November 18, 2014

How My Reactive Dog Helps Me Appreciate Winter


When most people think of Colorado, they think of skiing and other winter sports. I'm a Colorado native and not only am I not a skier, snowboarder (save for one season in college), snowshoer or snowmobiler, but I really don't care for winter at all. I dread the short days, dark nights and cold temperatures, the donning of bulky gear and the scraping of frozen windshields. If I had my way, I'd just eat a bunch of pasta and hibernate until spring; however, I have dogs...dogs that need walks.

Boca's feelings on this snow and ice business mirror my own. She came from a tropical island and doesn't understand this cold, white sand. Ruby spent her first winter outings last year shivering, but seems to have acclimated quite well and got a serious case of the zoomies on my patio when it was covered with fresh snow this weekend. Both girls have very short hair and I feel that coats are a necessity for them when it's 30 degrees or less, which it has been more often than not for over a week now. Boca also wears booties because her paws seem especially sensitive.

As much as I drag my feet into my snow boots, I have to admit that winter-time walking does have its perks when you have a reactive dog. Here are some of the things I've grown to appreciate:

  • Snow is a wonderful sound-proofer. With the exception of some new noises like the scrape of snow shovels and the rumble of the snow plow, things are generally quieter when snow blankets the ground. We've been enjoying some top-notch snuggling with less distracting noise from outside.

  • The rabbits are less active! There is one that has made its den right outside my front door, but Ruby doesn't know that, and we have been seeing far fewer on our walks. 

  • Taking back the pavement! Aside from the most die-hard of runners, our streets and sidewalks are emptier and blessedly free of cyclists and skateboarders. We can even venture into the open space near my house without fear of many encounters.  

  • More playtime! With scarcer and shorter walks, I have to get creative with other ways for Ruby to burn energy. Much to her delight, we've been playing her most favorite thing - tug - more often, as well as working on increasing her confidence with fetch and brushing up on her tricks. My couch potato Boca is content to spend her extra time napping.

  • It's actually kind of pretty out there. Let's be honest...if not for the dogs, I would be spending a lot more time in my pajama pants and a lot less time trying to figure out how I can manage the poop bags without taking my gloves off (spoiler alert: I can't). Seeing my breath is not high on my list of priorities, but sometimes, when the snow is crunching under my feet in that inexplicably satisfying way and Boca is doing her funny pony-bucks out of sheer joy and Ruby's cute snout is dusted with frost, I think for just a moment that winter is not so bad.

11 comments:

  1. Hmm... I was going to comment on the Reactive Dogs FB group, but I guess you weren't allowed to keep the post up?? I'm in Toronto and this morning it was -22 degrees Celsius (-7 F) with the wind chill. It definitely is a struggle in winter, but I'm glad my dog gets me out of the house (otherwise I'd probably gain 10kgs!). It's also fun to watch her prance around in the snow. I love that there are so fewer people and dogs out in winter. Makes it much more manageable in some ways.

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    1. Thanks for visiting! Yes, I did not realize you couldn't post links there. We've had a few days below zero here as well, although this week it has warmed up considerably. I'm glad you and your dog have found ways to enjoy the winter, too!

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  2. I really love the silence when it snows, and I also love not going to work on snow days. This is the only time where I'm by myself with Bain off leash is in a snowstorm, we have a large field here. No one is out there and he gets to run around safely for once.

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    1. Ah, snow days! I remember once when we got a huge blizzard (several feet) with my previous dogs, letting them run loose since they couldn't go far in the deep snow and there was literally NO ONE around.

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  3. I also hate the winter, the dark, and the clouds. But I'm so glad Honey drags me out every day. I'd also join the pajama brigade. And then I'd feel awful.

    I'm astounded at how many people in upstate NY simply stop walking their dogs in the winter. We won't see some of our neighbors until spring.

    That's a real benefit for reactive dogs and their people. There are so few folks and their pups to be concerned with.

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  4. I'm also in the firmly hate winter club. Which is hilarious since we just moved from California to Oregon. :D Zoe is also in that club. Phoenix doesn't like cold wet weather but she's okay if it's just cold but sunny. I do enjoy having less people to deal with, though!!

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  5. I love winter. I had never really thought about how snow dampens noise, but it does.

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  6. My Shyla is "reactive" but in a different way. She cowers and tries to hide when we meet certain dogs and people. I have noticed how nice it is that there are so many fewer people out and about in winter. That's something to love!

    Ah, skateboards. We haven't even come close to trying to face that one recently when we're in town. When it happens by accident, Shyla has a meltdown... but it hasn't happened in a long time (hypervigilant me).

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  7. We already do have -6 in Estonia and i really do love it! Everything is white and clean :) Also the viruses will fade away. And Kiefer loves so much playing on frozen grass :)

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  8. I'm with you, I'm not, absolutely not, a fan of winter. However, I do agree with you for all the reasons you mentioned, snow can be great for walking... as long as I'm bundled up enough!

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  9. Another sub-zero joy: watching the "dragons" run and run, then puff great gouts of white steam when they come to a stop.

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