Don't forget the sunscreen - for your pet

Summer is right around the corner, so again, a little reminder of some tips for keeping your dogs and cats safe :

Sunscreen, check. Plenty of fresh water, check. Swimming lessons, check. Flea control, check.

Flea control? This list isn’t for you or your kids — it’s for your pets. Summertime brings picnics, fun in the sun, and swimming in pools or open water — good times that are tarnished only by stinging or biting insects, heatstroke, sunburn, skin problems and water hazards, to name the most common summer-related dangers that face dogs and cats.

Here’s what you need to know to recognize and prevent problems:

Itchy and scratchy

When the weather turns warm, fleas hatch and animals get itchy. “We see this manifest itself as sores and scabs on dogs and cats,” says Susan McClung Davis, a veterinarian at Aliso Beach Animal Clinic in Laguna Beach, Calif. “Many animals are allergic to fleas, and all it takes is one flea for them to bite and scratch themselves raw.”

Bees, wasps, fire ants and mosquitoes are other painful pests of summer. Dogs or cats that take a curious or aggressive interest in bees or wasps are likely to receive payback in the form of a sting on the nose or head.

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