# Do black poodles tolerate the heat better ?



## glorybeecosta (Nov 11, 2014)

My light ones can handle it better than Sage the black one. And if you touch their back Sage is much hotter than the other 2.


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## zooeysmom (Jan 3, 2014)

Interesting question, and I have no idea. When I lived in 107* last summer, Maizie would go sunbathe on the deck, whereas Frosty and I didn't last more than a minute outside in that misery.


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## JudyD (Feb 3, 2013)

Neither of my standards likes hot weather. Jazz is black, Blue is white and dark grey. Jazz’s coat feels uniformly hot to the touch, but even with my eyes closed, I can feel a distinct difference in Blue’s—the grey patches are noticeably warmer than the white patches. I can’t imagine a black dog would be cooler.


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## Skylar (Jul 29, 2016)

I too think in general that a darker dog would be hotter. But there are personal differences.

Last summer we were waiting outside in the sun for doggie social to start and I noticed when I petted her, her fur was really hot - like ouch hot - we immediately moved into the shade to wait for the doors to open. I never noticed this when we had a very light, almost white apricot tpoo or with my white minipoo that I had as a child.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

Yeah, that’s what I figure too. Black dogs must really feel the heat more. Beckie seems to be otherwise, I don’t know why.


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## Mysticrealm (Jan 31, 2016)

It really depends on the dog. Our black doberman would sunbathe for hours on our boiling hot deck in the blazing heat.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I think that the heat would be felt more by short coated dogs whatever their color. The air next to the body held by hair could either keep body heat close or if allowed to circulate take body heat away. That said none of our dogs like being hot.


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## ericwd9 (Jun 13, 2014)

As you might expect scientifically, A black dog will heat up more quickly in the sun than a white one with the same coat. Here in OZ with temperatures over 110 often, Gracie with a long coat will sit in the sun occasionally. Never with a short coat. When the humidity is high she is hotter and drinks more water. I have never, even with extreme exercise, seen he breathless but when she exercises she gets hot and pants. High humidity and ambient temperature brings on this panting earlier. She is comfort oriented and likes air conditioning summer and winter. She likes a comfortable bed and will always have a pillow to lay her head on or ruck the bed until she creates one. She will not occupy our beds and will keep two feet on the floor. I recently placed her on her beloved mummy's sick-bed. She would not stay and returned to two on the floor.


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## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

I have had both colored dogs, though mostly black dogs I feel they get hotter more quickly as their dark fur absorbs more heat, which is one reason I have a white poo because of the heat here. I also over the years lea, that the shorter the fur is to the skin the hotter the dogs body can get . A wise groomer once told me don't shave the dog completely down or its skin has no protection from either the heat or the cold.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

Mufar42 said:


> I have had both colored dogs, though mostly black dogs I feel they get hotter more quickly as their dark fur absorbs more heat, which is one reason I have a white poo because of the heat here. I also over the years lea, that the shorter the fur is to the skin the hotter the dogs body can get . A wise groomer once told me don't shave the dog completely down or its skin has no protection from either the heat or the cold.


You might have part of the answer here : since Merlin’s hair is less dense (you can see his pink skin through it) maybe he gets less protection than Beckie, even though their hair is about the same length.


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## Caddy (Nov 23, 2014)

Abbey (black) can lay in the sun for much longer than Dolly (silver), Dolly gets very uncomfortable very quickly.


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

None of my black girls have tolerated heat /sun very well.

Rose would get up from the sun, sigh and find her own shade.

I always had to tell Iris, "Honey, you're too hot, go in the shade", and she would get up and find shade. If I did not tell her go find shade she would die in the sun....funny girl.

Poppy gets hot and looks for running water to play in or shade or an A/c vent to sleep on top of. She will even just cool her paws in a bowl of water if that is all the water available.

We are at about 5,000 ft elevation so we are that much closer to the sun than elsewhere in the country. Even a 70 degree day can feel much hotter and do more sun dammage than a much hotter day elsewhere. We are very mindful of that here in Colorado.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

Viking Queen said:


> None of my black girls have tolerated heat /sun very well.
> 
> Rose would get up from the sun, sigh and find her own shade.
> 
> ...


