Does anyone have any suggestions or products to recommend for keeping my dogs warm at agility and when training?
Kili is a HUGE wuss about the cold. Today at agility class she was pokey, avoiding jumps, harder to engage (more distracted) simply because she was cold. I could not get her to engage in play with me (with or without a toy) and even her favourite activity of chasing me... she mostly refused to move faster than a trot. She wears her sweater for class and training now that it is cold, but evidently it is not enough. And it was cold today... but if she would just get her little butt moving she'd be fine. After the first 10 minutes I took my jacket off and worked in my sweater for the rest of class with no problems.
I kept her out of her crate most of the time and while the other dog was working I jogged and walked her around the arena and tried to engage her in play activities. Nada.
So now I'm basically looking for things I could buy that people have had success with. I'm thinking of those of you living in northern climates with thin fur coats (Penny's mom!) and what you do to keep your dogs warm when working in sub zero temps.
I am thinking about getting her a "Back on Track" coat to try to warm up her muscles at least. I know it won't really make HER warm (core temp) but if her muscles are warmer maybe that will help. Are there any jackets that are easy on-easy off or that allow enough mobility that she can run in them that also offer superior warmth? Keeping in mind that most coats for regular dogs don't fit my greyhounds well, so it's preferable if there is a "long and lean" variety of the coat (was super happy to see that Back On Track offers a greyhound coat).
Kili is a HUGE wuss about the cold. Today at agility class she was pokey, avoiding jumps, harder to engage (more distracted) simply because she was cold. I could not get her to engage in play with me (with or without a toy) and even her favourite activity of chasing me... she mostly refused to move faster than a trot. She wears her sweater for class and training now that it is cold, but evidently it is not enough. And it was cold today... but if she would just get her little butt moving she'd be fine. After the first 10 minutes I took my jacket off and worked in my sweater for the rest of class with no problems.
I kept her out of her crate most of the time and while the other dog was working I jogged and walked her around the arena and tried to engage her in play activities. Nada.
So now I'm basically looking for things I could buy that people have had success with. I'm thinking of those of you living in northern climates with thin fur coats (Penny's mom!) and what you do to keep your dogs warm when working in sub zero temps.
I am thinking about getting her a "Back on Track" coat to try to warm up her muscles at least. I know it won't really make HER warm (core temp) but if her muscles are warmer maybe that will help. Are there any jackets that are easy on-easy off or that allow enough mobility that she can run in them that also offer superior warmth? Keeping in mind that most coats for regular dogs don't fit my greyhounds well, so it's preferable if there is a "long and lean" variety of the coat (was super happy to see that Back On Track offers a greyhound coat).
I HAVE trained her in a pair of flannel jammies. I keep them on under her fleece, then when it's our turn, take the fleece off so she was just in the flannel. The place I order from does custom measurements, specifically for sighthounds, so the fit is great. Usually we're good if she's just coated between runs, though.