• Our new addition Shilagh seems to really get cold quickly. We bundle her up and take her out to go pee/poop and she shivers the whole time. She actually starts crying because she gets so cold. Does anyone else seem to have this problem? Is there a jacket or coat that works to keep in body heat? Any advice? Thanks!


  • I don't have the whining, but I do get the shivering every now and then, in the winter. I'm sure there will be more people with advice, but you may want the knit sweaters under a different kind of jacket. That may help.

    How cold is it? If it's barely below, or not even below freezing, there may be something else going on, as she shouldn't get that cold that quickly with it above 30. Whining because of the cold is pretty cold.


  • My boy Brando definitely minds the cold and gets cold faster than Ruby. He starts shivering fast when it is really cold and will whine a bit if he gets too cold. He usually isn't out long enough when it is that cold to really start crying. He's all muscle and really lean and his coat is not very thick. Ruby is lean as well, but her coat is much thicker…I call her the fuzzy basenji.

    And neither Ruby nor Brando will wear a coat or sweater...they won't walk with one on, so I just don't keep them out very long in bitter cold.


  • Ty shivers when it drops below 50. He's always been like that. Katie plays in the snow with no problems at all. I must admit, she does have a little extra, umm, insulation than she should:).


  • Hmmm, maybe the dogs just get used to different temperatures. Medjai is extra lean, and is usually fine 'til just about 20?F unless it's real windy too.


  • Each dog, like each person will have a different tolerance for cold–and as with people, some dogs are just bigger wimps and whiners, LOL.

    I know Keoki is more bothered physically by cold than Jazz is. We have to pay attention to him, because he will shiver and whine, but won't stop investigating things. I have to watch to determine when he really needs to get out of the cold. Jazz doesn't fuss until it is in the low 20's.

    If you 're just taking her out to potty, then probably any jacket you can get from Walmart, etc will do. It's just needed to keep the edge off for a few minutes.


  • Yeah she's really skinny. Mick has a lot of muscle to him and he doesn't seem bothered to much. I actually saw a jacket that has a battery operated heater in the back. LOL I'm not sure how safe it is. I'm a worry wart as it is:o


  • @JazzysMom:

    Each dog, like each person will have a different tolerance for cold–and as with people, some dogs are just bigger wimps and whiners, LOL.

    That's basically it. My little boy is excited to go outside when the temps are even as cold as -15F. No coat, nothing. He will shiver after awhile when it gets that cold, but I'm usually shivering by then too.:D


  • You can get some pretty inexpensive dog coats from a variety of sources (you probably don't need the heated one) including Lands End. Just do a quick search on dog coats here on the foum and you'll find several sources.


  • Get you dog a coat for outside and a sweater for inside.
    My 2 live in the Sally Wallis sweaters in the winter.
    Its not snowing outside usually but the damp cold isn't fun for my 2 so I make sure they have the sweaters on them when the temp drops.

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