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How to keep dogs warm outside: 10 Tips For Cold Weather

How to keep dogs warm outside: 10 Tips For Cold WeatherPhoto by Valentin B. Kremer

Originally Posted On: How to keep dogs warm outside: 10 Tips For Cold Weather (digdoggy.com)

 

The other day I noticed my fur kid looking a little blue and even trembling a little bit after his daily evening walk.

I realized that now that the colder months are here, it is important to protect your fur children especially since they won’t exactly be able to say: “MOM, I’m COLD.”

I do like to make sure my dog is warm enough at night because it tends to get chilly and nippy. Even if one pooch stays in the garage and the others sleep indoors, it is important to make sure they are warm at night.

This is particularly true for dogs with thinner coats or smaller dogs. Not only does keeping them warm at night for their comfort, but it is also for their health and well-being. Here is a short list I’ve put together that will make sure your dog stays warm and comfortable at night.

Dogs can get hypothermia when it gets too cold at night. This happens when there is a drop in body temperature. This causes labored, slow breathing, a slower heart rate, and can even be fatal in extreme cases. Another risk is when a dog gets frostbite.

This causes your dog to turn blue, the areas of the flesh and skin dying away and may even require amputation. There are a few ways I keep my dogs warm at night whether they sleep indoors or in the garage.

Know the warning signs of hypothermia including painful body parts, skin discoloration, skin ulcers, and blisters.

This way, you can administer first aid or take your dog to the vet immediately. Like my granny always used to say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. I do like to make sure my dog is warm enough at night because it tends to get chilly and nippy.

Even if one pooch stays in the garage and the others sleep indoors, it is important to make sure they are warm at night.

This is particularly true for dogs with thinner coats or smaller dogs. Not only does keeping them warm at night for their comfort, but it is also for their health and well-being. Here is a short list I’ve put together that will help ensure your dog stays warm and comfortable at night.

What’s In This Article?

How To Keep Dogs Warm Outside

Keep dogs warm outside by using these tested and proven methods of keeping your fur child warm outdoors, particularly in the autumn and winter months.

Knowing what to do will help you get a jump-start on keeping your pooch in tip-top shape before the weather even gets cold.

More than ever it is important to have the necessary equipment on-hand so that you don’t have to go rushing off at the last minute to go and buy stuff to keep your fur kids warm outside.

Dogs can get hypothermia when it gets too cold at night. This happens when there is a drop in body temperature. This causes labored, slow breathing, a slower heart rate, and can even be fatal in extreme cases.

Another risk is when a dog gets frostbite. This causes your dog to turn blue, the areas of the flesh and skin dying away and may even require amputation.

There are a few ways I keep my dogs warm at night whether they sleep indoors or in the garage.

Know the warning signs of hypothermia including painful body parts, skin discoloration, skin ulcers, and blisters. This way, you can administer first aid or take your dog to the vet immediately.

Like my granny always used to say, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

1. Heated Water Bowls For The Porch

Heated bowls are important especially when your dog eats outside in the back yard or on your apartment balcony.

Your dog’s food on the bowl on the floor can sometimes be the cause of lower body temperatures.

To keep this from happening, I found a set of heated dog bowls that warm up their water and food instead of freezing them.

This set takes out the stress and the worry of my dog’s bowls getting too cold especially when I come home late after work a few times each week. I can relax and take my time, knowing his water bowl won’t freeze.

2. Insulate His Dog House

If your dog stays in a dog house at night, it needs to be insulated. The floor needs to be five inches off the ground with straw insulation to prevent the cold from seeping into his shelter.

Place warm bedding on top of layers of straw on the floor. This reduces drafts and enables your outdoor pooch to create a warm nest for himself.

3. Get Your Fur Kid A Snood

Say what? Yes, I do realize not many people have heard of snoods but these do wonders in keeping your fur child’s ears warm.

This is a knitting tube that goes over his head to cover his ears like a tennis headband. You can get a snood here or you can even make one yourself if you know how to knit. Remember, dogs’ ears tend to be very thin and vulnerable to cold weather.

