Recently in pets and heat Category

As last week's mini-heat wave reminded us all, summer is coming soon.

With that in mind, the Dog Dish Store offers a large dog pool for $89.99. A bit pricey, but it does look like it would keep a water-loving pooch pretty cool.

HT: Barkability

How much fun are these two having?

The temperature was hovering around 100 degrees in El Dorado, Ark., when a newspaper photographer found these furry guys enjoying a water sprinkler in a neighborhood park.

Photo: Larry Singer/The El Dorado News-Times 

HT: LA Unleashed

Work began this week to install the mister system at the new Harbor Animal Care Center at 957 N. Gaffey St. in San Pedro.

The system is expected to be complete and working by the end of this week.

In the photo at right taken by Daily Breeze photographer Brad Graverson, a dog named Max watches Ray Vanegas work on Tuesday.

A Daily Breeze story today focuses on the new efforts to recruit volunteers at the shelter.

We've been spared most of the withering heat here in the South Bay that has plagued much of the rest of Southern California this summer.. We've been lucky to have a marine layer keeping us cool, but other parts of town have reached 112 degrees a few weeks ago.

And with two months to go until autumn, you can be sure there will be plenty of hot days ahead.

And being that this is Southern California, there's always the threat of earthquakes.

Animals are at risk during these times and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles strongly recommends pet owners prepare for emergencies by following a few simple guidelines.

"Pets depend on us for their safety, food, water and more," said President Madeline Bernstein. "... It is imperative to have a disaster plan in place to ensure all members of the family are accounted for properly and it only takes a little advance preparation."

SpcaLA suggests the following:

• Make sure there's a supply of food on hand, along with emergency provisions such as medicines and prescriptions.
• Learn pet CPR. Rescue crews may be busy elsewhere or unable to reach you.
• Keep calm around pets. They can respond to stress, which can cause animals to display aggressive behavior.
• Check pet structures and hiding places for hazardous debris.
• Post "Pet Alert" signs on doors and windows. If you can't find one at your local fire department or animal shelter, make your own.
• Make sure animals wear ID tags at all times.
• Keep pet vaccinations up to date.
• Alert local shelters immediately if your pet is missing.

For more information, call the spcaLA at 888-spcaLA-1 or visit www.spcaLA.com 

You may recall our earlier post about San Pedro's new, nearly $14 million animal shelter and its  missing misters. The oversight was the focus also of a Daily Breeze story.

The new kennels and grounds at the new shelter (at 957 N. Gaffey St.) are beautiful. But no cooling system was included to provide a light, fog-like mist to lessen the often high temperatures in north San Pedro where the shelter is located. Other shelters have them. But city officials believed that because San Pedro was a "coastal" community, the equipment could be eliminated to save costs. .

The glaring omission was driven home on the shelter's grand opening day when temperatures soared over 100 degrees.

Thanks to some dedicated volunteers like Theresa Sardisco who refused to let animals settle for a mist-less shelter,  it looks like the misters will be installed within two weeks.

A vendor from Arizona reportedly was to show city planners his prospective plans today. It will cost about $50,000, but money from a city bond program will pay for it.

Maybe there should be a second grand opening to show off the misters.

Watch for a story in the Daily Breeze this week that will provide more updates.  

After sitting through last Saturday's sweltering grand opening for San Pedro's new animal shelter, city officials and community activists all agreed: Misters.

Discussions are underway to get a water "mister" system installed to help keep the animals cool on hot days. Linda Marinkovich of the Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council was among those who e-mailed L.A. Animal Services GM Ed Boks on Monday. He replied in an e-mail to her that the city is seeing what it can do to "make it happen." 

In today's Daily Breeze story  (accompanied by these photos by Breeze photographers Sean Hiller - above - and Brad Graverson - below), shelter volunteer Theresa Sardisco is pledging to get the job done, city money or no city money. 

There have been conflicting stories about why there were no misters put in at the shelter at 957 N. Gaffey St. The most recent explanation was that the misters were in the original shelter plans, but got scrapped as construction costs began to rise and the city had to meet its budget for the facility. Because San Pedro is considered to be in a "coastal" zone, downtown architects figured the misters wouldn't be missed 

We hope to have an update on this later in the week. But if you want to find out how you can help, give Theresa a call at 310-386-7932. Or stop by the business she owns,Dominic's Pizza House at 28360 S. Western Ave. in San Pedro (that's in the Smart n' Final shopping center, near Westmont Drive).