Q: Can we keep our Labrador outside for the winter?
We have an 8-month-old lab puppy who we keep outside in the yard but it's getting colder, and I'm worried about her. We live in midwest. I know some other families that keep their dogs (huskies and labs) outside because they are originally from a cold climate and they are built for cold weather. Do you think we can keep her outside for the winter if we buy her a dog house and keep it insulated?
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Answers and Views:
Answer by I
Well, I'm sure the dog will be ok, but there is such a thing as too cold. If you know it's going to freeze, then I would bring the dog in. Your dog will grow winter fur, but it won't protect it from the bitter cold.
Answer by Hafiz
Hii…I have bought a labrador puppy. ..she has been kept outside..weather is fine in my place.
We have a garden, a pool, and a big backyard…we take her for a walk in the morning and evening she plays in the pool….In spite of all these I feel her dull at times frankly speaking..its bcoz they like to be with us all the time…they are very sociable animals…they love to be with the
pack ….but due to some reasons, we can keep her only outside. ..so I have decided to buy her a companion…so that she gets accompanied the whole time..hopefully, it works..
Answer by Russell Noble
I have a flap in my garage wall leading directly into her large pen (inside the garage) with her bed in it where she can get in and out as much as she likes. When we are in the house during the day she can come and go in the house as she likes but sleeps out there every night. its cold but she's fine.
Answer by Alexandra W.
Why own a dog if you’re just going to keep them outside? Unless you own a farm, even then your dog shouldn’t live or sleep outside with that sort of temperature. Just give your dog away to someone who actually will love them.
Answer by P-Dog
The Labradors I have ever owned loved to be outside more than inside. Unless it is extremely cold and there is no shelter for them, I believe they are fine outside. But what is most important is that you are still giving him or her the attention they need. I think sometimes when it is cold outside, humans don’t go outside and then they are left lonely and that is sadder than them being outside. So if you don’t want to go outside to be with your Labrador then bring the dog in to be with you. That is my suggestion!
Answer by I Love Labradors
Please please please everyone do research before making this kind of decision for your dog. What is too cold for you may just be the right temperature for your dog. What is comfortable for you may actually be uncomfortable for your dog. Dogs are not humans and should never be thought of in human terms. You are only going to hurt them if you do!
That being said, I grew up in Minnesota. It gets very cold here. I have had labradors all my life and they can survive very frigid temps. My dogs were never allowed in the house. We had a barn and the dogs had free access to the hay mow to be able to come and go as they pleased. They would sleep in the hay, usually in the early part of the day because they liked to be awake at night. They loved playing in the snow even when the temps were below zero. They would sometimes even sleep outside the barn! They loved it.
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Labradors are from, funnily enough, an area of northern Canada that goes by the same name. They were bred by fishermen to be able to withstand the frigid temps of the Labrador Sea which, essentially, is just an extension of the northern Atlantic Ocean. The dogs actually jumped into the water to retrieve objects and fish for their owners.
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To argue that a Labrador cannot withstand temperatures lower than freezing is ridiculous. They can, and they do, and they enjoy it. If you keep them locked up in your house with the furnace cranked high they won’t be able to develop a proper winter coat. But if you leave them outside with a well-insulated dog house and plenty of food and water they will be perfectly fine.
Answer by K
Why would you do this to your dog?? Yes, it's an animal but dogs nowadays have been living with humans for generations and generations and are not like other animals anymore. They NEED human companionship all the time.
Dogs actually prefer to spend time with humans over other dogs (this is proven through recent research) because we have bred them to be companions. They should never be left outside alone for long periods of time. Please don't do this.
Know better? Give your own answer to this question!
