<p>So now that I am more mobile, I want to be more active and part of that is taking the dog out with me.
Now our previous sweetie, was an old style labrador,( bred for sport not show) who only would agree to wear a coat once she was 12 or 13 and she tried to ignore the rain although she loved the snow.
This doggie is about 50lbs of muscle but very short fur, perhaps 1/2". He has a stretchy fleece vest & a puffer vest [i really couldn’t resist this,he needed xxxl for his shoulders](<a href=“http://www.baxterboo.com/p.cfm/seattle-seahawks-dog-puffer-vest”>http://www.baxterboo.com/p.cfm/seattle-seahawks-dog-puffer-vest</a>), but we do a lot of walking on sidewalks & he runs hard at the park and I want something that will help protect his pads, although he doesnt mind his coats & I expect he would wear boots if I told him to.</p>
<p>There are various products meant to protect their feet, like Mushers secret, has anyone tried them?
What else can I do to keep him comfortable? He * really* doesnt like winter & its only November!</p>
<p>I have never had a dog that needed a coat or boots, and it is a hell of a lot colder here than in Seattle! Booties are supposed to be for sled dogs that are running 50 miles a day or something. I really cannot believe your dog needs them. I know people whose dogs walk 6 miles a day, mostly on pavement.</p>
<p>I have no ideas for you, but I’m just posting in support of the dog. I don’t like winter either, and I hope we don’t have to suffer this year! Some little boots for him would be awfully cute.</p>
<p>I think my doggies would like boots. And sweaters. But I don’t know if my husband would be caught dead with dogs wearing boots and sweaters…and bows in their hair.</p>
<p>We hate “dressing up” our dog but she’s such a baby that she flat out refuses to go outside when it’s cold without some protection. Unfortunately, she’s about 60 lb, pure muscle, and has a heck of a time finding coats that fit. They fit her width in XXL but length in M. We ended up having to get them specially made. </p>
<p>She doesn’t do booties though. Refuses. Apparently, she’d rather deal with the ice than the booties.</p>
<p>Good luck :).</p>
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<p>Not every dog is adapted to the environment that they currently live in. It can be very harmful for dogs that are adapted to warm weather climates to go outside without protection. Just as it can be very dangerous for dogs with multiple layers of fur to live in warm climates without being groomed (shaved).</p>
<p>We had a shih Tzu with a puppy cut in cold winters. A dog sweater was useful in keeping his tummy clean but he never wore boots. He hated puddles (always jumped them or otherwise tried to avoid them) but loved playing in snow. I don’t see that you need to protect his pads- they are meant to handle the weather unlike we humans going barefoot. Our dog loved rubbing his face in snow as well.</p>
<p>Ah, too bad I can’t post a picture of my girlies when I get them some sweaters, Consolation. Just for you! They do shake off the bows pretty quickly after they get them…they keep the bandanas for awhile, and my husband makes them wear sunglasses every now and then (they look way cool in those), and they will wear little shirts for awhile. But sweaters would be great, don’t know if they, like romani’s dog, would put up with boots though.</p>
<p>Glad you like the visuals, shellz! Nothing better than sweet dogs! Hope tomorrow is better for you.</p>
<p>When we were in Paris visiting D on semester abroad we went to a chocolate candy shop. At the counter was a very plain looking lady buying some candy with her miniature poodle. They go in stores and restaurants like people. I have never seen such fashion! She had a perfect ‘poodle cut’, red bow in her hair and on her tail, and glittery collar and red shoes. She waited very prissy like and then when the lady was done, she walked out of the store with her nose up and prancing. That princess loved her shoes.</p>
<p>Well- emerald you could try making one- they are really not that hard to sew. D2 was in grade school when she made a ‘coat’ for our bichon- came out really well. made of fleece.</p>
<p>Not every dog is adapted to the environment that they currently live in. It can be very harmful for dogs that are adapted to warm weather climates to go outside without protection. Just as it can be very dangerous for dogs with multiple layers of fur to live in warm climates without being groomed (shaved).</p>
