Not too hot to trot at showground as Royal Welsh Show keeps visitors cool

Yesterday saw overcast skies and even rain spots as Mid Wales missed out on the sweltering heat hitting the rest of the UK.

Early morning visitors to the four-day show at Llanelwedd, near Builth Wells, even donned layers over shorts and T-shirts.

With temperatures set to rise through the week, organisers, who said Monday brought perfect show weather, said the showground was well placed to deal with high temperatures.

Steve Hughson, the chief executive of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society, said: "The Royal Welsh Agricultural Society takes the safety of people and animals attending our event very seriously.

"As event organisers, we already have in place contingency plans for all kinds of eventualities, including hot weather.

“We are already fortunate to have well ventilated buildings and our own private water supply (with a large storage capacity), as well as a mains water on the showground. We are not concerned about the level of water available on site."

There are contingency plans to bring in more industrial fans for the buildings if temperatures soar.

"Currently the hottest day is expected to be Thursday when temperatures could reach 26C. Today was expected to be overcast again.

The RSPCA has warned visitors to the show not to take dogs.

Only assistance dogs and dogs competing are allowed onto the showground.

RSPCA Cymru said sadly it had been known that in previous years dogs have been left inside cars in the car parks which could be dangerous and potentially fatal for a dog.

RSPCA inspector Phil Lewis, who will be one of the charity’s officers on site for the week, said: “We want to issue a strong reminder to people not to bring their dogs to the show and leave them in their cars.

“It’s so dangerous to leave your pet inside any hot environment whether it be a car, a conservatory or even a caravan.

"The temperature inside a car can soar to 47C (117F) within minutes, even when the outside temperature is just 22C (72F) and this can be fatal for a dog.

“Opening a window, parking in the shade or leaving a bowl of water for your dog isn’t enough and still leaves dogs in serious danger of suffering from heatstroke.