Arya News - Japanese pet product manufacturers are expanding their product lines with unique new items to protect animals from heat strokes. In addition to cooling outfits and drinks, pet products have also become diversified to include badges that detect and warn of high temperatures.
TOKYO – As summer temperatures have reached extreme highs in recent years, a variety of products to help pets stay cool are being developed. Dogs and cats are closer to the ground, making them more likely to suffer heatstroke.
In addition to cooling outfits and drinks, products have become diversified to include badges that detect and warn of high temperatures.
The Pet World Amigo Tsukashin store in Amagasaki, Hyogo Prefecture, had about 300 heat-relief items stacked on its shelves on a recent day. They included cooling mats and outfits, as well as beverages containing salt or sugar that are quickly absorbed into the body.
The store said the number of such products has been increasing year by year, with this year’s sales about 20% higher than last year’s. “With intense heat occurring every year, people have become more familiar with these products, increasing the number of our customers seeking the items,” store manager said.
According to the Japan Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, pets have higher body temperatures than humans and are closer to the ground, making them more susceptible to heat. Their early symptoms of heatstroke include rapid breathing and excessive drooling. As the condition worsens, they can develop diarrhea, vomiting or muscle spasms. Severe cases can be fatal.
Anicom Insurance, Inc., a pet insurance company, says it it covered a total of 1,630 cases of heatstroke in dogs and cats nationwide in 2025, including 519 in July and 385 in August. Dogs are said to be at higher risk than cats, which are often kept indoors.
The Yomiuri Shimbun
A dog is seen wearing a badge that detects and warns of high temperatures near the ground in Higashiosaka, Osaka Prefecture, in July.
Speaking up for pets
Pet product manufacturers and others are expanding their product lines and launching unique new items.
In 2020, Tokyo-based company Choco released a cooling collar and mat for dogs. The firm now offers 13 types of cooling products for dogs, including cooling outfits. This year, their shipment volume has been eight times higher than during the same period four years ago.
In May, printing company Studio Noah Co. in Higashiosaka, Osaka Prefecture, released a badge on which the phrase of “Atsuiyo” (It’s hot!) appears when the temperature reaches 32 C or higher. It is designed to be attached to a leash or harness of a dog so the owner can monitor the temperature near the ground. “With this product, we can speak up for dogs that cannot ask for help,” Studio Noah President Shoji Ueda said.
Efforts are also underway to raise awareness among pet owners.
In June last year, the Environment Ministry made posters to educate the public to prevent pets from suffering heatstroke by describing prohibited behaviors, such as tethering pets outdoors in direct sunlight and leaving pets unattended in cars. The posters were distributed to prefectures and ordinance-designated cities.
Since 2014, Anicom Insurance Inc. has been publishing a weekly hot weather forecast for pets on its website, showing four levels of heatstroke risk in 10 cities across the nation.