Pet owners warned to keep animals protected during cold snap

With the weather getting dangerously cold, we all must make sure our pets are protected.

If you’re cold, chances are your pets are cold, said Ashley Jeffrey Bouck, the CEO of the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society.

If you take your dogs out for a walk during the cold snap, make sure you keep it a shorter walk, she said.

It’s also not a bad idea to dress your animals.

Pet owners can also put Vaseline petroleum jelly at the bottom of their paws to keep them nice and soft.

Animals also need to stay hydrated like humans.

Bouck says it’s important to wipe your pets down once you bring them inside.

“Being a lot of ice outside, you know, we hope that we would all use pet friendly deicers, but sometimes people can’t. So you always want to wipe their paws, wipe their legs and the fur under their bellies, so they don’t start grooming themselves, and ingest that, because that can be very dangerous for our animals,” Bouck said.

If you see someone is leaving their dog or cat out for a long period of time, talk to them first, Bouck said, but she added don’t be afraid to call 911.