Hiking in the winter with a Lab

[chipc]

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is bring along extra food for him on the trail during the winter months (if you don't already).

I just wanted to add to all of the good advice above - make sure your dog drinks during the hike. With many water sources covered or frozen I bring extra water just for the dogs and make sure they drink some when I do.

chipc

 

[TrishandAlex]

Wanted to emphasize that I am speaking from my own experience, and from the experience of my dog-owning friends -- no one can tell you exactly how every single dog will or will not react, or exactly how obvious he will be when he becomes uncomfortable, regardless of breed/bond/age/gender/whatever. Much depends on the individual personality -- some are hams and clowns, with huge and stubborn personalities, others are more laid-back and submissive, and will follow their owners passively through anything. However, regardless, chances are the signs will be there if you're paying attention. Shivering is an obvious one, less enthusiasm is another. If your dog's walking with you but seems less happy than usual, then you might want to err on the side of caution.

You sound like a responsible owner, I've a feeling you and your pup will do just fine.

 

[una_dogger]

I just wanted to add to all of the good advice above - make sure your dog drinks during the hike. With many water sources covered or frozen I bring extra water just for the dogs and make sure they drink some when I do.

chipc

Ditto! I cut a 16 oz poland spring water bottle in half, makes a very portable water bowl.

 

[Peakbagr]

Depending on the breed of dog, this can vary from just a very cold dog to dangerous. How does the dog generate heat?
My Lab is almost oblivious to cold weather but she would be very cold left outside in other than the earliest time of autumn. A better piece of advice is to gradually accomodate your dog to cold weather. If people hike with their dog all year long, the pooch is acclimating gradually as the seasons progress, much like we do.

Unless the dog is a sled dog breed or Newfoundland, leaving the dog outside all day when the weather gets cold is ill advised.

 

[dug]

I'm lucky to get my dog out of my bed if she's not hiking. I couldn't imagine her outside all day.

 

[DSettahr]

Just so he doesn't look like he's off his rocker, Peakbagrs post was in response to mine which I deleted. His option of acclimatization through constant hikes through the fall sounds like a much better option than what I had proposed. Sorry!

 

[una_dogger]

I'm lucky to get my dog out of my bed if she's not hiking. I couldn't imagine her outside all day.

Mine would stare at the door with their laser vision until let inside or they burned a hole in the glass

 

[--M.]

The larger point is the relevant one: like people, dogs have to work up to these things, and it has been a bit of a disappointment to me that such a high percentage of pooches I've seen out there ain't happy about it. From the downright suffering to the socially unsupervised, it's been too bad. In our case, Henry has arthritis-type issues and would really need to work into it, fitness/callous-wise. He also had a very tough time on the breakwaters of the Cape, not having tough-enough paws for the rocks & barnacles. It woke me up to being sensitive to him the way I would be to kids or myself.

On the other hand, don't slow down a bit! There are right ways and right ways and if Boone is a goer, then best wishes to you!

 

[sardog1]

Depending on the breed of dog, this can vary from just a very cold dog to dangerous. How does the dog generate heat?
My Lab is almost oblivious to cold weather but she would be very cold left outside in other than the earliest time of autumn. A better piece of advice is to gradually accomodate your dog to cold weather. If people hike with their dog all year long, the pooch is acclimating gradually as the seasons progress, much like we do.

Unless the dog is a sled dog breed or Newfoundland, leaving the dog outside all day when the weather gets cold is ill advised.

Well, I'll offer the examples of my dogs, which have included a Newfoundland, two German Shepherd Dogs, and a Belgian Malinois. The Newfy of course was entirely comfortable outside in a Minnesota winter, and wouldn't go in his dog house. The GSDs were entirely comfortable outside in Minnesota winters and Alaska winters in their dog houses all day long. They were brought in the house at night. The Malinois was kept inside all the time but went out on winter outings all the time here in NH.

The GSDs were kept outside specifically to acclimate them, as they were both SAR dogs and had to cope with winter conditions when many folks would have stayed home. They came in at night for the sake of their relationships with me, not because they couldn't handle the cold. The Malinois would have benefitted from this acclimatizing experience, but he ended up being a companion dog solely and stayed in the house during the day for company.

It's cruelty to leave a dog unsheltered in the cold. But with the right dog house, a decent double coat and adequate furring on the ears and belly, lots of dogs can spend lots of time outside if acclimated to it.

 

[Mongoose]

Boone and I did our hike up Liberty and Flume. It was around 20F most of the day which clearly didn't bother him. The two bottles of hot cocoa in his pack didn't slow him down either.

 

[una_dogger]

YAY Boone!

So he's a stick dog, eh? My two are the same way....I think they like hiking best for all the FREE, perfectly usable, free-for-the-taking sticks just LAYING THERE ON THE GROUND!!!

 

[Mongoose]

Boone prefers to carry huge rocks instead of sticks. I worry about the rocks wearing his teeth down. He's definitely a cold weather dog. When it's 80F out, he hides in the shade and tries not to move.

