Frozen pup

[smcavoy]

I live in Vermont and right now it is very cold 10 below zero this morning. Anyway I was taking Lexi out for her ususal walk and two day's in a row
now when we are walking back to the house she picks up her back legs like she is hurt. I know it is bitter cold and they don't like to cold but that concerns me. Today I am getting her a coat and little boots to see if that helps. Has anyone else had this happen before?

 

[Jesse'sfolks]

Jesse is also doing the 3 legged dog in the snow trick! First lifting one leg, then the other. This is his first winter, and I cannot get him to stop eating snow! He is also into the "popsicles" he is finding in the snow, if you catch my drift...Hmmm..if anyone has any snow/cold weather advice, we would appreciate it! As for boots, by the time he gets kitted out, we would miss the potty window in his schedule! When he has to go, he has to go!

 

[crowpete]

For sure boots and jackets will help (look at my gallery. I just put some pictures of Darby in her coat and boots). But I do not walk Darby if it is below 20*. I feel that is just too cold (my opinion). I try to play with Darby indoors or outside for a short time if it is cold out. But I do think it will help your baby out

 

[Luvnmyboxer]

Never had that happen here but doesn't get quite that cold where we're at. But the coat and boots should help a ton. Remember if it's cold enough for you to wear a coat your boxer needs one too, they dont have much fur to keep them warm. Hope the boots help the paws too--brrrr, too cold for me. Just a thought, but could Lexi be getting leg cramps like athletes do with the weather changes? Maybe not, I dont know.

 

[jksjkc]

I know how you all feel. The other day Butch came in and was actually crying because he hurt from the cold. I was concerned.
We bought him the boots but it is inconvenient when you're training and don't want to deal with an accident. I have to buy him a coat.

The weird part is I see my neighbors dogs in their yards. Is it just a boxer thing to not be able to handle the cold??

 

[fruffell]

Definitely boots and a jacket will help. We noticed Oscar doing this too a few weeks back, so we invested into a pair of fleeced-lined boots, and problem solved. Now I just need to get him a new coat, he's growing so fast I couldn't get his jacket on him today ... I'm really hoping the boots last the winter

 

[DannyB]

A lot of dogs will get snow or little ice balls packed up between their pads and that does hurt. If Danny starts picking up his feet when we're playing I'll usually sweep out the bottom of his foot and that helps. Boots would also help keep a dog from accumulating snow/ice in the first place.

 

[carolshafer]

Welcome to you and Lexi!

 

[Jo12345]

A lot of dogs will get snow or little ice balls packed up between their pads and that does hurt. QUOTE]

I agree! It's also the salt they use on the road, too that make it uncomfortable. If you wipe the bottom of his pads, that will probably help. It's Rocco's first winter but it's already been quite a cold one in Ottawa. I find that he's good with just a heavy sweater or a jacket up to -20C if we're not out for longer then 30-45 mins. If we're out longer I put his boots on, too (they're lined with thinsulate) and it helps to keep him warm but to be honest, he spends half his time bitting at them that it slows him down -- if he doesn't have them on then we walk at a very fast pace which helps keep him warm. Also, if it's colder then -20C, we only go out for 15mins at a time and he doesn't really have a chance to get cold.

 

[Goolia83]

Same here!

Roxy does the same thing with her leg. I was just about to ask the same question! We are in Minnesota, yesturday was -9°F, and she was contantly switching paws to keep up when we went out for potty breaks. I'm glad to hear it's not just her! I'm looking forward to our heat wave on the way - tomorrow's high is 12°F!! Yeah! and we're supposed to have 30°F by Friday!

I want to get her some boots, but she is growing SO fast and they aren't cheap!
Does anyone know when their feet stop growing? She is 12 weeks old, 16lbs.

She likes to jump into snowbanks... and most of them are deeper than her head, so I'm not sure how well the boots will really work anyways Do they stay on pretty good?

Julie