Story Created: Jun 30, 2010 at 2:50 PM MDT
Story Updated: Jul 2, 2010 at 11:39 AM MDT
"It's painful and also very dangerous," Tammy Scholari said.
She's the founder of a new non-profit called Helping Idaho Dogs. Its mission is to educate new dog owners how to best take care of and watch out for trouble.
"There is an abundance of cheatgrass and especially this year with the nice wet weather we've had we also have an abundance of ticks," she said.
Cheatgrass gets stuck on paws, ears, noses and even can get into a dog's throat. Veterinarian Marc Caldwell says the dangers are real and prevention will safe you time, money and maybe your pet's life.
"Those are often time surgical cases," he said of cheatgrass in a dog's throat. "They can be really expensive and certainly uncomfortable for those pets."
He's seen tons of cases of ticks and cheatgrass already this summer because the wet spring meant more moisture for plants and bugs.
"Left untreated it can actually give you an abscess and other more significant problems there and even in worse cases, surgery and anesthetic is sometimes necessary," he said.
Ticks can be prevented by a product like Frontline. But if your dog already has a tick special forceps work best. For cheatgrass, control of your dog is key and after a hike, owners should thoroughly pick out the seeds from between their dogs' paws.
Then there's heat-stroke. KBOI-TV 2News Chief Meteorologist Vin Crosby says, this summer could be a hot one .
"You know you're going to get a few days of 100 degree heat," Crosby said. "You're going to get days of 80 degree and 90 degree heat. If you're out there exerting a lot of energy in this type of heat, especially if you climb into the higher elevations you're going to lose a lot of liquid so you're gonna want to drink water and watch out for heat stroke."
He says bring water for you and your canine on those 100 degree days and making sure they'll be okay for an extended time in the heat.
"Just kinda be proactive with your animals and I assure you it'll save you time and money in the future," Caldwell said.
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