On the other hand, yesterday my stepdad was driving around and passed a fire station where there were several dogs. (Don’t ask me why.) This is New Orleans. We’ve been experiencing – I quote the local news – an “Arctic Blast.” It got down into the 20s a few nights! AAAAAA!!!
All the dogs in question had T-shirts and little booties on. It was in the mid-30s at this point. One of them was a HUSKY for God’s sake. The last thing it needed was a T-shirt and freaking BOOTIES in mid-30s weather!
end hijack
The owner in question should be punished as hard as he legally can. I don’t know how some people can treat animals the way they do…
I live in Ohio (hence my name) It has been freezing here for two weeks. My neighbor has cats. As do we. Their cats have been in my house for 2 weeks, and these people have never once even went door to door to see if anyone has their cats!! Possesion is 9/10ths of the law and they ain’t getting them back now!
I also have a cocker spaniel, that can stay out no longer than 5 minutes in this weather, without having a seizure.
People if you have pets, treat them as well as you would your child
I get way to emotional about this issue so I hesitated looking in on this thread. And, I’ll admit I couldn’t read everything that has been said so if it’s already been said, let me add my ‘amen’.
Treat your pets like you would a person. A dog/cat/rabbit, etc is no better prepared to survive in the freezing cold or extreme heat then a person. Anyone who doesn’t take this into consideration … well, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… GET A ROPE!!!
I’m a lot like you, cadolphin. I don’t like for my dogs to be outside for extended periods if it’s too cold (by my own standards). Even in “normal” climes, I don’t like for them to be outside (in the fenced backyard) when I’m away from home. I won’t leave them outside overnight, and won’t leave them alone (inside OR out) overnight.
I can’t tell you how many people make fun of me for this. My boss’s mantra has become, “You know, [Auntie EM], some people treat their dogs like DOGS.”
FWIW, one of my dogs is a husky mutt who loves (LOVES!!!) to be outside in the cold, and the other is a lab mutt who prefers to be nice and cozy inside (on the couch or my bed, if I’m not looking), and gets quite shivery when she goes out in superlow temps. However, whichever way one of 'em goes, the other is sure to follow, so I’d rather err on the side of warmth and keep both of their asses inside than out, these days.
Well, truth be told, it also depends on the individual dog. I have two Dalmatians and a Pit Bull. The Pit loves the outside. Fine. The two Dalmatians are sisters from the same litter. Patches will ask to go out and start barking about 30 seconds after being put out (cold, hot, nice, it doesn’t matter). Her sister, Mugsy, the one with the bad arthritis, will walk around, sniff, eat something she shouldn’t and basically seems to like being out. When you call her, she looks at you like you’ve got to be kidding (even on some really cold days) and come in reluctantly (most times) only if you insist. It’s not always easy to interpret.
Booties also help protect a dog’s paws from salt, which can be quite hard on their feet. It’s not just to keep their feet warm, so even a cold-weather dog may need booties if he walks / runs where a lot of salt is used.
True, Velma, but in this area I don’t think salt is a concern. The amusing part was that it wasn’t even freezing. I admire their concern, but it was overkill. Considering how people bundle up, though, I’m not surprised that the dogs were too.
Some dogs do well outside in the cold. Some do not. Just because they have fur doesn’t mean that they’ll be fine. How obvious is this???
