The days when dogs dressed in warm sweaters were the object of ridicule are hopefully long gone. Various sweaters or raincoats are mostly the prerogative of small breeds, but they will do a good service for many larger breeds as well.
Dogs can be cold just like people. Large breeds with thick fur are equipped to stay in snow or frost and they may only need to be dressed in the case of an old or sick animal, but for small or sparsely furred breeds it is literally a necessity, which protects them from catching a cold and, last but not least, thermal comfort makes them more comfortable to stay in weather where even a dog would not drive out.
„People sometimes forget that a dog that lives in an apartment is not used to temperature jumps. When it runs out of twenty degrees straight into the cold, it’s literally a shock to its organism,“ explains Martin Pučálka, a dog food seller. Most often, clothes are needed for breeds such as chihuahuas, bulldogs, maltese dogs, greyhounds or yorksheers.
Disease prevention
Just a few decades ago, everyone was forced to sew a sweater for a small or older dog from old blankets, today dog overalls are often literally a fashion accessory – but certainly not JUST a fashion accessory. Investing in proper, well-tailored clothes will pay off in saved veterinary bills: the dog will not get sick as easily and, last but not least, it will protect its joints.
Don’t forget to take care of your paws either, lubricate them regularly with a nourishing balm, pay attention to its composition: dogs lick their paws, so it should be 100% natural.
Don’t forget raincoats even in spring: an animal with damp fur gets cold more easily. The threshold temperature is around 15 °C.
How to choose a suitable outfit?
It’s not just a question of size, but also gender: in short, bitches urinate differently (and elsewhere) than dogs, so a sweater for a female needs to have a larger opening between the back legs. Choose the material according to the weather: softshell protects against the wind and warms a little, warmed overalls are also suitable for cold weather, in summer a raincoat is enough. Reflective elements will increase its visibility for you and the driver.
You could find this article in the magazine Recipe No. 02/26.