Shae says
I understand everyone’s comments. However, I am still unclear on a specific item. If my lab is inside most of the time each day due to where I live, what is the temperature, with wind chill, that I need to put a coat and booties on him if we are outside for more than an hour? I ask as my current lab is only a few months old right now. He wears a jacket below 32 degrees F (0 C) if we are going to be out for more than 45 minutes as he simply begins to shake and we are not always close to home. He is growing rapidly, so I wonder if I should buy him the next size jacket and booties. I would honestly rather not use either. But, if that is what it takes to be outside for 2 hours in 20 degree weather, then so be it.
Mark says
20 degrees is still ok for the lab. Lower temperatures are not advisable and he may need a coat and booties.
Maureen Kirby says
As a child my family had purebred Labrador Retrievers which were raised to work at retrieving ducks during duck hunting season and taken to field trials. They were always kennelled outside with straw filled dog houses and secure wired runs on concrete. Sometimes they were brought out to get exercise or to mingle with our family but always put back in the kennel. We lived in Ontario, Canada – hot and cold temperatures. As an adult we adopted a yellow lab and gave him the option of being in a fenced yard with shelter inside the garage and shade outside in Alberta, Canada. In the coldest temperatures he was brought inside and lay inside an enclosed penned area in the kitchen overnight. He was never allowed to run through the house but could lay quietly in the living room for occasional social times and behaved very well. He was exercised in dog run parks and had long leashed walks. He lived to be very elderly and was a wonderful dog, good with cats and children also. We found that a mix of inside/outside for him worked best.
P-Dog says
The comment has been moved into the body of the post.
Mike says
Just had a nosey neighbor call the city on me for having my dog in the back yard for too long when it was 20 degrees. I have a Lab and he just loves to be outside. When he wants to come in he comes to the door and I let him in. Cant believe people don’t have anything better to do than snoop in their neighbors business. My dog is definitely an outside dog and my only guilt comes from not playing with him enough outside. He handles the cold much better than I. I just wish people would mind their own business.
Deegan says
It is only in the last few decades that anyone would consider keeping a Lab inside. Even here in Northern Canada our Dog never comes in. She has a dog house with a heated floor pad and a 40W bulb and she only ever goes in it if it’s under -30C. We often take her into her kennel for a large portion of the day when it’s that cold, but at -20 She’s fine outside all day. People have started to believe their dogs are people and they are not. Nobody takes the Coyotes and wolves in at night. They do find shelter but at -20 they are all out at night
Billie says
I have found that our society puts more emphasis on indulging their dogs as if they were humans than they do on children with cancer. What has happened to our country when we place dogs above human beings. I just shake my head in awe as I read these irate comments about how awful people are if they leave their dogs outside alone, or in the cold weather. Wake up and smell the dog biscuits people! Dogs are dogs–people are people. There’s no comparison whatsoever. Their body temp is much higher than ours, they don’t think like human beings (despite your willingness to believe that they do), and they shouldn’t be on the couch drinking beer and eating potato chips. This is why so many dogs now have cancer, as we’ve conditioned them to live like us–and the irony is so many people think it is acceptable or ‘cute’. And talk about fat, overweight animals! It’s not nice to give the dog treats constantly when they are already 20 pounds overweight. That kind of love cuts their life short! Oh, and I do have my fair share of dogs as well…7. I love them, but I do know the difference between my needs and theirs. When they start picking up my feces–then I’ll consider them a possible distant relative!
Mike says
No, I’m sorry. Dogs are NOT the same as a child. Come on now. I know you love your pet , and I’m glad you do. But it’s a Dog……
Jan says
A dog has the intelligence of a 3 to 5 year old person and can learn 250 words. A small and furry person!
RussianDog says
It’s true.
Emily says
I have a Labrenees(Great Pyrenees X Black Lab).. if he could, he would spend every waking moment outside. I find people slowing down or even stopping and getting out of their cars worried about him being outside. I always have to explain he’s half Pyrenees and is meant to be outside in freezing cold weather in the mountains, but even a Labrador was meant to be in cold weather.
On average it’s about -7C in the winter and he just loves it. Snow is his absolute favourite!
