The Dog Days of Summer Are Full of Hot Air

You don’t need an indoor air quality testing expert (like those you’ll find at AirMD, an environmental testing company based in Boca Raton, Florida) to tell you that it is hot out! That is the truth – especially for those of us in South Florida – but if you were told that this time of year is called “the dog days of summer” because your dog seems to struggle with the heat, we regret to tell you that you have been sold a bill of goods.  

Chances are your dog doesn’t like the heat. That part is true. Remember how you felt trying to cross the street in your bare feet? Think about that before you put your four-legged friend on the leash. The pads of a dog’s feet are sensitive, so as much as they love going for a walk with you, walking on a surface that has been baking in the sun all day, may be painful for them. 

It’s not the heat, but the heavens that give this time of year the moniker the “dog days of summer.” In other words, the answer to the question of why we call this really hot stretch of summer the “dog days” is written in the stars.

Sirius, the Dog Star

You might be familiar with Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky. It is often referred to as the Dog Star, not because of its name, which means “glowing,” but because it is part of the constellation Canis Major – and that name translates as “greater dog.” 

As the Farmers’ Almanac explains, “In the summer, Sirius rises and sets with the Sun. On July 23rd, specifically, it is in conjunction with the Sun, and because the star is so bright, the ancient Romans believed it actually gave off heat and added to the Sun’s warmth, accounting for the long stretch of sultry weather…Thus, the term Dog Days of Summer came to mean the 20 days before and 20 days after this alignment of Sirius with the Sun—July 3 to Aug. 11.”

If you – and your four-legged friend – will be spending more time indoors to escape the heat, you might want to make sure the quality of your indoor air and water isn’t going to cause you any problems. Here at AirMD, we offer a range of environmental testing – from asbestos inspections to VOC testing. Contact us if you have questions!