do your dogs have winter boots?

[booyhoo]

am just thinking ahead to when it will snow. surely i can't take WB out in snow with bare feet? it would hurt him wouldn't it? do you all have boots for yours and where can i get some?

I put Daphne in a coat after the first winter as everyone told me not to do so the first winter - otherwise she would not grow her own "winter coat". By February I had given in and bought a wee jacket as she was just freezing. And when she shivered I was picking her up and tucking her inside my jacket. Fine with a Maltese, not so easy with a GR.

Last year (her second winter) she had one on from about October. This year she has rarely needed it yet. I think she is getting tougher.

ok, i feel reassured, now, another question. do you steam or boil his veg before you give it to him?

He'll be fine without boots. My girls go absolutely mental if there is snow outside, they love it, jump in it, roll around in it and lay in it. It is harder to get them out of snow than water. Last Christmas they were all swimming in the sea when there was snow on the ground, they care not one bit. Could have been mid summer for all they cared!

As for veg... dogs apparently can't digest raw, unblended veg. I don't give mine veg really, except the odd whole carrot or apple to munch on. Cooked is fine, raw is fine, although they won't get much benefit from raw unless it is blended. Not really sure how much benefit dogs get from veg anyway though.

My vet told me to give my dog some cooked veg in her food every now and again for extra roughage as she gets full anal glands and this would help them empty more naturally. Nice. If we make chicken stock I fish out all the cooked veg and she hoovers them up.

sorry, mid i was joking about the veg i couldn't resist as i am so clearly absoloutely nuts!! but thank you for responding. i don't know how they can bear to go in freezing cold water.

hmm, maybe i should start giving him veg then?

No boots & no coat, get a grip

what about ear muffs?

boots, no.
coat, no.
jazzy hat, on the other hand...

fingerless gloves?

I saw a dachshund with a baseball cap the other day. He looked rather embarrassed. Even fashionplate Daphne laughed at him.

i have seen those neckerchiefs on ebay and the only thing that stopped em buying one was that they didn't look like very good quality

On the whole dogs don't need shoes for the snow - My springer loves running in the snow but some working dogs who are outside for a while do need them - which brings me to my favourite you tube video ever

I'm guessing Homer is a young working dog and this is the first time he's worn his shoes. I'm sure he got used to them eventually!

I think that that is quite cruel really (the video). The dog is obviously unhappy, and I think it highly unlikely that the boots are really needed on a Springer Spaniel except in very exception circumstances.

I have never seen a working dog with boots - they look ridiculous. I live in Canada where we get very severe winters (it can hit -25C, and is snowy for months), and have never seen a dog in boots, or been told to get boots. You do need to be careful with the salt on the road, and dogs with very thin coats need extra insulation, but a Golden Retriever will be too busy whizzing around if it snows to get too cold

The only time I've thought about foot protection for our dog was when he got a bit of prickly pear cactus between his pads (very tricky to pull out).

Nooo, don't do it to your poor dog. Don't visit your feelings about being cold on the dog fgs.

All you need to do is make sure there isn't any ice clogged up in hiw paws when he comes in, give him a good dry and treat him like a dog, not a fragile plaything.

Yes Nooka the really well looked after Springer Spaniel looks desperately unhappy!

Lots of working dogs wear boots for protection - they do take getting used to but they do not hurt the dog.

no....she's a dog not a child.

that video illustrates well that dogs were not designed for boots. arguing that some dogs need them (eg because they're out on a snowy shoot all day) doesn't cut it with me - putting your dog in a situation where it needs to where boots is bascially not on.

I remember being horrified when I discovered that you can buy shoes for dogs that are designed for taking them running - if too much running on pavement is giving your dogs grazed/torn/sore pads just carry on but put a pair of shoes on them. wtf?

booyhoo - the above is not meant as a criticism of you - you are clearly motivated by nothing more than wanting the best for your pfp. rest assured. he doesn;t need boots

I wasn't saying that the dog in the clip wasn't well cared for, I am sure it is much loved. Just that putting boots on it and laughing when it obviously hates them is a bit cruel IMO. I really have never met a working dog (hunting, guide, sheep or police) who had boots, which is why I think that they are needed only in exceptional circumstances.

I didn't see any evidence that the pup on YouTube was a working dog.

I did think about getting boots for yellow dog when he still had those softish puppy paws. Out walking he was really high stepping and not seeming to want to put his feet on the ground. Was a cold, dark winter morning.
Got home and realised the temperature was -14c.
That was why my teeth were hurting too.....