<p>I completely agree. I don’t understand why people don’t understand that when you take a breed that was bred for warmer climates and put them in cold climates then that poor thing needs winter protection. </p>
<p>I live in an area that can get quite cold for a month or two in the winter…can dip into the teens. I gave a dog sweater to my neighbor for her whippet when I saw him outside (shivering) in the yard. The neighbor said that she never thought about dogs getting cold. ???</p>
<p>One crazy person told me that because dogs don’t have pores for sweating, then that means that their bodies don’t feel hot or cold. ??? All I know is that my dogs will lay on the cool tile floor to help cool off and they’ll lay next to a warm fire or floor heating vent to get warm.</p>
<p>I love little clothes for doggies. Today my baby yorkie had a hoodie on. When her hair becomes long enough, she’s getting a top knot. My doxie wears a sweater when cold. My H calls it his “smoking jacket.”</p>
<p>My wife has 3 different sized yellow rain slickers hanging in the garage. One for each dog. They never go out in the rain without putting on their rain coat. Each of them also has a plaid red/grey flannel coat for the winter.</p>
<p>The Chinese Crested has a complete wardrobe including boots. If you take his outfit off he will not move until a new one is put on.</p>
<p>I have a 55lb pit bull mix who is a huge wimp in the cold. Pits tend to have very thin coats and they don’t have the undercoat for warmth that many other breeds have. I never had sweaters and things for my Boston Terrier and now I have to find outer wear for a pit bull. We had three days of chilly rain several weeks ago and she acted like she was going to die. I got her a flannel lined raincoat that she seems to really like. I just ordered her a sweater for dry cold weather. Even my neighbors notice how cold she is and tell me I have to get her a sweater. She doesn’t like walking on frosty grass or leaves! I don’t know how she survived on the streets before she was rescued. </p>
<p>My friends who own pits recommend Zack and Zoey clothes for dogs with broad chests. Her sweater should arrive next week so we’ll see how it fits.</p>
<p>I think making a coat for him would be a fun project, then I could customize it for better fit. We have a fleece blanket that could be used. He is still young enough that he is open to my ideas. He lets me use a hair dryer on him after his bath & he even wore a costume for Halloween. He was a bumblebee. (I don’t have grandchildren, so?)</p>
<p>Our lab on the other hand only acquiesced when her arthritis made a coat seem like a good idea. She loved getting rubdowns though after a walk.
The coats also can improve visibility with reflective striping, a good idea when you are out walking in the dark.( although I also have a light I can clip onto his harness)
If I had a long hair dog, I still might put a coat on him when needed, it saves time brushing out their coat from burrs and twigs when they run amok.</p>
<p>I have to admit that I am loving having a short hair dog, our lab was smelly, especially when she was wet & even though she was a black lab & laid down in puddles, when I would give her a bath in the tub she would moan & groan like it was an enormous imposition.
This one gets into the bath by himself ( he’s also been known to come in when you are taking a shower)</p>
<p>We have a 35 pound Portuguese water dog. He is fine with a rain jacket on wet days and either a once- piece fleece with water resistant coating or a two-layer fleece plus water-resistant shell on snowy or very cold days. We got one “outfit” from Lands End and the other from the company that used to be Fetch Dog and is now In the company of Dogs. Lots of other companies seem to sell this kind of thing too–not cutesy, just practical and attractive. His breeder had told us that he should wear a jacket if it was under 25 degrees. I did get him little boots the first winter we had him but it was impossible to get them on. We do wipe his feet and try to apply Musher’s Secret on his pads if he’s been walking on surfaces after a snow.</p>
My doxie wears a sweater when cold. My H calls it his “smoking jacket.”</p>![http://cdn-www.dailypuppy.com/media/dogs/anonymous/kimba_rhodesian_ridgeback_01.jpg_w450.jpg[/url]](http://cdn-www.dailypuppy.com/media/dogs/anonymous/kimba_rhodesian_ridgeback_01.jpg_w450.jpg%5B/url%5D){kind=link}