This feels like it will be a good winter. Now that I have a new hiking partner, I have to hike more.

 

[Ed'n Lauky]

This thread has been filled with good advice. Maybe it was the Greeks who gave us "Know thyself" but it's VFTT that gives us "Know thydog." It is very good advice to work up gradually. It on the one hand enables the dog to adapt and it enables the owner to know how the dog is reacting.

Sabrina's comments on the preliminary signs of being cold were spot on. I just purchased a new soft shell jacket for Lauky. It's a classic design. A very good outer shell with a light fleece on the inside and it zips up snugly. It looks like a Northface softshell jacket. He has been using a double layer fleece jacket. Yesterday was our first time with the new jacket and I decided to go with just that to start with. Temperature was about 15*. After about two hours he started lifting a paw, dropping his tail, rubbing his face in the snow as if burrowing and sitting. I could see he was getting cold. I stopped shortly after that to change water bottles and he started to shiver. Stopping, as has been mentioned before is also hard on dogs when it's cold. I quickly took off his jacket, put on the fleece jacket then put on the soft shell. Layering can work for dogs too. We got going again and he very quickly warmed up. His tail went up, he stopped shivering and even handled a brief stop at the summit with no problem. That was just an experiment yesterday. From now on when it's in the 20s or lower we'll just go with both of the jackets on.

Lauky's coat will continue to grow and thicken throughout the winter he handles the cold better as the winter goes on. But the key rules mentioned above are important. Work up gradually. Know your dog. Have everything you need to keep him warm. Be ready to turn back and quickly if your dog is getting cold.

I also agree that a dog's claws are important on ice. For that reason I carry booties in case of injury but tend not to use them.

The statement about the size of the dog is also spot on. My Airedale Duffy with the same type of coat as Lauky (Welsh Terrier) never got cold, but he was three times as big. He also had more difficulty hiking in hot weather than Lauky.

Be sensitive to your dog's needs. Remember he'll follow you anywhere so be ready to lead him back to the car if necessary. And happy hiking.

PS Handle that name Boone with care...It's a good one.

 

[--M.]

Congratulations, great stuff!

 

[MichaelJ]

YAY Boone!

So he's a stick dog, eh? My two are the same way....I think they like hiking best for all the FREE, perfectly usable, free-for-the-taking sticks just LAYING THERE ON THE GROUND!!!

The best part is when you have two stick dogs hiking together. Literally billions of sticks available through the National Forest but the dogs need to have the *same* stick.

 

[TrishandAlex]

Boone and I did our hike up Liberty and Flume. It was around 20F most of the day which clearly didn't bother him. The two bottles of hot cocoa in his pack didn't slow him down either.

Congratulations! Great photo -- Max (my border terrier) loves to grab sticks wherever he can find them...he's so tiny, most of the sticks he grabs are three times his size. Doesn't stop him from trying to drag them along, though.

Have fun with your dog -- happy trails.

 

[Peakbagr]

I wish I could offload some of Bookah's water that I carry for her, and some extras in a dog pack. No can do - not so long as she loves getting on her back and rolling in 'stuff'.
It would be an interesting cleaning job when we got home.

 

[DaveSunRa]

Labs even like hanging out near the wood stove

 

[pedxing]

Very useful thread. This is useful for me with my dog, and for conveying to others. A couple weeks ago, I joined some others on a bushwhack they'd planned. There were two other dogs, aside from mine and one of those dogs became hypothermic (shivering uncontrollably and unable/unwilling to keep moving). Temps were in the low 20s and there was not a lot of wind. The dog was small, but had already completed the 48 earlier in the year.

I'm still working on learning what works best for my dog, but three things I have noted so far are:

1) Food as stated is important, but I find that just having regular dry dog food is not enough. I take along food my dog loves. Some dogs, including mine, will not feel very hungry on hikes and will not eat her regular food early in the morning. I give Loki canned food she loves before hitting the trail and bring lots of dog biscuits and other food she loves to keep her caloric intake up during the hike. The dog who became hypothermic was not eating, but eagerly ate some of the dog biscuits I offered when I saw he was in a bad way (this seemed to help, although bundling him up and carrying him for a while with some chemical hand warmers placed with some care were probably the keys).

2) Like some others, I like mushers secret for conditioning my dog's paws and will use it the day before the hike as well as the morning of the hike. I will also add a gob of vaseline between Loki's pads just before we hit the trail if there is snow on the ground. This helps resist the balling of snow between the pads.

3) I've begun to experiment with using cooking spray oil on her lower legs and feet to reduce the accumulation of ice balls, as these seem to bug her and a lot of other dogs. This seems to help.

 

[Mongoose]

Boone and I hiked the Hancocks today. Another successful adventure. Boone gets really tired after a hike which is odd. I do 10-15 mile rides on my mountain bike with him running behind me and that doesn't exhaust him as much as a 10 mile hike in the winter. I'm guessing the cold is causing him to burn more calories? I feed him extra kibble before the hike and a small bowl in the middle. Maybe he needs some kind of higher calorie food for winter?