"Summer Skin" for Pets: How to Spot the Small Issues Before They Become a Thing

A note from Connie, on the small details we tend to miss between April and July.

Every year around mid-May, something changes in Sunda's coat. It's not dramatic. It's not a thing yet. It's just a slightly drier patch behind her ear. A little more shedding on the linen sofa. A spot she keeps returning to with her back paw when she thinks I'm not looking.

This is what I've started calling summer skin — the quiet shift between cozy season and walk season, when the air gets dry on the days the sun is strongest, the pavement gets warm, and pollen layers itself across everything they brush past on a walk.

The good news: most summer skin issues are small. The better news: if you have a soft weekly rhythm, you almost never have to deal with the big ones.

Here is the routine we keep with Sunda — and the one I share with friends when they text me a photo of a dry patch in June.

What "summer skin" actually means

You don't need to memorize a list of conditions. Mostly, you're watching for three small changes:

• Texture. Coat feels a little drier or coarser than it did in April. Slight flaking when you part the fur.
• Behavior. A spot they keep licking, scratching, or returning to. A new "favorite" patch.
• Smell. Not the regular post-walk warmth. A slightly yeasty or "off" note around ears, paws, or belly folds.

If you notice one of these for more than a few days, that's your cue to look closer. Not panic. Just look.

The weekly rhythm (10 minutes, broken across the week)

This is the part I want you to keep. Forget the rest of the post if you have to.

1. Sunday: the once-over

Pick a quiet moment — coffee in hand, pet draped across you on the sofa. Run your hand slowly along their back, sides, belly, and the tops of their paws. You're not grooming. You're just feeling.

You're checking for:

• Hot spots (a warmer-than-the-rest patch of skin)
• Dry flakes around the ears, base of the tail, or elbows
• Any small bumps or scabs you don't remember

For most weeks, you'll find nothing. That's the point. The week you find something, you've found it early.

2. Wednesday: ears + paws

Mid-week, do a 60-second ear and paw check. Lift each ear, glance inside (clean = pale pink, no smell). Then flip each paw, look at the pad and between the toes for cracking, redness, or anything stuck.

If the pads look at all dry — or you've had a hot pavement day — work a small amount of Le Paw Cream into each pad. It's our most-reordered product for a reason: pads dry out fast in summer, and you only notice when they've already started cracking.

3. Friday: the brush + reset

Five minutes with a soft brush, on a towel, near a window. Loose hair comes out, the coat redistributes its natural oils, and you get one more pass to feel for anything new. This is also when I check the inside of the harness for any rubbing spots (the Elise Harness is lined for exactly this reason, but it's still worth a glance).

When to actually bathe them

The most common question I get in summer: how often should I be washing my dog?

The short answer: less than you think.

Most dogs do well with a full bath every 3 to 4 weeks in summer — more often if they've had a beach day, a pond afternoon, or a particularly muddy park. Cats almost never need a bath, but a damp washcloth pass on paws and belly after an open-window pollen day goes a long way.

When you do bathe, the formula matters more than the frequency. The wash we use ourselves is part of our Le Pawsh Set — a 7-in-1, plant-powered Le Pet Wash paired with Le Paw Cream — designed precisely because most summer skin issues I see are bath-induced: coats stripped of their natural oils by something too harsh, then itchy a week later. A gentle, hydrating wash means you can do an occasional "reset" bath without setting the coat back.

A few small habits that make the bath part easier:

• Brush first. Loose hair comes out dry, not in a soapy clump down the drain.
• Lukewarm, not hot. Hot water dries the skin faster than the shampoo does.
• One full rinse, then one more. Residue is the most common culprit for the itchy week after a bath.
• Dry the ears. A soft towel inside the ear flap, never inside the canal.

The small habits that quietly prevent the big issues

If you only adopt three things from this post, make them these:

1. Wipe paws at the door. Pollen and grit travel home on pads and bellies. A soft cloth at the entryway means it doesn't end up in their bed (or yours).
2. Wash the bed weekly in summer. Skin oils, dander, and outdoor allergens build up faster in warm months. A weekly wash on cold-water gentle is enough.
3. Hydrate the pads, not just the dog. Water bowl in every room is great. But pad cream once or twice a week is the thing most owners forget — and it's the easiest fix for the "August cracked paw" cycle.

When to call your vet

I am not a vet, and this post isn't medical advice. Call yours if you notice:

• A hot spot that's spreading instead of healing
• Hair loss in a defined patch
• Scratching that's interrupting sleep, more than once
• Anything weeping, bleeding, or smelling strongly off

Most of the time, the answer will be small. But the version of "summer skin care" I trust is one where you notice early and ask sooner, not one where you wait it out.

A short word, founder to founder

I designed Fur Elise around the small, repeatable rituals — the moments where caring for a pet feels less like a chore and more like one of the soft anchors of a week. Summer skin is exactly that kind of moment. Ten minutes spread across a Sunday, a Wednesday, and a Friday. A cream that lives by the door. A wash that doesn't strip what their coat was already doing well.

That's the version of pet care I want for you. Not more steps. Just the right ones, in a rhythm that fits the life you actually live.

If you want the products we use ourselves: Le Paw Cream for the pads, the Le Pawsh Set for the occasional reset bath (Le Pet Wash + Le Paw Cream together), and the Elise walk sets for the days the routine starts at the front door.

Take care of them this week.

— Connie