer day? That’s evaporative cooling: the reduction in air temperature that occurs when water evaporates. Or try this…wet the back of your hand — then blow on it. Your skin surface feels cooler. That’s evaporative cooling as well.

    A dog’s belly and pads, which are “fur-less”, allow heat to evaporate more rapidly, helping to cool the dog quicker. What our Swamp Cooler attempts to do is to enhance that natural process by providing a surface that the heat can spread out over and evaporate off of more quickly than through the dog’s thick fur. The cool water, just as in the waterfall example, reduces the air temperature (and the dog’s temperature!) as it evaporates.

    Hope this helps. Please feel free to email our customer service directly if you need additional information at support@ruffwear.com.

    Thanks for your question!

  5. admin

    27. Jul, 2010

    Leanne,
    Thanks for helping us out on that one! And thank you Ruff Wear for making a GREAT product!

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