Do dogs actually need to wear jackets in winter in Australia?

Australia Broadcast Center

14 hours ago

As large parts of the country shiver through winter, making sure our loved ones are rugged up in their warmest clothes is a top priority. And for many of us, that includes our four-legged family members.
But does your dog actually need to wear a jacket?
According to experts, that depends on a variety of factors, including their size, breed and how cold it gets where you live.
One of the main determining factors for whether your dog needs a jacket is how small they are, according to Susan Hazel, an associate professor from the University of Adelaide who specialises in research into animal welfare, behaviour and ethics.
Dr Hazel says dogs that are less than 10 kilograms "and ones that are less than 5kg, even more so" are likely to benefit from wearing a jacket when it is cold, particularly if they are venturing outdoors.
"Smaller dogs, because their body surface area to body mass has a different ratio, they will get cold," Dr Hazel says.
Breeds including Italian greyhounds, French bulldogs, chihuahuas, toy poodles, pugs, Maltese and Yorkshire terriers are among those that can benefit from wearing a coat in colder weather.
Shaun Naylor and his husband Benny Cole live on the Gold Coast, on the traditional lands of the Yugambeh people, and have recently welcomed Louis, a four-month-old Italian greyhound, into their family.
Shaun said it quickly became clear that Louis "definitely needs a jacket" when it's cold.
"He gets really, really cold as soon as the temperature drops," he says. "He might be sitting with us on a couch with a blanket and you might move the blanket and there's a breeze and he just starts to shiver.
"We'll get up in the morning and take him out to the garden so he can go to the toilet, and as soon as you pick him up and move him away from the heater or anything, his whole body shakes.
"We have had him less than two weeks and he currently has three knitted jumpers, one hoodie, a reflective woolly coat for when he goes walking and some pyjamas."
Larger dog breeds — particularly those with double coats such as golden retrievers, labradors, huskies, German shepherds, border collies and Newfoundlands — are more easily able to regulate their body heat, even if they are out walking in cold or wet weather.
"They really are wearing a heavy fur coat and even when it rains, the rain doesn't tend to get through that double layer," Dr Hazel says.
However, some larger breeds with single coats or shorter hair, such as greyhounds, have low body fat, which means they don't have much insulation from the cold.
"If your dog gets cold, it will shiver in the same way that we do if we get really cold, so people will know if their greyhounds are a bit cold," Dr Hazel says.
If your dog is sleeping inside, there's generally no need to dress them in jackets or pyjamas overnight, provided they have warm bedding.
Dr Hazel says there are more important considerations than a jacket if your dog sleeps outdoors at night, including a kennel that is protected from wind and rain.
She says it's important they have "somewhere they can keep warm and [have] some bedding" and "not just a bit of concrete".
"The smaller the dog, the more important that would be, and the colder the area, the more important that would be."
Shaun also owns a Maltese–chihuahua cross named Dylan, and says he has "lots of fur, so I guess it's a little bit more for the people than for him when you put him in clothes".
"But he does like to have a jacket when it's cold … he'll come to you and let you know he wants his jacket."
Dr Hazel says, "dogs are people pleasers" and "if the dog tolerates it … [and] you're not using aversive methods", there is generally no harm dressing them in clothes.
"You get the full range with dogs, with some of them that love wearing a coat, some of them that are ambivalent but put up with it and some that hate it."
She says she would "never, ever recommend trying to force a jacket on a dog that didn't like it" and "if you did that, every time you did it, it's going to get harder and harder".
Owners should also make sure any jackets or jumpers fit their dogs properly and regularly check that there are no ill-fitting straps, Velcro or other material that is rubbing on their skin and causing pain or discomfort.
Mount Gambier vet Teresa Priddle recently told the ABC that jackets should always be taken on and off every day and it was worth "checking daily that it's fitting correctly and there are no rub marks".