He sleeps inside.. but I see no problem leaving them outside if you have a dog house with a nice warm bed as long as that’s what they want.
Alexandra W. says
The comment has been moved into the body of the post.
Russell Noble says
The comment has been moved into the body of the post.
william says
Some of you people are morons, do you actually think dogs should always be kept inside. I love my dog, but seriously?!? We have conditioned dogs to “need” to be inside. Shelter, food, water and love are all dogs need to be happy and healthy. What, do you think they rented apartments prior to being domesticated. My Jack is very happy being outside when we’re not home, and we bring her in at night when we come home. You probably say yes to supersizing your kids meals because they’re “hungry” and they “won’t eat” vegetables….I’m sometimes ashamed to be an American.
Dog house + Food + Water + love = a happy dog….
Evelyn says
What is wrong with some people? It's a dog, not a child for pete's sake. Leaving your pup outside at night or when you are at work is not cruel in the least. I leave my lab outside when I am not home, because my only other option is to lock her up in her little crate. Which is more cruel? Her being outside, where she can romp and chase butterflies, or her being locked in a little crate where she can't do anything but sleep?
And before you jump on me, I have a perfectly behaved lab. When I am home she is inside, we go for walks together everyday, and we run agility together recreationally. She is absolutely obedient and happy.
Comparing a dog to a child is absolutely ridiculous. A dog is an ANIMAL, and why people are treating them like people is beyond me. Leaving your dog outside, part time or full time, is absolutely fine. I feel more sad for the dogs that spend their entire lives cooped up inside. Dogs like to be outside, where they can smell and run and roll in dirt. Again, they are animals. Not people, and certainly not children.
OP, for your question, I would say nothing below -15C. That's the point when we usually bring our lab in during the day for her crate. But it depends on the dog. Having an insulated dog house is great, but she might take a while to get used to it. Before it gets cold, perhaps you should try feeding her in there a few times so she understands it's safe and warmer.
Good luck!
Sarah says
If you dont understand why or how a person could love a dog like a child you never will understand and I feel sorry for you that you cant open up your heart that way. A dog is like a child they are intellegent and feel and understand pain and anger and happiness. So now I expect you to say its cool or ok to beat a dog because they are animals and they are lower than humans…. That is a shame…. :(
Neenh says
You are mentally ill if you love a dog like a child. ITS not a child. Its a animal. “Cesar Milan, better known as The Dog Whisperer works with pet owners to stop treating them like children and more like the pets they are supposed to be.”
Meredith says
Hi Evelyn!!!
Loved your message, I’m planning to get a puppy, I’ve been thinking it a lot! Reading it alot!, I absolutley love dogs, all kinds! even the ugly chihuahuas! hahaha But i’m planning to get a labrador. I own a big house with a big garden. My husband it quite a clean freak so he loves dogs but not inside. Im sure when he is not home i’ll let the puppy in hahahaha..but we have an outdoor sofa’s(white) where i plan to stay with him but teach him not to sit in the sofa. We have a wooden big house where our laundry and garden things are we are planning to do a special door for the dog once he is a bit older so that’s his own little shelter with toys and all. (it doesn’t really get that cold in sardinia, italy) but we’ll make his bed and all for him to be happy and comfortable. My questions are: How do I teach him to go wee outside (do i use the wooden house as a big rate and bring him out once he eats etc etc so I teach him that wee is outside always?). I dont want him to pee or poo in the outdoor floor (Where our sofa’s are) i’m most of the time at home for now so I will keep special attention to him for the first months. I have a big garden and we go out and walk everyday(my husband and I in the mornings). What would you recommend to me? for making my lab happy???????? hope for your answer.
Dog Lover says
People! Please! Yes they are great companions, but lets not forget they ARE animals and need to be treated as such. Treating a dog like a human child is a bit beyond ridiculous. The dog will be fine outside with proper shelter, water, etc.