Outdoor Run When is it too cold? - Page 2

Hay is dried grass, straw is dried stalks from a grain (ie wheat).

CrashKerry is right.  I'll amplify and say that hay is what horses eat, and straw is what they sleep on.  So generally speaking, hay is the green stuff and straw is the yellow stuff.  Good for you, because hay is usually more expensive than straw.  Wheat straw's a good one to get.

Straw works better because it's hollow stems and more insulating. Don't buy dirty, dusty stuff, but a nice, clean dust- & mold-free bale. 

I use vet bedding cut into long strips 5meters long and about 30 cm wide and pile that in the kennels sleeping area

it is expensive but can be washed and dried in a day and lasts for ages

I do not know that our Dogs sufer from the cold as we humans do

All my life with Dogs over 57 years of keeping them they have always lived outside 24/7

at the present time my  two live outdoors they have a steel fenced Pen open to the elements on all four sides, a roof over the Top and that is it

They have a wood kennel to sleep in and nothing inside the kennel, they lay on the floor, which is double skin layer and 3'' off the ground

The reason they have nothing inside is they would pull it ourside the kennel and they do it everytime so now nothing  inside for the last five years

They are never ill, they never give the impression they are feeling the cold, you will soon see this in the eyes of the Dog if it is feeling the cold

The coat shines and i do believe that a dog living outside 24/7 grows a thicker coat  than a Dog living in a House with Central heating with or without it,

Nature looks after its own

Never had any skin problems with the Dogs all those years, very few Vets Bills in there life time

It matters not if the Tempeture drops to 8 degs below freezing Celsius about 42 Fahrenheit and it does at times

Tonight it is below freezing about 3 below but it will not bother the dogs at all

Steve

Falcon,

Hay will rot, and it can contain tick's, along with weed seed's and other insect's.

Straw is fairly sterile and doesn't rot.   

Straw can be expensive depending on where you live.   Some year's you simply can't buy hay at all, depend's on demand, hay is feed.

Red Cedar shaving's are good for keeping away certain insect's and smell's great but it too will rot in time if it get's wet.

Moon's.

Straw will break up within a week and create a lot of dust, so if you use it it must be changed in that time, thats my opinion, plus you will when cleaned out see dust on the floor of the box

Make sure it is not damp or mouldy bail, and has been kept inside by the farmer choose one carefully

We use a lot of Straw for the Racing pigeons and we have to be careful it is Clean, to the point we spread it outside in the sun and air to blow any  dust out of it we do not want any dust breathed in

Better to go to the pet store and buy the straw for small mammals it will have been cleaned, in Straw you will get spores, i do not like it on the whole, a Dog will be  quite okay on the floor of the kennel,

if it does not mess with a blanket then just put down a blanket in its box

If I put one in my Dogs Boxes it will be outside in the Pen before i get indoors

Steve

If you kennel outside ( with a very well insulated dog house) please make sure you increase food intake, use a heated water bucket, body condition is very important during cold weather.  I know this is dah statement but you would not believe the situations that walk thru the door.

If you kennel outside ( with a very well insulated dog house) please make sure you increase food intake, use a heated water bucket, body condition is very important during cold weather.  I know this is dah statement but you would not believe the situations that walk thru the door.

You do not need an insulated Dog house for a Dog to live outdoors

A normal Wood Kennel is enough with perhaps a double skin floor such as i have

As i said over 57 years of Dogs living outside with no ill effects or and illness related to living outdoors proves this point never any skin problems always a shining thick healthy coat Clear Bright eyes and No extra food than there normal intake, But it is every one to there likes and do what they will, as i have never had trouble in any shape or form for all mty life with dogs

Steve

TessJ10 is right about the straw. It is hollow so it insulates the dog's heat better on cold day's/nights. I live in Michigan and it can be brutal out by me. I have 4 dog's that stay outside with a kennel, dog house that has plenty of straw and really nice water bucket heater's that are stainless steel inside. I've had those buckets work for up to 10 yrs. My dog's absolutely love the winter time, and if it gets too cold for them they just stay in their comfy, well insulated dog house's. It is true that you do have to watch how your dog acts, as every dog is different, especially if their not use to being outside in the winter. They need to build up their winter coat and definately increase their food intake if you plan on keeping them outside as someone else said on here.