WITH temperatures soaring leading vet charity PDSA has issued advice to owners on how to keep their pets cool and calm in the heatwave.

PDSA vet, Paul Manktelow outlines his top tips.

•Never leave pets in hot cars, conservatories or caravans.

•Provide lots of clean, fresh water.

•Exercise your pet at cooler times. Be extra vigilant of any flat-faced, overweight pets, or very fluffy dogs

•Ensure your pet has access to shade and keep hutches and cages out of direct sunlight. Move indoor cages away from windows

•Protect your pet with pet-safe sunscreen. These are available from all good pet stores and can be used on areas of thin fur. It is particularly important in white pets, and on areas such as the nose and ear tips.

•Regular trims. Keeping your pet’s fur neat and trimmed may stop them from getting too hot. This is particularly important for dogs with very hairy feet. Dogs lose heat through their foot pads so keep hair in between these pads nice and short.

•Take care when travelling. If you are going on a journey in the car, make sure there is plenty of fresh air

•Check rabbits for flystrike. This is a serious maggot infestation that can be fatal. Rabbits should be checked underneath (checking their bottoms) at least twice a day for fly eggs and clean their back end if you spot maggots take to the vet immediately