--> Animal Diseases And Symptoms: Understanding How Cats Sweat

Kamis, 12 Maret 2015

Understanding How Cats Sweat

A lot of people assume that most animals do not sweat. But when there is a really hot day you cannot help but to wonder, do cats sweat? On a 90 degree hot and humid day, you will see your dog panting, tongue out, drinking a lot of water while your cat can be in the corner as if the weather could not bother him at all. The surprising answer is that yes, cats do sweat. But how can you ever see that sweat?

Different Type Of Sweat

Think of the way that a human sweats and then picture your cat; it is a completely different process. Cats sweat but not as humans do throughout the whole body. Your sweat serves to control your body temperature. When your body brings moisture to your skin that gives you the cooling feeling as the sweat evaporates. You have sweat glands all over your body and cooling happens at the surface of your skin. Cats, on the other hand will not show the sweat in the same way. You will not see them panting or sweating but you will see them grooming.

How Do They Sweat Then?

Cats sweat through a very small surface area which is in their paws. That is all they do. Vets will tell you that this type of sweat is not effective in regulating body temperature. You should not expect the simple act of sweating through the paws of your cat to be enough to cool them down. In fact, this type of sweat does almost nothing at all. Another reason why you do not see the sweat on your cat is because they will groom their paws as soon as they feel the sweat coming.

So How Do You Keep Them Cool?

On a hot summer day you still need to keep your cat cool to prevent dehydration and a trip to the Veterinary Hospital. Even though cats sweat you will still need to make sure that they are cool during the summer. You can give your cats a shady spot so they can rest. If you have hardwood floors or tile that may be the perfect location to keep your cat. You will notice that they will lie on the hardwood floors during the hottest days. They will also seek the shady spots around your home.

How Does A Cat Stay Cool?

A cat's body temperature depends on what its brain tells it. If there is a spike in the temperatures or if a cat has been playing or exercising the brain will tell the body to lose some of the body heat. Some of the methods which they will use include panting, dilating its blood vessels which allows the heat to leave the cat when the blood is closer to the surface. Though cats do not like water, on really hot days, they will seek it and get wet. When cats sweat, they will stretch the body and that also helps them keep cool. If a cat cannot cool down by itself, you should take it to your veterinary.

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