We love our dogs, cats, birds, iguanas and other pets, so ensure to pet-proof your home and protect them from harmful chlorine exposure.
Most dogs enjoy to take a cooling swim in the pool at their leisure and even drink from it rather than their water bowls. It can be quite concerning to think that your best friend is being exposed to and ingesting harmful chemicals every time they do this, but is it really as harmful for them as we think?
If we think about the fact that many of us swallow water while swimming in the pool and don’t suffer any serious side effects (apart from the understandable nausea at the thought of swallowing icky pool water), we should consider the reaction to be similar for dogs and many other pets.
Chemicals in the pool
Pool water does contain many chemicals but they are so diluted that occasional drinking shouldn’t be a serious problem. For your animals’ skin and fur there shouldn’t be any immediate reactions, but it’s good practice to wash them down with fresh water after they’ve taken a dip. Just like washing the chlorine out of your hair, you should do the same for your pet. Frequent exposure to the pool water and its chemicals can cause dry and itchy skin for your pets, which is why it is important to rinse them off often – even if you can’t do this every time they go for a swim.
Concentrated chemicals
A more serious issue regarding chemicals and your furry, feathered or scaly friend, is that – similarly to us as humans – these chemicals should never be ingested or handled in large amounts or in concentrated form. This means that when shocking the pool water, you should keep your animals away from the pool. Keep them in an area where they absolutely cannot get to it for a drink or a dip. Similarly, when storing chlorine granules or harmful liquid chemicals, you should ensure that they are always kept out of reach of animals (and children).
There’s no need to put too much effort into keeping your pets away from the pool water. All that you should remember is to ensure that they get a good wash every now and then to keep their skin from getting dry and itchy.
If your pet is experiencing severe symptoms from exposure to chlorine, you can get an expert from The Pool Team to test your water for the correct balance of chemicals or you should take your pet to a vet.
