Image courtesy of NWS

The National Weather Service is predicting dangerous cold temperatures going into the weekend. 

National Weather Service Meteorologists are estimating the wind chill to range from the upper 20s to single digits below zero degrees Fahrenheit from today through Sunday. With those kinds of temperatures, Dr. Christy Fields, a local veterinarian and owner of Companion Veterinary Clinic of Greene County, recommends keeping this simple thing in mind.

“They’re giving frostbite warnings and windchill warnings for humans; it’s the same thing for pets. Don’t take your pets out and the temperatures are important but what’s almost more important than what the temperature is just the amount of time that they’re out there. So if it’s really cold, they can still go out to go potty but they should be able to come right back in “  

Dr. Fields states that frostbite can develop quickly on pets, similar to humans if they are out in this kind of weather for very long. She advises the common areas of frostbite on dogs include the ears, toes and tails. She adds that hypothermia can also happen to pets and if you notice the common symptoms of hypothermia, to warm up a pet slowly and not all at once because you can cause more damage to a pet.