Can't Keep My Dog Warm

[Megs]

Hi everyone :)

I have a hopeless 4 year old Ridgeback x Rottie who I can't keep warm at night. On colder nights she wakes up every morning grinding her teeth in pain / cold and is freezing to touch. She's had surgery on both her hind legs for ACL rupture, and recently has had a joint infection (from cruciate implant) & torn her groin muscle. She's on every pain relief possible & when she's warm copes fine with her dodgy legs. I'm after some ideas to keep her warm at night, particularly her legs. At the moment she sleeps inside on two thick beds, one is heated, and wears a weatherbeeta coat. She won't unfortunately tolerate a blanket for long. I'm i missing something obvious!? Is there somewhere that sells coats that can go down her hind legs & are super warm? Any suggestions much appreciated :).

[Roova]

Poor girl

Could you try her with a crate so you can put blankets over it to help keep warmth trapped inside?

[JulesP]

How about something like this - http://www.eurodogdesigns.com/Hurtta-Waterproof-Fleece-Overalls_p_143.html

I've recently got some coats from this company and the service was great. There are a couple of different ones on the site too.

[Christina]

Can you get someone to make her a pair of doggy pajamas with long legs in warm fleecy fabric.

Try the sewing thread or Etsy & do search. People make all sorts of weird & wonderful things on there

[kelpiecuddles]

Little Gifts makes doggy pyjamas :)

[Kirislin]

Poor girl

Could you try her with a crate so you can put blankets over it to help keep warmth trapped inside?

this was what I was thinking too.

[The Spotted Devil]

My Dally feels the cold - his bed at night is an open soft crate (sides rolled down), with a pretty but heavy linen fitted cover, thick newspaper lining the bottom, a Snooza D1000 bed and a thick winter blanket from the op shop. He usually wears a light coat as well. You can put your hand in the crate and it's just toasty warm. I often find one of the cats in there. If we are camping or at an agility trial in Winter I put a Hurtta coat on him and have him sleep on a self warming mat in addition to his other bedding.

Hurtta coat: https://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=2996

Crate warming pad: http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=3012

Edited April 4, 2014 by The Spotted Devil

[sheena]

How about something like this - http://www.eurodogdesigns.com/Hurtta-Waterproof-Fleece-Overalls_p_143.html

I've recently got some coats from this company and the service was great. There are a couple of different ones on the site too.

These are great & top quality. If she is really that cold, I would be putting a pair of these on her & putting her in a snug covered crate with a heat pad.

[Staffyluv]

We used to use an electric blanket under a blanket on an old dogs bed years ago.. Keep it on low, so they don't get too hot.

I also bought Zig some jackets from the Wolfs Den - they have a zip up the back, so easy to get on and off but they stay on and keep him warm. They are made from good quality fleecy material and if you speak with them, they will add an extra layer for more warmth.

Link to coats

Edited April 4, 2014 by Staffyluv

[Wundahoo]

Two polarfleece track tops..... one pulled over her hindquarters and the other pulled over her head and forelegs. I modify them by adding a row of elastic to the bottom hems to stop them from sagging around the waistline of the dog. Another way is to cut out a V shape and use velcro to join the edges so that the garments fit snugly around the dog's waist and chest area. I use velcro tabs to join the front garment to the rear garment. I have used this for one of my arthritic oldies who hated the cold but wouldnt tolerate anything like a blanket or heating.

An easier but more expensive option is to buy a thermal all-in-one. These can be bought at places like Khatmandu or via the net. Sometimes there needs to be a small amount of modification to make it dog-suitable rather than human suited !

I've found that these two options work well to help keep arthritic old legs warm and a coat can also be added to help keep extra body warmth in if it's really chilly.

Edit for S&g

Edited April 4, 2014 by Wundahoo

[Diva]

I would also look to her diet if she were mine, obviously impossibke to tell on the info provided but she might do better with an increase in animal fats.

[trifecta]

Are you sure it is just the cold, or should I say cooler nights? Afterall, it hasn't really been cold yet, lowest temperature we have had here so far this year in the Southern Tablelands of NSW is 6 degrees. I think it is more than just being cold, I would be looking at pain reaction. Teeth grinding could be indicative of gut problems - has she been on anti-inflammatories?

Oh sorry I just reread your post, of course you said she has been on all sorts of pain relief. I think you need to discuss this with your vet, there could be gut & circulatory problems going on.

Edited April 5, 2014 by trifecta

[Little Gifts]

Oh Megs I know exactly where you are coming from! I have a Tang style shar pei with a horse coat, which means she doesn't have much in the way of wrinkles or hair. Her undercarriage and legs are basically bald. Her first winter of life she spent with her litter mates. Her second one with me was a nightmare! She would shake with cold in her soft crate. She was terrified of anything over her body. I spent a fortune on heated beds and those round disc things that stay at a constant temp for 12 hours. Anything 'strange' in her crate and she'd do pretzels to be away from it. And she wasn't very knowledgeable about sleeping curled into a ball for body warmth either.

