Cold conditions better they say

I switched to yellow labs 20 years ago from blacks for this reason. I had a scary situation this afternoon…got to my land a bit before 4 pm, made one pass through my main food plot, about 600-700 yards…first hunt in over a week…put up over 30, knocked down 3….found them, but my
4 year old was on the verge of heat exhaustion…I watered my 2 dogs after my first bird, lucky I had a liter of water left…I poured some on her head as well as watered her…stood there for 20+ minutes..,very scary…53 degrees, cloudy with a good breeze…lots of intense action in heavy cover…cooler conditions than opening weekend hunt, just more action in short timeframe…35 minutes?
 
Hunted sharps and huns 11 days in September in warmer weather, but there was water here and there, and light cover overall…no issues
 
benelli-banger said:
I don’t think it’s EIC, but it could be…haven’t seen that in her before
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When EIC happens the dogs joints usually lock up, the hip being the first. They do the C (collapse) and cant physically move. Only way to bring them out is pour tons of water on them and hope the organs didnt get damaged. I doubt this was your issue.

Sounds like your dog just isnt in the greatest shape, which is fine... Its a lab! Could be a heart/lung condition, any blueness or paleness on the tongue? My one dog has lung problems and will pant and go drunk/dizzy when its warm, the blue/pale white tongue is the warning sign to stop her. Below about 50 and the 11yo will run like a champ.

Have you brushed her out a ton this fall to thin the coat until it gets cold? That might help some.

I hunted my black male at 61F and sunny on Sunday afternoon in tall grass, he got warm but didn't seem to get exhausted. Stopped for 2 water breaks, but he was far from excessively hot like during dove season. Every dog is different!
 
KEOutdoors said:
When EIC happens the dogs joints usually lock up, the hip being the first. They do the C (collapse) and cant physically move. Only way to bring them out is pour tons of water on them and hope the organs didnt get damaged. I doubt this was your issue.

Sounds like your dog just isnt in the greatest shape, which is fine... Its a lab! Could be a heart/lung condition, any blueness or paleness on the tongue? My one dog has lung problems and will pant and go drunk/dizzy when its warm, the blue/pale white tongue is the warning sign to stop her. Below about 50 and the 11yo will run like a champ.

Have you brushed her out a ton this fall to thin the coat until it gets cold? That might help some.

I hunted my black male at 61F and sunny on Sunday afternoon in tall grass, he got warm but didn't seem to get exhausted. Stopped for 2 water breaks, but he was far from excessively hot like during dove season. Every dog is different!
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My dog is in great shape, we walk 5 miles daily spring-late summer. Hunted sharps 11 days in Sept.,,6-8 ruffed grouse walks after that, and on 2nd trip to SD now, she simply overheats…been that way since I
Got her as a pup. Yesterday we had a stiff breeze that helped…killed our limit in about 2 hours, pretty stout cover, she did ok
With consistent watering. Less breezy today, probably more overheating today, much rest and watering, but no major issue. Around 40 and cloudy when we started. Got 8 of our 9
by about 1 pm, might be mid 40’s at that time. In Sept, sharptail and hun hunting, there were many potholes to cool off in and despite highs in the 60’s and 70’s, and, lighter cover, she did fine. Just the way it is. Snow and 20’s is better for this dog. I wish she was out of shape, problem could be fixed.
 
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I had finished hunting tonight and a truck drove by. Old farm grandpa stopped to chat. I said I got one bird at the spot. He told me, "it's not cold enough." I wanted to ask if he read this thread? True story😂. And he was sucking down some cold suds behind the wheel! I don't judge😅.
 
KEOutdoors said:
When EIC happens the dogs joints usually lock up, the hip being the first. They do the C (collapse) and cant physically move. Only way to bring them out is pour tons of water on them and hope the organs didnt get damaged. I doubt this was your issue.

Sounds like your dog just isnt in the greatest shape, which is fine... Its a lab! Could be a heart/lung condition, any blueness or paleness on the tongue? My one dog has lung problems and will pant and go drunk/dizzy when its warm, the blue/pale white tongue is the warning sign to stop her. Below about 50 and the 11yo will run like a champ.

Have you brushed her out a ton this fall to thin the coat until it gets cold? That might help some.

I hunted my black male at 61F and sunny on Sunday afternoon in tall grass, he got warm but didn't seem to get exhausted. Stopped for 2 water breaks, but he was far from excessively hot like during dove season. Every dog is different!
Click to expand...
This isn't accurate information.
EIC doesn't cause joints to lock up, in simple terms its muscle weakness causing a lack of coordination often resulting in a collapse and often elevated body temp (107 degrees isn't uncommon). For unknown reasons it tends to effect the back end of the dog, and rarely the front. Often the dog will appear drunk or wobbly. Get them in air conditioning, in front of a fan, or possibly apply rubbing alcohol to the pads if none of the above is available. Do not pour water over them as it will increase the body temp by trapping heat in the wet fur, this is true for any overheating.

Also organ damage is very unlikely, EIC dogs tend to exhibit symptoms less as they get older, and the triggers are more easily recognized with experience. I have a dog that has had 3 EIC episodes sleeping at my feet. He is 13 and has hunted his entire life. It is scary as hell when it happens, but I wasn't going to deprive my dog from hunting, so I learned how to work around as best as I could.
 
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