Freezing temperatures could bring problems for you at home. Keeping your family safe and warm is always a priority but protecting your plants and pets is also necessary.
We may assume that with their furry coats, pets can do pretty well in the cold, but once the temperatures reach freezing, pets can suffer health problems just like people.
Every winter, Fresno Pet ER sees pets that have cold related conditions. Most were hurt or sick already and ended up spending the night outside in below freezing temperatures. "They'll a lot of times get brought in by the owner the next morning when they found them and their temperature won't even read on the thermometer, they're cold, they're below 80 degrees and thats way too cold, that's 20 or 30 below where they should be," said Dr. Chris Dobbins with Fresno Pet ER.
The most important tip is bring your pets indoors, even if they are healthy and are normally outside.
Low temperatures for long periods of time is a problem for both pets and plants.
Paul Gipson with Sierra View Nursery said, "The frost is supposed to be about 6 or 8 hours and that makes it a lot harder, so you have to make sure you keep things covered and wet."
Plants should either be put inside or covered and have plenty of water. "The farther away you get from the house the colder it gets. And so you might have to take a little bit more care with something that's 20 feet away vs. something thats right up against the wall.
That rule is true for pets too. Dr. Dobbins said, "...dog house or something like that and they can't come in, cover it up with a big blanket, tarps something like that. Put a big fluffy bed on the inside."
There are also pet heaters meant to be put under your pet's bed that can help deal with the cold, but if they are not specifically made for pets, using heaters can be dangerous and cause thermal burns.