Eventually my other dog encouraged her to sleep on the bed with us and I started a very slow process of blanket bunching, first around her body and eventually over it. If I tried to pull her close to me or cuddle her for warmth she would panic and jump off the bed. She would be so cold she would shake the bed with her shivering. Even my other dog tried to help by sleeping close to her and pushing her nearer to me. As I make dog coats I custom made a style that she seemed to be able to cope with. It was very lightweight and loose, had full front legs and a big body so it would drape over her as she slept. Honestly this took months of persistence and now she is the best spooner ever! I actually have a photo of her with a blanket bunched right over her and only her nose poking out from late last year. It felt like a miracle to get her to that point!

I am more than happy to make a reasonably priced, custom made coat to suit your girl's needs if you want to send me a message? I have lots of different fleece fabric and coat styles available and have made them for cold frogs, large and oddly shaped dogs (shar pei are hardly standard - hence the custom making). Alternatively try those round disc heating pads. I think I got mine off ebay. They are hot pink in colour and designed for use with animals, so are waterproof and made from a tough plastic. Someone here might know the actual name of them?

Edited April 5, 2014 by Little Gifts

[Gallomph]

Alternatively try those round disc heating pads. I think I got mine off ebay. They are hot pink in colour and designed for use with animals, so are waterproof and made from a tough plastic. Someone here might know the actual name of them?

Snugglesafe microwave heat pads. I use them for my chihuahuas - they stay warm all night. The dogs don't exactly lie on them, cos they're too hard, but they lie next to them and one even rests his chin on his - and it keeps the whole bed warm.

[ness]

I like these coats https://www.backontrackproducts.com.au/pain-relief/195/dog-rugs/

[mita]

My Dally feels the cold - his bed at night is an open soft crate (sides rolled down), with a pretty but heavy linen fitted cover, thick newspaper lining the bottom, a Snooza D1000 bed and a thick winter blanket from the op shop. He usually wears a light coat as well. You can put your hand in the crate and it's just toasty warm. I often find one of the cats in there. If we are camping or at an agility trial in Winter I put a Hurtta coat on him and have him sleep on a self warming mat in addition to his other bedding.

Hurtta coat: https://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=2996

Crate warming pad: http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=3012

Sounds perfect! Love how the cat freeloads. Nothing like a puss to find the warmest spot. :)

[dogbesotted]

ok you have some really good suggestions already and now i am going to jump on the thyroid bandwagon. It may be worth your while to have your pups thyroid levels checked. one of the signs of hypothyroidism is "Difficulty maintaining body temperature may lead to frank hypothermia; the classic hypothyroid dog is a heat-seeker. " with thyroid insufficiency not all symptoms are present which leads many cases to be overlooked.

according to Dr Jean Dodds cruciate ligament rupture can be one of the clinical signs of canine hypothyroidism ( Neuromuscular symptoms) ( http://drjeandoddspethealthresource.tumblr.com/post/60944623740/dog-aberrant-behavior-thyroid-dysfunction#.Uz-dzKiSy8A )

a full blood thyroid panel should be carried out not just T4 . Tests that may confirm the diagnosis include measurement of the serum concentrations of total T4, free T4, and TSH; provocative thyroid function tests (eg, TSH stimulation test); thyroid gland imaging; and response to thyroid hormone supplementation.

H

[trifecta]

Yes, dogbesotted, this really resonates with me. It is not normal for a dog to be that cold at this time of year. After I had posted earlier I was also thinking kidneys! Failure to regulate temperature is also an indication of kidney problems.

[Megs]

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions, I've been googling and racking my brain for ages, should have known to just go straight to dol!

The crate is a fantastic idea, with a heavy duty blanket over it & a doona on top of her bedding & up the sides a bit it should work well. I'm also going to order a coat from euro dogs & little gifts, exactly the sort of in the know info I needed :)

I should have mentioned previously for all the thoughtful people concerned about her health that she has had a complete blood panel, a t4 test & a oral exam under GA within the last 3 months. The teeth grinding did start when she ruptured her cruciates before starting anti-inflammatories so I'm pretty sure it's not a gut issue. She had a shocking morning this morning so off to do some measuring & buying now.

Thanks again, you guys are the best :)

Edited to add I'm now living in Tassie so the nights are fairly cold already,

Edited April 5, 2014 by Megs

[sandgrubber]

In my kennel days we sometimes constructed warm 'caves' for small dogs by bending weld-mesh into an arch and piling blankets on top of it. Then place the cave on or over the dog's bed.

We started doing this for cats, and then found it worked for dogs as well. That is, many dogs preferentially sought out the 'cave' for a sleeping place, and if you stuck your hand into it on a cold morning you could tell it was warm.

Heating pads didn't usually work cause the dogs generally avoided them. Seems more natural to keep a dog warm by giving it an environment that preserves its body heat.