Is it to cold for the dogs?

Shorthair Hunters

Shorthair Hunters

Member
I have plans to go out east on Saturday to hunt but with the 0 degree low they are calling for in Burlington and forcasting some wind putting the wind chill at negative 15+. I am concerned if this might be to cold for my GSP and my cousins Labs? The Labs have a thicker hide and fur then my GSP (i know how thick her hide is because of the times she has split it open) but i am concerned about the cold, i planned on putting her insulated chest protector on to help just not sure any comments?:confused:
 
Shorthair Hunters said:
I have plans to go out east on Saturday to hunt but with the 0 degree low they are calling for in Burlington and forcasting some wind putting the wind chill at negative 15+. I am concerned if this might be to cold for my GSP and my cousins Labs? The Labs have a thicker hide and fur then my GSP (i know how thick her hide is because of the times she has split it open) but i am concerned about the cold, i planned on putting her insulated chest protector on to help just not sure any comments?:confused:
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The only time I've ever seen any of my dogs get too cold is when they get ice/snow packed in their coats. Not sure I've ever had them out when it was -15 though:eek:
 
We hunt in temps well below zero on occasion(not the last two years) and the dogs are fine. Presumably you are not getting them wet.
 
As long as they keep moving and aren't soaked, they should be fine. Also, the back of the truck may be a bit cold for them.
 
I use the Neoprene jackets on them at those temps. I also have them in the truck/suv for transport. I usually quit before they do.
 
my concern would be for the whole party.be sure to bring the survival gear in case of vehicle stoppage.i guess cell phone coverage is a lot better than it was several years ago.ever hear the term "ground blizzard",have fun
 
I have hunted in my dogs in those kinds of conditions. As long as they are running and not wet they are fine, but I was freezing my fanny off.

But setters have much better coats for those kind of conditions than a shorthair.
 
chadsbritt said:
As long as they keep moving and aren't soaked, they should be fine. Also, the back of the truck may be a bit cold for them.
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I have a Tacoma pick up with a shell. I secure a crate in the back and wrap it with a doubled bedspread. I put about 20" of bedding in the crate. My dog heads straight for the crate for the trip out in the morning and does fine. He does'nt even notice the cold while hunting, but heads back into the crate for the colder trip home. Dogs have an amazing metabolism.
 
Just got back from hunting a cattail swamp . . . 20-degree start. My Bourbonnais has NO undercoat, wears a Skid Plate chest protector & was fine. He rides in the cab to & from, however (and Hank is in primo condition after hunting hard all season). Dogs stay plenty warm while hunting. His feet & legs got wet a few times, but no issues. Your GSP should be okay, but I wouldn't have him travel in the bed of the truck in a crate, even an insulated crate.
 
Was at the hunt club I belong to yesterday. Temp was 13 degrees with a 15-20 mph wind. Rained the day before and snow pack became concrete like after the re-freeze and was pretty tough on the dogs feet. My GSP was fine as long as he was moving, but when we stopped to take a break, the shivering began. I have a truck with a cap and use a portable kennel with an insulated kennel cover. When zipped up tight, he generates quite a bit of heat in there and does fine.
 
Thanks for all the comments and concerns,

We did head out Saturday and as we expected it was cold, -3 in Limon and 3 in Burlington. Once the sun came up we had a breeze that continued throughout the day with the temp eventually reaching 20. Even with the higher temps i could not keep the dogs water bottles from freezing. I kept the chest protector on Orley and dried her off before getting into her dog box where she had a nice snuggly pile of straw and pine chips. We ended up with 2 birds and both missed one, got permission from another farmer to hunt their tree line, we have had very few tell us no. Not sure if they think we are crazy for going through all we do for a bird but most give us permission and alot of them are thankfull we asked instead of just trespassing, so all in all we had a good day. Can't say the same for the Bronco's but we'll get them next year.
 
The dogs are tougher than us so if we can deal with the cold so can they. I remember being up in the high Sierras hunting mountain quail a few years ago. The temp was hovering around 0 when we woke up (camped in the bed of the truck with no topper) and there was a dusting of snow on the ground. After about a half hour JP heads towards the creek so I follow. He busted through the ice to go swimming for a bit to cool off.:D He had ice cicals on all his feathing and ears when he got out, damn crazy dog.:cheers:
 
I took my shorthairs out yesterday and they didn't act like the cold phased them at all. It was a whopping 3 degrees when we started. The birds held pretty tight and shot a few roosters in wheat fields on some great points. Keep the dogs dry and moving and everything will be just fine.
 
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