As the UK continues to be bashed with freezing temperatures this week, it can be really tempting to stay indoors wrapped up in a cosy blanket with your chosen hot beverage. But unfortunately for those with a canine companion, constantly staying indoors is out of the question.
Our four-legged friends still need to be walked each day in order to stay healthy, and this does not change because of the weather. On Thursday (January 9), the Met Office extended its yellow weather warning of ice and snow in the Highlands, Grampian, and Orkney and Shetland until mid morning Friday, January 10
As the chilly weather continues, many owners are growing more concerned about whether it is safe or not to take their furry friend outside. Google searches for “keep a pet warm” have increased by a staggering +509 percent in the winter months, highlighting the nation’s concern for man’s best friend.
Frederica Caneiro, a certified dog trainer at Woofz by nove8, a puppy and dog training app, said: “Dogs are warm-blooded, and long walks outside in low temperatures can lead to hypothermia or frostbite.
“Keeping your dog indoors in freezing winter weather may be a good idea, especially if it’s -7°C or lower. Though dogs have different tolerances to cold temperatures, you can use some general guidelines to know how long you can keep your dog outside in winter,” reports The Mirror.
She added: “When the outside temperature drops below 0C, keep your winter walks short and track your dog’s signs of discomfort, such as shivering and taking paws off the ground. Below -6C, it can be too dangerous for your dog to stay outside unless you use dog coats and jackets.
“Depending on your dog’s breed, they should walk barefoot in the snow for no more than 15-30 minutes. Besides the cold ground, your dog may damage their feet because salt covers the sidewalks. To keep dogs’ paws safe in winter, use dog boots, apply paw balm, and wipe down the paws after walks.”
Temperatures have been predicted to drop as low at -20C in Scotland, and the Met Office’s updated weather warning for the northeast of Scotland predicts that another 1-4cm of snow is to accumulate on low levels away from the coast, with 5-10cm possible above 150m.
However, it has been predicted that the weather will turn milder on Sunday and this should follow into next week.
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