Wow, 5000 feet high, that’s something ! Do you have any side affects from altitude ? And Poppy ?


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## Viking Queen (Nov 12, 2014)

Dechi said:


> Wow, 5000 feet high, that’s something ! Do you have any side affects from altitude ? And Poppy ?


I am in Ft. Collins, CO which is about 1 hour north of Denver. Denver is known as the mile high city as it is 5,280 ft above sea level. Cooking and baking can be a challenge at high altitude as water boils at a much lower temperature. Things take a lot longer to cook here. I had many baking failures when I first moved here.

When I first moved here 30 yrs ago I was warned to be careful to stay hydrated, it is considered high desert here, and that I would likely tire easily due to thinner air. I really did not notice the change much but some people do. If you are going to engage in strenuous activity you need to ease into it if you are what the natives call "flat landers"!

If you drive 1 hour to the west of me into Rocky Mountain National Park you will be at nearly double our altitude at nearly 10,000 feet and much higher in some places. Our highest mountains are what are called fourteeners as they are at or above 14,000 ft above sea level. Some avid hikers and climbers aspire to hike all of the fourteeners. Even at 10,000 certain people can suffer from altitude sickness which can be very serious and even fatal so it is wise to be aware of symptoms and be treated immediately and retreat to lower altitudes if suceptible.

All that said, it is a beautiful place to visit and to live!

Here is Poppy last summer on her first trip up Trail Ridge Road. Google it. People come from all over the world to drive up Trail Ridge. It is still closed from winter snows. Not sure when it will open. National Park services try to open Trail Ridge by Memorial day but sometimes there are still "mountains" of snow up there. Poppy, of course, was a big hit up there at one of the overlook places. A Chinese lady came up and gestured to me asking to pet, and hug Poppy. We obliged. She had tears in her eyes. An English speaking son of hers said she had recently lost her elderly Spoo and missed him dearly.

Spoos are an international attraction, you know, and they don't seem to notice the altitude difference.


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## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

VK, that park is breath taking ! And lots of snow therein winter too !


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## Mia42 (Sep 5, 2016)

I have a silver and white parti and a blue that hate the heat and love the cold. I have a bad/coal black and a cream that love the heat and hate being cold

If you want some snow to play in, head up to Paradise in MRNP. The snow is so deep that they learn/practice crevasse rescue on the edge of the parking lot.

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kurtwedbergphotography.com%2FCascades%2FMt-Rainier-May-29-30-2011%2Fi-vCWvzt9%2F0%2FM%2FDSC0698-M.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fsierramountaineering.com%2Fmt-rainier-delivers-in-full-conditions-may-29-30-2011%2F&docid=lmxBUbOkZpADCM&tbnid=5K-9X7YmpMVKEM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwjN5eClraTbAhXkIjQIHSY4DVcQMwg9KAcwBw..i&w=600&h=399&client=firefox-b-1&bih=1377&biw=2122&q=paradise%20mt%20rainier%20snow&ved=0ahUKEwjN5eClraTbAhXkIjQIHSY4DVcQMwg9KAcwBw&iact=mrc&uact=8


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## ericwd9 (Jun 13, 2014)

I've never been color prejudiced but I do think "Black is beautiful"


Eric


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## angiefurst (May 24, 2018)

I had and both a black and a white at the same time. I kept them cut short as I live on a heavily treed acre. My vet warned me that the white could actually get a sunburn because of his clipped coat! In reality I don't think it's coat color problem - age and the overall health of the dog is probably the reason some dog tolerate heat better than others.


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## Johanna (Jun 21, 2017)

We are another 1100 feet higher at 6100 feet. The only issue is that UV is higher here so I try to discourage sunbathing - not always successful.


Regarding cooking issues - there are directions on cake mixes on what to add if over 3000 feet - OK - there is no place in New Mexico that is under 3000 feet! I have a paper pinned to the inside of a kitchen cabinet door that gives the appropriate conversions for a wide variety of cooking issues. The one that really gives me grief is when I can tomatoes. You have to process them much longer and I inevitably lose some of the liquid in the jar.


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