4. Draft Excluders

Okay, I know this article was about how to keep your dog warm outside but I needed to include excluders, pun intended. The reason is because this is a fairly find and does work really well in warming up a cold dog.

When my dog comes in from outside and takes a nap, draft excluders keep the warm air nice and toasty. I didn’t realize it until recently but the draft that comes from underneath the doors does let in cold air and wind.

My dogs were trembling no matter what I set the house heater to and that is when I realized that the draft comes in near the floor, which is at their level.

This is why I decided to get a set of draft excluders that I attached to each door. This not only saved me tons for my electric bill but kept my pooches nice and toasty all night long.

5. Dog Pajamas

There are pajamas just for your little fur kid to keep him warm at night especially when he needs to go outside for a quick walk before bed.

Available in many different canine sizes, my dog with shorter fur loves getting into his pj’s every night before bedtime.

I change my furries into pj’s in the late afternoon with a dog diaper. That way, when they do go out for a stroll I can rest assured that they are safe and warm in their clothing.

6. Heated Mats And Dog Bets

I make sure my dog has a snuggly, warm bed, and a blanket when they sleep outdoors in my garage. Here is the one I use which comes with a heater built-in

This one has two thumbs up for warmth due to the durable yet comfortable material and the high sides.

My other fur child likes sleeping on a mat more than in a bed so I got him this one that keeps temperatures safe at around forty degrees Celsius.

7. Use A Heated Harness

Some dogs just won’t wear a jacket, like my Labrador. Instead, I keep him warm by putting him in a warming harness. This is a newer product on the market that comes with a reheatable pad.

It is a harness just like any other and provides my Lab with warmth against his chest. He seems to barely notice the harness and I can relax knowing that even with no jacket, this alternative works to keep him warm.

8. Play Fetch With Heated Toys

Keep your dogs warm at night by investing in heated toys. Play catch in the early evening when the sun is still out.

The heated toys do wonders in keeping your pooch feeling toasty and warm. These are toys you can reheat in the microwave to warm them without getting too hot.

Once your dog goes for an evening walk, coming home to a set of warm toys will be sure to keep him toasty. I keep my dogs extra warm in their heated beds by the addition of heated dog toys that I keep beside them.

9. Dog Boots

Protect your pooch’s paws from hidden dangers such as sharp ice, de-icing chemicals, and toxic snow with dog boots.

These keep your fur child’s feet intact. Dog boots are made with insulation that will keep your dog’s feet toasty. These will also prevent the skin and hair between your pooch’s paw pads from getting wet and cold.

There are various boots for dogs available. Some are made just for winter, while others are made for all-year-round. Get extra traction from selecting rubber grippable soles and a water-resistant exterior to keep your fur kid’s paws dry.

10. Get Him/Her A Jacket Or Sweater

No matter what breed your dog is, I suggest you get him a jacket for evening walks outside. Even if he only needs to pee for a few minutes, the outdoor temperature drop may shock his little system.

Using a jacket or a sweater as well as the dog boots I mentioned previously will keep your pooch warm.

Snow booties and warm jackets for your doggy will protect your pooch from chemicals in the cold snow and ice, or simply from the cold night-time ground. I was surprised when I went shopping for a dog sweater.

I didn’t realize they came in so many styles. There were sweaters for dogs that were young, old, hairless, furry, compromised immune systems, and even for those that were ill. Talk about a great roster to choose from. Don’t be surprised if your dog’s wardrobe begins to equal or even surpass yours. Lol.

Jackets come with thin or thick insulation. Some are waterproof. I found a waterproof dog raincoat that does double duty as a jacket for my little fur kids which does wonders in terms of keeping them warm.

Conclusion

So there it is, a short-list of ways to keep your dogs warm outside. I hope this information helps you keep your fur children warm outside using heated bowls, pj’s, jackets, sweaters, and heated dog beds. Let me know which product works for you and if your dog was comfortable using them!

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