{"id":2703,"date":"2026-07-16T15:35:31","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T15:35:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=2703"},"modified":"2026-07-16T15:35:31","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T15:35:31","slug":"is-it-safe-for-dogs-to-be-outside-on-smoky-days-colorado-researcher-hunts-for-answers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coloradospringsmoverss.com\/?p=2703","title":{"rendered":"Is it safe for dogs to be outside on smoky days? Colorado researcher hunts for answers."},"content":{"rendered":"
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Summer is peak season for outdoor recreation, and in Colorado, that often means bringing dogs along for the adventure. But with numerous wildfires impacting the state\u2019s air quality, you might be wondering if it\u2019s safe to let your four-legged friends hang out in nature or even in your backyard.<\/p>\n

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Sheryl Magzamen, an epidemiologist and professor of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences at\u00a0 Colorado State University, is also curious about how, if at all, poor air quality affects dogs. That\u2019s why she is helping lead a study intended to find out how air pollutants like wildfire smoke and car exhaust contribute to canine diseases.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s this huge gap in understanding what this means for animal health,\u201d Magzamen said. \u201cA lot of our recommendations right now are based on human health recommendations, and part of our question is, does that make sense given that dogs usually spend more time outside than people do? And their lives aren\u2019t as long, so do we see that health effects have more meaning because their lifetimes are shorter?\u201d<\/p>\n

Leveraging the Denver-based Morris Animal Foundation\u2019s Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, Magzamen and her co-researchers Craig Webb, Danni Scott and Colleen Duncan will evaluate whether smoke and specifically the chemical PM2.5 lead to higher rates of cancer in the breed or ultimately shorten their lives by causing other diseases.<\/p>\n

The Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, started in 2012, seeks to identify nutritional, environmental, lifestyle and genetic risk factors for cancer and other diseases in dogs. It has enrolled more than 3,000 dogs located across the U.S., Magzamen said, which should give researchers a better understanding if the type of smoke also plays a role in canine illness.<\/p>\n

Colorado dogs, for example, are more likely to be exposed to smoke from forest fires, whereas dogs in the southeastern U.S. are more prone to exposure from grassland fires and other types of prescribed burns, Magzeman said.<\/p>\n

\u201cDepending on what burns and how hot it burns and what other things burn around it changes the chemical composition of that smoke,\u201d she said. \u201cWe are really trying to understand what this means not only for us, but for our canine companions as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Results from her study won\u2019t be published until at least next year. Until then, Magzamen said owners can use themselves as a barometer for their dog\u2019s safety in smoky conditions. Humans and canines have many of the same organs in their cardiovascular and respiratory systems, she said, so \u201cif you don\u2019t feel good, you can assume your dog might not feel good either.\u201d<\/p>\n

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On days when the air quality index is \u201cunhealthy\u201d for people to breathe (an AQI between 151 and 200), Magzamen advised limiting your dog\u2019s activity and exercise. High-intensity activity, like runs or big hikes, should also be reduced when the air quality is less than ideal, she said. Senior dogs could be considered among \u201csensitive groups,\u201d like children and individuals with lung diseases, which are at risk when the air quality index hits 100 or more, she added.<\/p>\n

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