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Old January 9th, 2013, 10:45 AM
067734m 067734m is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Posts: 46
Dogs in Cold Weather

My husband and I adopted 2 dogs while living in the Southern US: a 7-8yr old beagle/hound mix with a thin coat, and a 3yr old lab mix with a 'regular' lab coat (and 'regular' lab coat shedding!). It's very hot in the southern US, and temps usually didn't go too far below 0C in the winter.

As Canadians , we're used to cold temps, and used to dogs who've grown up in cold temps. This year in Ontario, we've had some pretty cold days (windchill below -20C).

I'm worried about the beaglexhound. I have a coat for her, but when it's that cold out, she doesn't even want to go outside, we practically have to drag her out. She sleeps almost all day (and all night) and has woken up limping at times. When running through deep snow, or even on the side walk near the end of the walk, she seems frantic and has stopped and held up a paw (and looks so uncomfortable, as if to say, "what is going on!?").

I know salt can be an issue, and I've been watching their paws. The lab seems unaffected. (He's a pretty happy-go-lucky fellow). The neuroses of the hound only seem to compound when it's really cold and she seems depressed. Am I doing something wrong/not doing enough for her? Since it's warmed up a bit, she's been a lot more normal, but I'm sure we'll have a few more cold snaps this winter (and the next)...

Any tips/advice on weathering cold temps with dogs are appreciated.
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