• Never ever leave your dog (or cat) in a car on a warm or hot day. Even with the windows open, the inside of a car can become like an oven
• Make sure youe pet has access to plently of cool fresh drinking water
• Go for walks early in the mornings or late evenings when it is cooler. If you do take them out during the heat of the day then don't over do it- keep them on a lead.
• Keep them calm when it's hot- over exercise on a hot day will lead to heat stroke.
• Conservatories act like the inside of a car- not a good place to leave your pet on a hot day.
• A cool shower from a hose pipe would be appreciated.
• Give them ice cubes or ice chips to chew and lick

• Panting excessively
• Anxious behaviour
• Very red gums, turning blue in extreme cases
• Salivating
• Very rapid heart rate
• In severe cases- collapse, convulsions, shock and death

• Seek medical advice from your vet straight away- this can be a fatal condition.
• Cool the animal by immersing in a bath of tepid water or hosing with a hose pipe
• Use a fan on the dog to increase the air flow
• If conscious then give them ice cubes to chew and lick
• Allow them to drink as much water as they want- in small quantities at a time
• Cover with towels soaked in ice cold water
• Keep them out of the sun in a cool place
• Get them to your vet for a check up as soon as possible

1. The chewing action required to eat grass is totally different in rabbits to that required to chew pellets and hard food. Evolution made rabbits to eat grass and their teeth are especially modified to do this. Their teeth grow continuously through their lives, not like ours, but more like an elephants tusks. Unlike an elephant's tusks, though, the upper and lower jaw teeth should meet each other and grind or wear each other down at exactly the same rate at which they grow. The result is that they appear to stay the same length always, but in fact they are being constantly replaced and sharpened.
   However, if the rabbit is offered the wrong sort of food, and not grass, the chewing action is wrong. The teeth are ground down in the wrong pattern and overgrow, and the result can be nasty sharp points or spikes developing, just like elephants' tusks. These points appear on the upper teeth outside, and dig into the flesh of the cheek, and on the lower teeth they appear on the inner side and dig into the tongue. It becomes painful for the rabbit to chew at all, and eventually they starve to death, unless a vet helps out.
2.  The wrong food also has resulted in insufficient calcium in their food, just like some old people experience osteoporosis for other reasons, this results in brittle bones, and teeth that show poor quality, and loosening in their sockets. This loosening allows a wobbliness of the teeth, which contributes further to the lack of wear, and so the over-growing process.
3. Previous forms of rabbit concentrate feed have consisted of lots of different types of seed, pellets etc. Just like one of us with a box of quality Street, some rabbits would pick out their favourites and leave their least preferred pieces. This has resulted in rabbits not getting the right balance of vitamins and minerals, even if all the right things were originally mixed into the food. These days, new foods like Supa Excel or Supreme Science Selective are available where all the goodness is mixed into one uniform Pellet, so the rabbit cannot pick and choose, and refuse part of its food.
4. Many  rabbits enjoys their concentrate food, and some rabbits will not eat grass, vegetables of herbs. It is almost as if they have become addicted to what is bad for them. There is a very direct comparison with us humans. We know chocolate isn't good for our weight, nor for our teeth, but we still prefer it to health foods! It is the same for rabbits, but they cannot be expected to understand what is good for them and what isn't. We have to do their thinking for them. The concentrate feed tastes great to them, but it really is dangerous to their long-term health.

Our advice is this:

All rabbits over 6 months old should be allowed only a restricted amount of concentrate food a day, or preferably none at all. The bulk of their food should be grass and hay (which is after all just dried grass). Fresh fruit and vegetables are also perfectly acceptable. Try to get back to a natural food for your rabbit and you will be doing it a huge favour. An adult dwarf rabbit should get no more than 1 level tablespoon a day, and larger rabbits one heaped to two tablespoons a day. Ask your vet for specific advice for your rabbit.

If your rabbit is not keen on fresh food, start by ensuring unlimited access for fresh hay. This may be Western Timothy Hay or Norfolk Pastures dust free hay, grass hay or alfalfa. Alfalfa is the most fattening, but some rabbits have a preference for one or the other. There is some concern that hay may be a source of mites and other parasites, following contamination on the farm or in transport by wild rodents or rabbits. If this is a concern, try freezing and defrosting all hay before feeding it to your pet.

In addition to hay, start adding 1 new vegetable at a time, a new one every 4-5 days. Only offer any new food in small quantities at first. Build up to feeding a minimum 3 vegetables a day, and 1 type of fruit. About one heaped cup for every 2kg (5lb) bodyweight. If your rabbit develops soft stools continue feeding the new food, but only in very small quantities for 48 hours. The motions should then be normal. If not, eliminate the new food from its diet. The same rules apply for their introduction to grass: start with 10 minutes, and build up over 5-7 days to a whole morning, and later all day out on grass.

Vegetables
Choose one a day of the following, which are rich in vitamin A:
» Beet greens
» Broccoli including the leaves
» Carrot and carrot tops
» Collard greens
» Parsley
» Pea Pods of the flat edible kind
» Watercress.

Other useful vegetables:
» Spring Greens
» Basil
» Brussel sprouts
» Cabbage
» Celery
» Coriander
» Clover
» Dandelion leaves and flowers
» Green peppers
» Mint
» Peppermint leaves
» Radicchio
» Radish tops
» Raspberry leaves

Spinach and kale can be given in small quantities but are toxic if given over a period of time.

Fruits
Give one of these daily, fresh or dried one tablespoon per 2kg (5lb) bodyweight.
» Apple
» Banana
» Blueberries
» Melon
» Papaya
» Peach
» Pear
» Pineapple
» Strawberries

But, if your pet is very overweight, after settling it on the grass only diet, you should use no fruit at all, until they are at target weight.

Dry Food
Rabbits up to 6 months old may have free access to dry food/pellets, as they are still growing. After that they should be severely restricted as above.