I used to love winter. But when you’ve got a 60-pound excitable dog yanking you right and left as you go for a walk, you learn to appreciate firm ground and traction.
Obviously, you don’t get either of these when you’re on the ice.
“Well then, don’t walk your dog!” said one of my friends. “You don’t have to be out there at the crack of dawn every morning for two hours.”
Uh, yes I do.
My dog needs exercise at the start of every day, and if I am going to be totally honest, I’ve become addicted to our early morning walks as well. I feel flat, dull and without energy if I don’t roll out bed and hike through one of the nearby parks for at least an hour.
So not walking isn’t an option. And this presents two problems:
1) How do I avoid having my dog yank me down on the ice or slippery snowy paths?
2) How do I prevent her from stopping every 10 feet and pathetically holding up one of her paws because she’s bothered by an ice or snow clump that’s wedged its way in between the pads of her paws?
Problem #1 remains a work in progress and I have to say, we’re doing quite well.
Problem #2 was much easier to solve. All it took was a little research.
At first, it seemed my only option was a pair of dog booties. But my dog is not a fan of having her paws touched for any reason, so I couldn’t see booties being a success.
I continued searching online because I had to find a solution. Walking my dog on snow and ice can be a living hell because she’s the classic Princess and the Pea. Every other step, something cold has invaded one of her pads and she refuses to move.
And let me tell you, there’s nothing like having to remove my mittens in single-digit weather to work a clump of ice out of her paws with my bare fingers.
Eventually, I stumbled onto something called Invisible Booties — or Musher’s Secret.
Sled dogs use it, said the ad.
Really? Then it has to work, right? I mean, they’re in snow up to their knees. And if it’s good enough for huskies …
I remember buying just one small tin and when it arrived, I sniffed it. It’s organic, so if my dog licks her paws, no problem. It smells nice — kind of menthol-y — and it has the consistency of chap stick.
I smeared it on her paws, doing it slowly and giving her lots of praise as I’d run my hand down each leg to get her to shift her balance. (If you’ve ever picked a horse’s hooves, it’s the same principle). Strangely for a dog who HATES having anyone touch her feet (she’s a groomer’s delight), she seemed to like me putting on the Musher’s Secret.
Once her pads were covered, we headed outside. That first day, we did a 2-hour walk. She stopped once — and that was because she’d jumped into a huge snow bank and probably got some really cold clumps wedged in her pads.
I am thrilled with Musher’s Secret — and have since bought two more huge tubs of it. I’ve given their pamphlets out to my friends and recommended it to strangers when I see them stopping to pick ice or chunks of salt out of their dog’s feet.
It’s not often I find a product I rave about, but I’m raving about this one. Having said that, I’d really prefer not to see any snow or ice this winter!
How does your dog like the snow? Let us know in the comments section below.
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