Right now in Columbia, the air is about 85°F, but the model estimates the asphalt under your dog's paws is closer to 113°F — a gap of roughly 28°F, because a mix of sun and cloud is still loading heat into the asphalt. That reading puts Columbia in the caution range, where short, shade-hugging walks are the most a paw should take. Humidity is nudging the human "feels-like" to about 92°F, which matters for your dog too: muggy air makes it harder for a panting dog to shed heat, so treat a borderline reading as the hotter of the two.
Across the 8 hours left today, the pavement in Columbia is projected to top out near 119°F around 5 PM, when the air will be about 87°F — a 31°F gap between the forecast your weather app shows and the surface your dog walks on. The surface is already coming down, about 14°F over the next three hours, so waiting a little works in your favour here.
In an average August, Columbia sees highs around 89°F and overnight lows near 72°F. Even at those moderate highs, a dark surface in direct sun can run 40–60°F hotter than the air, which is enough to tip midday walks into the caution range. As a seasonal rule of thumb, the safest windows are before about 10:00 AM and after about 5:00 PM.
Columbia loses its all-day safe window in 6 months of the year — April through September — and August is one of them. The year peaks in July at an average high of 91°F against 57°F in January, a 34°F swing that decides how much of the day belongs to your dog.
The nearest city we track is Charlotte, roughly 85 miles from Columbia — far enough that its reading is no substitute for this one. Sun angle, humidity and cloud cover can all differ across that distance, which is why this page models Columbia on its own coordinates.
Whatever the number says, confirm it with your hand: press the back of it flat on the pavement for seven seconds. If you can't hold it there, neither can your dog. On a day reading this warm in Columbia, flat-faced breeds like pugs and bulldogs, plus seniors and young puppies with thinner pads, should sit out the heat entirely — subtract about 10°F from any safe threshold for them. If you must cross hot ground, protective booties or a quick coat of paw wax are the only real barrier between paw pads and the asphalt.