How 2 pet owners keep their animals safe despite high indoor temperatures

Finding it a bit steamy this summer? You're not alone. Across Canada, people say they are really feeling the heat, especially in their homes. And we're tracking it. CBC teams have installed temperature and humidity sensors in dozens of homes in several cities, including Windsor, Ont., to see just what happens to people when things go from hot to sizzling to seriously dangerous. This is one of those stories.

It's a muggy afternoon in Windsor, Ont., with outdoor temperatures expected to creep up to 32 degrees during the day, and Seth Findlay, 20, has two small concerns on his hands: His shih tzus, Diesel and Muffin.

Findlay,and his two dogs, who live in Sarnia, have come to spend the summer with him in his grandmother's house while he's in Windsor for work. But with no air conditioning in the home, Findlay knows when he leaves for the day, the dogs will be alone. All the while, temperatures creep higher and higher within the concrete walls.

He is just one of many Windsor residents who have more than themselves to think of during long and hot summer days.

"My grandma told me the house could be really hot at times, so I had to make sure I had a fan when I moved in, but it didn't really help at all," he says. "It just blew hot air."

Findlay also suffers with asthma and says when the temperature gets hot, his coughing fits would keep him awake at night. 

"It was extremely hot the first week I moved in," he said. "I couldn't keep the dogs here. I had to move them to my other grandparents' house because they have AC."

Eventually, Findlay made the decision to get some form of cooling, at least for the bedroom, in order to make his summer stay bearable for the dogs while he was at work.

"I just had to go and get a wall unit just to keep it cool, to keep my dogs here."

Findlay has agreed to participate in CBC's Urban Heat Project, where we have monitored the indoor temperature and humidity of his residence over the past several weeks this summer. 

Findlay's grandmother's home has retained heat, notably in the evenings, despite lower outside temperatures. 

Melanie Coulter, the executive director of the Windsor/Essex County Humane Society, says during the summer, whether or not you have air conditioning, there are things to keep in mind as a pet owner. 

"Typically people want to be making sure [their pets] have access to those cooler spaces," she says. "If you want to sit in front of the fan or near a window unit, then your pet is likely wanting to do the same thing." 

Coulter said that pet owners will also want to ensure there's a steady access to fresh water, and even suggests using a moistened bandana to help keep a pet comfortable on hotter days.