Cold Weather Paw Protection is Helping Plato Have Fun and Stay Fit
Plato is a very fuzzy dog who adores the cold weather. You can see the happiness on his face when he runs in the snow and wind. He loves the smells of winter and his delight is contageous! We need the walks for our sanity and fitness in the winter and I can't imagine staying inside just because it's cold and snowy. Plato's not crazy about slipping on ice and he doesn't like ice balls getting stuck in the pads of his paws. When the snow is sticky and balls up in his paws, Plato limps for awhile and then stops to try to bite the ice balls out. I help him by taking off my mitten and pulling the ice balls out with my fingers. He'd rather do it himself but that doesn't work very well so he grudgingly lets me do it. Plato always licks his paws thoroughly when we get back from our walks. Yuck. Road salt and deicer cannot possibly be good for his skin or his insides. People offer lots of helpful suggestions for slippery conditions such as kitty litter, fireplace wood ash and sandbox sand. These are great alternatives for around our home but do not deal with road chemicals when we take our daily walks away from home.
Wipe/Wash Your Dogs Feet. Or try Dog Boots!
Putting boots on dogs seems to provoke strong reactions in people. Some people think the boots are adorable and amusing. Others seem to think I am just dressing Plato up to look cute and that I should get over it. And some understand that boots can help protect Plato's feet. We used to put boots on our senior dog Bailey all year round when we went walking because he dragged his old arthritic back legs and damaged his feet unless he wore boots. Plato's legs are fine but with him, I am concerned about the pain that ice balls in his paws cause Plato. I am also worried about dry skin and cracking paws as well as the detrimental health effects from ingesting road chemicals when he licks off his feet. , was well as the discomfort of ice balls in his pads.
I tried wiping and washing Plato's feet after walking, but it hasn't worked so well for us. Plato hates it when I dunk his feet in water. By the time I get to the second or third paw, the bucket is usually knocked over and I have a big mess to clean up. And I don't think just wiping his feet off is good enough protection from road chemicals. So, I finally started putting boots on Plato when the snow is sticky and the roads are likely to be treated with salt or deicers. We use a sort of sneaker boot made by Ruffwear. Our favorite is the Bark'n Boots Grip Trex all season footwear with a Vibram sole. We tried a lot of boots on Bailey. Some didn't fit very well and others wore out quickly. The Bark'n Boots worked great for Bailey on his back two paws, and they're great on all of Plato's feet. We laughed to the point of tears at Plato's funny walk the first time we put the boots on him, but we collected ourselves, clipped on his leash and hit the road. Within seconds, Plato seemed to forget about the boots as he walked enthusiastically before entering into a spirited job just slow enough for me to keep up! The boots are great protection from ice balls and road chemicals and I admit it, they're cute too! I know we'll bring the boots with us on hikes too. Try it!
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