Depending on where you live, winter can be brutal. Snowdrifts, ice, and freezing winds that cause the temperature to plummet below freezing are rare occurrences. Each year, as the holidays close and the days grow shorter, you start preparing your home and car for winter. You wrap your windows in plastic, put the snow tires on your car, stock up on hot cocoa, and you’re ready for whatever Old Man Winter throws at you.
However, your dogs, Lizzie and Winston, are another story. Lizzie needs to go outside to relieve herself and Winston’s kennel enclosure is outside. You, the beloved owner of her, are responsible for her winter well-being.
winter clothes for dogs
First of all, there is the option of dog gear. There are all kinds of winter clothes for your dogs, from the smallest Chihuahua to the largest Dane. From Lizzie’s dewclaws to the tips of her ears, she can be warm and stylish, or goofy-looking, depending on your views on doggy fashion.
Fashionable or not, winter dog clothes are essential, especially for small breeds like Lizzie. Your ends are your first concern. Their thin, sensitive ears and bare feet should be covered if possible. There are many sizes and varieties of dog booties available that easily fit their feet. The booties provide warmth and even have grips on the bottom to help Lizzie walk on ice and navigate snow. They also protect against the salt used by the city to help melt snow faster.
Their ears may be covered by several varieties of hats, headbands, and hoods. If you don’t want to buy something for your ears, there is a very cheap and effective alternative. Take a sock and cut the foot. Pull the remaining “tube” over Lizzie’s head like a neck warmer. Be sure not to pull too far down. Her ears must remain covered. For larger dogs like Winston, one of his own neck warmers should do the trick.
Then all you have left is to worry about your dog’s bodies. Dog sweaters, coats, and sweatshirts are available in every shape, size, and color you can imagine. There are varying degrees of “heavy duty” too, from something that would be comfortable for your pup in a fall breeze to something that would withstand a freezing gale.
bedding and housing
Once Lizzie and Winston are dressed in their winter clothes, the next thing to worry about is where they sleep. Lizzie, who is sleeping inside, is less worrisome. Putting an extra blanket in her crate or moving your dog’s bed closer to the heat vent are a good way to ensure her comfort.
For Winston, whose kennel is outside, protection from the elements is more essential. He should make sure that within his kennel enclosure there is some solid walled shelter, preferably wood. Winston should be able to fit comfortably inside this cozy den to escape the wind and snow. He must also make sure that there are plenty of dry blankets in this shelter. This may mean that you have to change them regularly. He might even go so far as to get a heating blanket in the shelter, plugged into an outside outlet.
It’s also a good idea to prepare a small space in your garage or basement with a dog bed that can be available for Winston in the coldest and harshest winter storms.
The Chubway Diet
Before winter sets in, and even during the course of winter, feeding Winston and Lizzie a little extra can be healthy. Animals naturally gain weight as the seasons change to cope with the cold. It is recommended that your dog put on some weight before the winter months, but care should be taken. Lizzie and Winston will have fewer opportunities to exercise during the winter. As such, too much extra weight can be unhealthy.
Try to find exercises that your dogs can do even in the winter months. A smaller dog like Lizzie can run around inside the house, playing fetch or tug of war. Winston is even better suited for outdoor activities, which means you should bundle up enough to play with him for a while. You’ll cool down before he does, but exercising, even 10 to 15 minutes a day, will make all the difference in the world in maintaining the balance between healthy weight gain and getting plump.
The potty ritual
You have to be patient with your dogs in the colder months. While Winston shouldn’t have any problems, Lizzie will find her potty ritual considerably more difficult.
Imagine yourself in Lizzie’s place. She wouldn’t want to do her business in freezing temperatures, and sometimes neither would they. Being outside is dangerous for a small dog like Lizzie. Don’t try to have some kind of showdown and wait because you can outlast the weather than her. Some days, she passes out or freezes before urinating, because it’s so cold.
The best thing you can do to encourage Lizzie to pee outside is to make pathways for her to use. The deep snow can hurt her feet and sometimes it gets up to her chest and under her. You may be too cold or even frozen. Obviously, then, she won’t feel compelled to go to the bathroom outside.
A trail, whether with a shovel, snow blower, or even stomping your boots into the snow, will give Lizzie a place to pee and poop where she’s not chest-deep in snow, depending on the location, she might even be blocked wind.
Keep in mind that your 2-year-old is much more susceptible to cold and snow than your apparently waterproof 10-year-old. Applying these steps for your older dog that you do for your little one will ensure that your older dog is just as comfortable.
On days when it’s too cold for Lizzie, it’s nice to have some pee pads inside your house that are available to Lizzie if she needs them. Hopefully, during potty training her when she was a puppy, you got her used to pee pads. If not, and she urinates somewhere else, she takes her to the pads and she’ll eventually get it. But like everything else, you have to be consistent.
Now that Lizzie and Winston are ready for winter, all you have to do is make sure they don’t scare Santa away when he comes to deliver your Christmas presents.