I thought chatting about keeping our fur babies warm at night would be interesting- whether you own a dog or pet-sit them, we all want our pups to be cosy!
What are your favourite tips for keeping dogs warm at night? Do you have a go-to bedding or a special routine that works? How do you deal with different dog breeds that feel the cold differently? Please reply and share your thoughts!
I can’t wait to hear your ideas about how to keep pups nice and snug! (And bonus points for anyone with cute cosy dog photos!)
My dogs love to snuggle on a plaid of wool - or even better if available - a sheepskin! Of course, a plaid is easier to wash - if you get the type that can take a whirl in the washing machine without shrinking.
My brother’s Sealyham terriers love the wood burning stove lit when it’s cold and jostle for the best position. Bert who is 13 is usually at the front. On this occasion he got too hot and had to move leaving Arthur and Pippa aged 3 to
Our dog has multiple beds, each with a blanket. He tends to prefer the doughnut ones.
The fleece blankets serve as warmth, as well as security — I notice that our dog sleeps more peacefully when his head is mostly covered, maybe because he realizes when I cover him that he’s safe. That happens even when we road trip and I cover him.
We’ve often stayed at dog-friendly hotels with him. Sometimes they offer gift packs for dogs. One of them, a golf resort-type hotel in Florida, included a blanket in their gift pack. It looks like a little baby blanket, so cute. Covered in little colorful embroidered circles. It might actually be a baby blanket.
I love the fleece blankets. I have used them to keep my legs warm and snuggle with pets. I brought this fleece blanket on my last sit and Benji loved it. Since Benji loved it so much, I donated it for him.
The HO commented that he likes it because it has my scent. But I think he likes it also for the softness, and “warmth and security” that you mentioned.
I did a sit in Scotland during winter and my host kindly left me an electric blanket (texture like yours) in case. It was sitting on one of the leather couches and I noticed that the dog loved to curl on it. I ended up not needing it, but the dog loved it (not plugged in).
Separately, we keep fluffy, washable dog rugs for our dog. Like we have one by the casual dining table in each home we’ve owned since getting him. That way, he can rest comfortably whether the flooring is hardwood or tile.
Before getting the dog rugs, I noticed that he always chose to sit on the closest rug or mat when we had meals, because apparently he didn’t like resting on tile or wood flooring (unless he came in from a walk and was trying to cool off when the weather was hot.)
We did one sit where we had to put fleece pyjamas on the 3 short-haired dogs at night. They slept on their beds in the boot room and - like most dogs - couldn’t keep their blankets on, so this was the pet parents way of making sure they kept warm at night.
But I think he likes it also for the softness, and “warmth and security” that you mentioned.
