Winter care is determined mostly by what area of this country or world you live in.  For this section, I'll be dealing with the colder climates.  When the weather turns to cold, then to bitter cold, we must totally adjust our thinking concerning the amount of time we allow our dogs to remain outside. 

If you live anywhere in the North Country as we do, winter temperatures find no problem dipping into the high teens and then, while your not looking, plummeting into th minus "0" degree fahrenheit level of that glass tube.  Any time the temperature falls below 38 degrees it's time we need to start thinking about the allotted time outside for our smaller and short haired dogs.  Nearing the 40 degree mark is when this practice MUST be implemented.  At times, and we all have been guilty of putting our dog out in his/her yard for a potty break, hurrying back into our warm home, becoming busy with something we need to do and not noticing the amount of time our four legged friend has been out there in the cold, that we so hurried in from.  One of the best ways to correct this problem is to purchase one of those small kitchen timers, set it for the length of time allowed, considering the outside temperature, and place it near where you are/will be.  When it sounds it's bell, bring in the dog(s).

As we continue on in this effort, all statements will be directed toward dogs weighing 30 pounds or less and cloaked with medium length hair (ie. Westies).  Short haired dog can be dressed with a "tube type" sweater to become part of this grouping.  We'll start by addressing food and water dishes because we see and have seen many of the wrong type being used in freezing weather.

Although stainless steel is the all-around superior choice for food and water dishes because they are easy to keep sparkling clean, offering a great resistance to bacteria, they are NOT a good choice for winter, outside use.  A dish made of any metal should never be used where the temperature will/might fall below freezing.  As a kid, did you ever touch your tongue to a very cold metal object?  Your tongue stuck to it --- right?  Well, that's the same thing that could/will happen to your dog's tongue.  The dog will shake his head in an attempt to break free of the stuck on dish and if the temperature is quite low, when the tongue tears lose,, a piece of the tongue skin stays with the dish.  This can also happen to lips.  Although we are not very impressed with plastic dishes, this seems to be the best material to use outside in cold climates.  As soon as the weather breaks, go back to your stainless steel.  Some dogs are allergic to certain plastics.  If you find your dog's black nose developing pink areas all of a sudden, or sores on the nose or lips and your using anything for him made of plastic, get rid of it and head for some stainless steel.  Most of the time, accept under special circumstances, like with our Great Pyrenees dog, Boomer, who stays outside through most of the winter (his winter coat is 7" long),  have water available while the dog is inside and they won't need to have it available outside. 

Speaking of Boomer, there are only a few breeds that very low temperatures have little effect upon. They are easy to spot.  They all are very large and have winter coats of 4 1/2" to 7" long and some even have hollow hair that makes a type of insulation but, as these big fellows and gals grow older ( older, to these big dogs can begin at around 7 years of age, most only live to around 9-10 years)  they will not be able to withstand the cold the way they did when they were younger. 

The smaller dogs we started this piece about, like the Westie, can only stand low temperatures for sort periods of time.  Below I have offered some very reasonable guidelines for cold days/nights.

a.  Above 60 degrees Fahrenheit   =   many hours

b.  50 degrees   =   two to three hours

c.  40 degrees   =   35-45 minutes

d.  30 degrees   =   15 minutes

e.  25-20 degrees   =   8-10 minutes

f.  15-10 degrees   =   3-5 minutes (max)

g.  less than 10 degrees   =   1-2 minutes

If the temperature outside is 10 degrees and a small dog goes out from a normally warm home, his foot pad temperature, leaving the house, would be between 85 and 100 degrees.  Within 5 minutes on frozen, 10 degree ground, his pad temperature would have diminished to around 40 degrees.  Within 10 minutes to around 35 degrees and soon frost bite could be at hand.  Conditions such as this, without becoming frost bitten, can cause sore, chapped and even cracked, bleeding pads. 

The best way to think about cold temperatures in relation to your dog is:  If you were out in cold conditions wearing only a light jacket with socks and sandals on your feet, HOW LONG WOULD YOU STAY OUT THERE?????

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You must always consider that the ratio of body weight to size, especially in small dogs, means that their body "core" temperature will decrease in cold weather much quicker then a large dog.  The lack of body mass allows the heat of the flesh to disperse into the coldness much faster.  A weatherization fact states "Heat Seeks Cold".  This applies to any source of heat, whether it emanates from you home heating device, your body, or the body of your dog.  That statement means, heat is attracted to the cold.  It is this movement of heat seeking the cold (leaving the body to travel to the cold) that makes our body temperature drop.  You'll notice, small dogs always shiver much sooner, with all external factors being relatively equal, then large dogs.  This body mass ratio is what affords healthy horses, cattle, deer, elk, and other large animals, the ability to remain outside in extremely cold weather.  This factor is also true in reverse in the summer.  Small dogs will feel the heat much more then larger dogs.  Did you ever notice how many big dogs will lie in the extremely hot sun for hours while small dogs, will always avoid the hot sun most of the day?

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Small dogs need a coat or sweater in frigid weather.  It matter not if they are short haired (Chihuahuas) or long haired (Westies/Poodles).

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SLIPPERY AND ICY CONDITIONS:

We are all concerned when our walking surface outside becomes icy so, we reach for one of several materials to correct the situation.  Most likely the material is:  Salt, chemical deicers, leftover fertilizer that you used on your lawn or garden last summer ( by the way this does work quite well to melt ice).  All of these will make YOUR walking much safer but, all of these and other can and probably will cause irritation to your dog's feet pads and that tender skin between the pads.  This irritation may show as a mild soreness all the way up to badly cracked and bleeding pads which probably will entail a trip to your Vet.  Being irritated, will cause him/her to lick the pads and between them which means, ingesting whatever chemicals are causing the problem.  If you will be walking your dog on public walkways, that most likely have had chemicals used on them recently, it would be wise to purchase some "doggie boots" or at least, as soon as you return home, wash his feet well with dog shampoo and rinse with plenty of water.  You only need to wash up the leg about 2" or so. There is only one material that we can think of that you can purchase to counteract slippery conditions and that is the cheepist "kitty litter" you can find.  It is nothing more then ground clay but, when scattered on ice, it creates great traction, won't harm your dog's feet, won't harm your concrete walks, won't harm plant life, washes away with the rain or a hose, and if tracked into the house (as some will be) it vacuums up nicely.  A word of warning!  Don't try to get fancy and purchase kitty litter that contains a substance which creates "clumping" for the cat box.  This type will clump, make a mess, and could cause you to trip and fall.  Think cheep! It's the best way to go!