What do you do in bad weather?

[Jmm4]

When I feel that my puppy has a good grip on what I'm teaching her, ill move on to the next command...I had a Border Collie mix and at 10 weeks old she knew roll over, shake, hide your face, crawl (this one is fun!) speak, and lots of other stuff I can't remember. If your pup is soaking it up and having fun, why stop?


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[qbchottu]

Obedience or tracking games indoors. A good bone or food puzzle. Go out anyway when the weather lets up a bit - a little rain and snow never hurt anyone!

[Scarlettsmom]

We bundle and head out. I will be doing that in about an hour. Unless it's a tropical downpour or actively thundering, we are walking. Our goal is 2-3 miles a day. If it is raining though, there are no golfers on the course and we can walk the course and play "shepherd golf". Basically we run Scarlett 200 yards down the longest hole and back. She's usually totally muddy and tired out when we are finished with a few rounds of SG.

[Narny]

Originally Posted by carmspack

get wet , get dirty and curse .

no really , the dogs go out no matter what - as working dogs they need to ready and able to perform.

no dogs running for shade and quiting -- no dogs loosing "umph" because it is raining .

This is basically us lol. Lulu has spent a lot of time in her crate today (its icky out) but I also ran her in it last night and will again tonight when my husband gets home. Just kind of the way it goes.

Its really just bad weather for us not to them.

[Wild Wolf]

Oh, we go out. Best hiking weather is in a snow storm, dogs are excited and nobody else it out! Dogs love to get dirty and messy and play in the crazy weather, so do I. They gotta get their exercise and training in no matter what it's like outside.

[Saphire]

How I envy all of you. Being a dogless house at the moment, my walks and hikes have lost purpose and enjoyment. Before losing Floyd, the best walks were in the worst weather. I can't imagine ever keepiningg him from jumping through the snow, puddles and mud.

[shepherdmom]

Originally Posted by Zisso

My two are going stir crazy. With temps in the low teens to single digits I don't do much with them. They are fine witht he cold weather but I can't stay out in it too long. While we are in a bigger house, my brother has it so tore up with multiple remodeling projects we can't do anything indoors. They go out without me frequently during the day, but I am sure they miss having 'mom' to play with. There are not eough bones in the world to keep them entertained, so eventually, somehow, someway, I am going to get my own place so we can t least work on stuff indoors.

I don't do well in the really cold weather either. We have a dog door so they can go outside whenever they want. I also will bundle up and take them out into the full fenced yard more frequently but for less time. Where I would do two play trips into the full yard 30-40 mins. I do 4 trips at 10 min each. Its not enough but I do what I can and add in extra bones and play time inside.

Forgot to add put them in the car and take them for a ride. They enjoy that.

[RowdyDogs]

Well, I live in the desert and mountains so we get the opposite extremes--sometimes it is so hot that you're limited in what you can do, even if you make a point of getting up super early/taking them out after dark, and other times it is so cold and snowy and windy, you don't want to do anything!

Dressing appropriately and just dealing with it is really the best option. Invest in some wicking long underwear (don't bother with the cheap cotton/polyester stuff you can find at Walmart--it will get wet if you sweat at all and be worse than nothing) and some good winter trekking socks. Layers are your friend, and loose is better--my long underwear is form fitting, but then everything else is sort of loose to allow warm air to be trapped in it. Then you toss on a wind- and waterproof outer layer (pants and coat) and a good hat, and things get a lot more bearable.

But, stepping up fun indoor activities is good, particularly for a pup that young who may not be okay with cold temperatures for long (as far as that goes, I'd ask your vet to be safe, you can probably just call and they'll tell you--normally though I just watch my dogs for signs that they're cold or want to go in).

I like clicker training and trick training. Hiding a smelly treat somewhere in the house and sending her to find it can be a lot of fun for puppies too. Tug, puzzle treats, anything that gets her thinking and engaged.

[ayoitzrimz]

We get wet, and cold... no we do go out regardless of the weather. I'll still work on OB in the rain especially heavy rain so the dog can get used to it in trialing but I'll go very light and mostly play with him until it's so ingrained he's not even phased by the weather during OB.

I won't do anything else though as far as tracking / protection - too much risk to slip etc

[martinaa]

I suppose with a 10 week old puppy you'll have to keep an eye on her if you have an abrupt cold snap. I wouldn't worry as long as you are above 20 degrees though.

Otherwise its just all about being properly dressed. Driving rain and heavy thunder are pretty much the only things that stop us. And you can usually wait those storms out. None of my shepherds have had "too cold" in their vocabulary but we live up in Mn where it rarely gets below 40 below. Of course we spend a lot of time outside so they are always adapted to the current season. Shepherds are always appropriately dressed for any occasion - be it formal majesty, casual mud wrestling, or diving into snowbanks.