Summer is a great time to bring your pet along on vacations and daily outings. It is important however to keep their well-being in mind and make sure they are safe during the warmer months.

The following are tips for pet owners from the ASPCA on summertime safety for pets:

• Pets can get dehydrated quickly, so give them plenty of fresh, clean water when it’s hot outdoors. Make sure your pets have a shady place to get out of the sun, be careful to not over-exercise them, and keep them indoors when it’s extremely hot.
• Symptoms of overheating in your pet include excessive panting or difficulty breathing, increased heart and respiratory rate, drooling, mild weakness, stupor or even collapse. They can also include seizures, bloody diarrhea and vomit along with an elevated body temperature of over 104 degrees. Animals with flat faces, like Pugs and Persian cats, are more susceptible to heat stroke since they cannot pant as effectively. These pets, along with the elderly, the overweight, and those with heart or lung diseases, should be kept cool in air-conditioned rooms as much as possible.
• Never leave your pet alone in a parked vehicle. On a hot day a parked car can heat up like an oven. Do not leave your pet in the car!
• Do not leave pets unsupervised around a pool-not all dogs are good swimmers. Introduce your pets to water gradually and make sure they wear flotation devices when on boats. Rinse your dog off after swimming to remove chlorine or salt from his fur, and try to keep your dog from drinking pool water, which contains chlorine and other chemicals that could cause stomach upset.
• Feel free to trim longer hair on your dog, but never shave your dog: The layers of dogs’ coats protect them from overheating and sunburn. Brushing cats more often than usual can prevent problems caused by excessive heat. And be sure that any sunscreen or insect repellent product you use on your pet is labeled specifically for use on animals.
• When the temperature is very high, don’t let your dog linger on hot asphalt. Being so close the ground, your pooch’s body can heat up quickly, and sensitive paw pads can burn. Keep walks during these times to a minimum.

The Lawhead Team would like to share some Thanksgiving safety tips to make sure all kitchen activities and turkey dinner consumption is done safely!

Thanksgiving Kitchen Safety Tips:

• Stay in the kitchen when you are cooking on the stove-top so you can keep an eye on the food and stay in your home when cooking your turkey, checking on it frequently.
• Keep children away from the stove. The stove will be hot and kids should stay 3 feet away.
• Keep the floor clear when preparing Thanksgiving dinner so you don’t trip over kids, toys, pocketbooks or bags.
• Make sure your smoke alarms are working. Test them by pushing the test button.

Thawing The Turkey – Thawing Thanksgiving turkeys must be kept at a safe temperature. The “danger zone” is between 40 and 140°F — the temperature range where food-borne bacteria multiply rapidly. While frozen, a turkey is safe indefinitely, but as soon as it begins to thaw, bacteria that may have been present before freezing can begin to grow again, if it is in the “danger zone.”

Preparing The Turkey – Bacteria present on raw poultry can contaminate your hands, utensils, and work surfaces as you prepare the turkey. If these areas are not cleaned thoroughly before working with other foods, bacteria from the raw poultry can then be transferred to other foods. After working with raw poultry, always wash your hands, utensils, and work surfaces before they touch other foods.

Stuffing The Turkey – For optimal safety and uniform done-ness, cook your Thanksgiving stuffing outside the turkey in a casserole dish. However, if you place stuffing inside the turkey, do so just before cooking, and use a food thermometer. Make sure the center of the stuffing reaches a safe minimum internal temperature of 165°F. Bacteria can survive in stuffing that has not reached 165°F, possibly resulting in food-borne illness.

Cooking The Turkey – Set the oven temperature no lower than 325°F and be sure the turkey is completely thawed. Place turkey breast-side up on a flat wire rack in a shallow roasting pan 2 to 2-1/2 inches deep. Check the internal temperature at the center of the stuffing and meaty portion of the breast, thigh, and wing joint using a food thermometer. Cooking times will vary. The food thermometer must reach a safe minimum internal temperature of 165°F. Let your Thanksgiving turkey stand 20 minutes before removing all stuffing from the cavity and carving the meat.

Looking for some Fourth of July fun activities to do with the whole family?  Check out The Lawhead Team’s suggestions.

Fourth of July is a fun time to get together with family and friends, enjoy the summer sun and have some fun. If you are looking for something to do this 4th of July, consider these family activities.

Watch a parade – Most communities have some sort of parade, 5K walk/run or special event happening for Fourth of July. Check your city’s event calendar to find out what’s going on in your area. Many of these events require sign up in advance, so plan ahead. If there isn’t a parade in your community, you can put together a mini parade in your own neighborhood. Dress up the kids in red, white and blue attire and give them flags to carry as they march around block singing “The Star Spangled Banner.”

Head to the park – Spend the day at the park, beach or lake with your kids on 4th of July. Even though the fireworks don’t happen until after dusk, there’s plenty to do during the day. Pack a picnic, bring a Frisbee and just enjoy some time outdoors with your family.

Brush up on your history – Teach your kids more about Independence Day. Considered America’s birthday, Independence Day is the anniversary of the day the Declaration of Independence was adopted by the Continental Congress — July 4, 1776. Independence Day was first celebrated in Philadelphia on July 8, 1776. In 1941, Congress declared the Fourth of July a legal public holiday. On 4th of July talk about our country, freedom and liberty. Read Patrick Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech, as well as age-appropriate books, poems and quotes about the 4th of July.

Create 4th of July crafts – Get crafty on 4th of July. Sit down with your kids and make American flag tissue paper wreaths, a DIY 4th of July banner and other creative and patriotic 4th of July crafts. Making crafts together is great for family bonding.

Host a potluck barbecue – Host a backyard barbecue for family, friends and neighbors. You don’t need to do all the cooking yourself. Make it a potluck. You can supply the meat and your guests can pitch in with side dishes, desserts and drinks.

If you don’t feel like cooking or hosting a party yourself, head to your local amusement park. Many amusement parks, baseball stadiums and other major tourist attractions hold fireworks shows, festivals and other events for Fourth of July. Kids will love it — and you won’t have to do any work.

If you have people over, check out these fun games to play with everyone:

Horse Shoes. Many people already keep a set of horse shoes handy for family picnics. If you don’t have a set of horse shoes check with a few friends. Iron horse shoes are a little more expensive than newer PVC sand-weighted horse shoes. For a true Fourth of July party experience nothing replaces the clink of metal on metal in a game of horseshoes.

Darts. Your BBQ guests will strike up traditional July 4^th fun around an old fashioned game of darts. Dart boards are so inexpensive that you can set up a safety tipped dart board for the kids, and a regular dart board for the adults. Party goers can’t help but get caught up in the competition.

Volleyball. Volleyball is another classic July Fourth game, perfect for your mid-summer party. There is no need for a regulation field for players to have fun. A game or two of volleyball is also a great mixer. If it is an especially hot day, cut the water sprinkler on in spurts, or adjust your game.

Water Balloon Volley. You may think a game involving water balloons is just for the kids at your Fourth of July Part, but chances are the adults will not be able to resist getting involved. Pre-fill one hundred to two-hundred water balloons with water and set up the game like volleyball. Don’t be surprised if the game degenerates into an all out war. Who cares, as long as your guests are having fun!