American Kennel Club AKC Large Dog & Paw Pet Cooling Mat, Red

It gets over 100 degrees where i live in the summer. One of my dogs has really thick fur and gets overheated easily. I got this for all of them a couple of years ago to see how it would do. My thick-furred dog was hesitant and wouldn't lay on it at first, but he's really gotten better at laying on it. However, if there are other options, like laying under the house, he'll do that, but this is a good alternative. My not-so-thick-furred-but-still-gets-hot dogs are pretty indifferent to it. I have a chihuahua who really doesn't get hot no matter the temperature so he doesn't mess with the pad, but my third dog enjoys it. Sadly, this third dog enjoys destroying anything she can (she ate through a fence on multiple occasions, a wire fence).I had bought two pads originally (one for furry dog and one for destructive dog) and they lasted quite a while. I only left them with it during the day and would put it up at night, but it took a whole summer for her to realize she could destroy it, and she did. The ate the corner off of it. She was fine, but I had to buy a new one which we still have a year later (she doesn't get much time with the mats anymore). The pad that wasn't destroyed has held up fine. I either put the pads in the fridge or in front of the A/C vent the night before a hot day so they're extra cool for them. On a 95 degree day, they stay cool for about three hours if laid on the ground, in the shade, with a dog on top. They last a little longer when they've been in the fridge. Although the top gets a bit warm, the bottom still stays a little cool and it doesn't take long to cool them down again.

Great little resting pad for hot places. It feels cool to the touch even when at room temperature. Sometimes I throw this thing in the fridge/freezer to chill it even more. My Pomeranian seems to enjoy laying on it.

I'm a bit torn with this product. While the cooling gel does work really, really well and my dog loves it, she literally chewed a hole through it in less than 3 seconds. As in "I set the mat down, let her lay on it, turned and put the box it came in into the recycle bin next to me, and turned back to see a huge hole with gel oozing everywhere."My fix? Duct tape. I'm dead serious. Now it's literally the best cooling mat ever! If you use this as the core mat and put duct tape on the outside it becomes pretty indestructible while still doing it's job of cooling your dog. Duct tape is pretty cheap too and if your dog is a chewer (is mine ever) then it also makes it super easy to repair. I even made it super cute by covering one side in teal and adding silver on the other side. If you are in love with the pattern already on the mat then I would suggest the clear Gorilla Glue Tape. Also save yourself a headache and cover the mat in duct tape BEFORE letting your dog near it for the first time, it's way easier than trying to patch over the gel. :)

Possible money or space saving tip: The cooling pad doesn't necessarily have to be as big as your animal. For the most part, so long as their belly has contact, it should be good enough.Also, has anyone tried these as a weighted "blanket" for themselves? Now that I have the XXL, it got me thinking about it. (One should do it, but could add in a second one.. and make a cheaper cover. Hmm..) Anyway..Purchased for my 2 large labs and 4 cats, I have one (L) 20"x26", and one (XXL) 40"x28". I initially purchased the Large two years ago, which has held up perfectly over use in the car, on the couch, on the floor, in a crate, on a crate (for cats that like to sit on dog crate), on a dog bed, etc, and recently decided to buy another in a larger size.The XXL is pretty big at 40"x28". I actually just purchased yet another one of the same size just today, so I will have 2 XXL and 1 Large. I can't say for sure how well it cools, or how long it stays cool, but ALL six of my babies are drawn to these cooling mats in the warmer days. I think it is best when they have an option to get up and move for awhile then come back to it, as I think the mat will warm up after awhile, but cool down quickly again (15-20 mins). I put the smaller one in our huge crate (dont judge, he's only in it max 4hours, 2 x a week), so my boy can decide if he wants to lay on it, or can move to other side to crate. We don't have AC, so the house gets stuffy and I like providing options for them (ie; I pulled up an area rug so they have access to cool flooring, I got out their raised bed which is naturally cooler than a couch, since there is air flow underneath, I have overhead fans going, a bowl of ice, these cooling mats, etc.I don't have chewers, so I wasn't too worried about them damaging the mat. Neither nails nor claws have bothered this material. The mat is pretty weighty- heavier than you would think- so it does a fair job staying in place depending on where you place it. It doesn't seem to get dirty, but if need be it does wipe off with ease (I had a cat yak on it). My older one is all blue, the newer mats have color options. I didn't care about color or pattern, so I just bought what was cheapest (click on different colors to see prices)I normally include pics. I will take some and add them to this review. EDIT (Added a couple pics from when I placed it on his raised bed. Can also just make out one in his crate). I will also be back to update if I learn anything new. Like I said, I had one already from a couple years ago, recently bought another, then just today decided to grab same one same size same color. Hope this review helped you today. Take care, stay cool :)