Great Summertime Tech for Your Dog

Summer is probably your dog’s favorite time of year. He likely spends more time outdoors doing things like going on walks, retrieving balls or catching a Frisbee. It also just happens to be a hot season for interesting doggie tech.

Check out these cool finds.

ClimateRight Outdoor Dog House Air Conditioner

Blistering summer heat can be miserable—and downright unsafe—for your furry friend. This small and portable air conditioner is designed for outdoor dog houses or other small areas, such as a truck or RV. Not only does it cool Fido’s space, it purifies and dehumidifies the air in it as well. Obviously, it makes the most sense to use this with a dog house that has some kind of flap over the door, as it’s pictured here.

To use it you’ll have to drill a couple of large holes in your dog’s house and the company recommends hiring a professional electrician to get the installation right.

Price: $499 at ClimateRight.

PetSafe Smart Pet Door

Regular doggie doors can be a pain—if you want to make sure your home is safe from intruders you need to keep barricading it with a security panel. This electronic version senses a SmartKey tag you put on your dog’s collar and opens for your dog and automatically locks once he has passed through it.

One SmartKey tag comes with the system but you can purchase up to four more for $21 each. In addition to the automatic mode you can also set it to “locked” or “unlocked.”

Price: On Amazon you can get a small door (shown here) for $93.99 or $151.55 for a large door that can accommodate a dog up to 100 pounds. On PetSafe.com, you can purchase the doors for $119.99 (small)  and $199.99 (large).

Hagen Dogit Design Fresh and Clear Dog Drinking Fountain

You like fresh and clean water out of a drinking fountain so it follows that your dog would too. The idea here is to give your pooch water that tastes better because it’s constantly bubbling up into the air getting oxygenated. A filter that collects debris, food, hair and sediment also improves the water’s flavor. It holds 1.5 gallons and is elevated, which helps protect your dog’s joints.

Price: $22.68 at Amazon; a replacement carbon filter is $11.45.

Ruffwear Swamp Cooler or ChillyDog RPCM Cool Vest

If you like to walk or run with your dog but worry about overheating him in the summer heat, try a canine cooling vest. For dry climates, try the Ruffwear Swamp Cooler (shown)—it uses evaporative cooling to keep your dog comfortable. In humid climates, a phase change material vest, like the ChillyDog RPCM Cool Vest will do the trick—it uses cooling packs that remain 59 degrees Fahrenheit for 2.5 hours.

Price: The Ruffwear Swamp Cooler is available at Ruffwear for $54.95. The ChillyDog RPCM Cool Vest is $129 at the Cooling Vest Store.

DOGTV

Ever worry about your dog’s mental health? A new television network will soon be launching just for dogs. Debuting August 1 on DIRECTV, its creators say DOGTV has been “scientifically developed and tested for more than four years” and aims to entertain, relax and stimulate dogs with programming broken into three to six-minute clips that feature various movements, sounds, objects and experiences that canines like.

Think dogs can’t see TV? According to DOGTV, that used to be the case with older televisions but newer LCD screens have a refresh rate of 100Hz and up, meaning dogs can discern the picture without flickering. You can check out sample episodes on the DOGTV YouTube channel. And while there aren't any definitive studies, there is some anecdotal proof suggesting it works for some dogs.

Price: $9.99 for one month, $24.99 for three months or $69.99 for a 12-month subscription. Available at DIRECTV, on Roku boxes, on dogtv.rayv.com online, or through the DOGTV app on iTunes or Google Play.

Whistle

This tiny metal disk is a lot like FitBit, the activity monitor you can clip onto your clothing to track your physical activity, but for your dog. The waterproof device attaches to your dog’s collar and makes use of a built-in accelerometer to figure out what your pet is doing, whether he’s sleeping, out for a walk or tearing the house apart when you’re not home.

You can see data about how much he’s moving around with an iOS app, which also lets you know if his level of activity is normal or not. You can even share his data with friends or your vet.

Price: Available for pre-order at Whistle.com for $99.95 with delivery expected later this summer. An Android version is in the works.

There's even more tools available to you in our list of great apps for pet owners.