[frenchie27]

Way ahead of time I ask you all this:

We will be traveling with our GSD Charlie to Taos in NM in xmas. He will be a year and two months by then. We live in south Texas, needless to say neither one of us is used to cold weather. It's about 10-40 degrees max in Taos during that season but it can go down to minus 10 or so.

Is it a good idea to put a jacket on him or their fur is sufficient? He is not long haired. He does have a beautiful thick black coat.

The questions may be stupid, but I always care for him, maybe too much? don't answer that one.

 

[GSDLVR76]

We live in Alaska and Shilo has never had a coat even when it was 50 below zero here last winter. So I think he would be ago with what god have him.

 

[frenchie27]

enough said. thank you so much.

 

[middleofnowhere]

When I lived in Wyoming I did occassionally use a coat (on the dogs.) Usually we would use a reflective one for walking at night (it helped people see us big time) but if it was really cold (-10 or lower) I'd sometimes stick them in their jackets. (Wyoming is infamous for wind & cold.) It will be a little cooler in Taos than it is in Southern Texas but not all that much.

 

[SunCzarina]

If he's going from your warmer climate in TX then *bam* the next day he's visiting a climate where it's 10 below with the wind chill, he won't have developed that thick undercoat over night. I would get him a jacket.

 

[frenchie27]

Any jacket that you recommend?

 

[AbbyK9]

German Shepherds can do extremely well in very cold temperatures and they can do just as well in very hot temperatures - if they get a chance to acclimatize.

Since you'll be visiting - ie, going from a very warm climate to a cold climate literally overnight - your dog will not have a chance to acclimatize properly and will very likely be uncomfortable in the cold weather. So a coat would be a good option to give him a little bit of extra protection from the elements.

Personally, I like the dog jackets that are designed like horse blankets - like these ones http://caninestyles.com/coats_horsereflective.php - rather than dog jackets that are designed like human clothing. The blanket style is a lot more functional and comfortable for a dog, versus the things with sleeves and hoods and all that nonsense.

That site I linked is kind of expensive, but you can look for dog blankets on a lot of sites that sell horse blankets - they often sell both and for much more reasonable prices.

Of course, you could always make your own.

I did.

 

[middleofnowhere]

If I am not mistaken Taos New Mexico is relatively mild climate with possible light snow. A light jacket would be the most that would be required. Assuming you won't be doing this once a month for several years, I'd by a cheap fleece or even just a windbreaker type jacket. Gosh, unless it was 0 or less we walked short haired dogs without jackets in winter in Wyoming which is a heck of a lot colder than Taos ever thought of being.