How cold is too cold?

[eskinner45]

I'm just wondering I heard a guy say oncve that anything below 5 degrees is going to kill your dog. So I am wondering is there a certain temp where it is to cold to hunt a dog I live in NE and we have bad wind chill so does that factor in too?

[Lee Wolford]

I have had dogs both treed and lost all night long in 20 below, once on a ridge with a good wind chill. I was worried sick, but they were fine. I try not hunt when its that cold, but sometimes we have too. Its hard on older dogs, but young dogs will be fine. Now that I have good GPS collars its very very rare that my dogs are out over 5- 6 hours.

[Rshcwisdom]

I read something once along the same lines, it was pertaining to sled dogs running in the cold and going from hard running to a stop all at once without gradually slowing them down. It said the dogs could start panting heavily and there lungs could freeze. I'm going off memory here so it may not be exactly what it said, I can't seem to find the article again.

[david]

I always thought game would not move much below zero, but found out the opposite to be true. At 15 below zero and steady, it seems like everything moves, and dogs did well. Have even seen bear tracks at that temperature more than once.
I had the feeling stuff HAS to move.

I sure started to pay attention to the hair coat on dogs, and there is a huge range of difference among the different lines of hound and cur. Slick coated hounds did not do as well, but they survived.

Nipples and testicles froze hard as a rock when dragging in snow at those extremes, and I always feared they would break off; but they never did, and did not loose their reproductive usefulness.

If you are like I was, you just hunt when you have the time. If your not sure about the dogs, give them the option of staying home if they so choose.

[pegleg]

I don't worry much about it any more. Having long since moved south. However in cold weather keep them well fed and watered. That has more to do with their tolerance then any other single item. Next is probably coat with exceptions. A double coat can make a big difference and some lines of hound throw it while others don't. Some black and tans seem to almost prefer cold and thrive in it even though they are very fine coated maybe they produce more heat or their body size helps I'm not sure . it might just be some combination of heredity. My hounds currently don't all handle cold very well but withstand heat well.

[david]

I don't worry much about it any more. Having long since moved south. However in cold weather keep them well fed and watered. That has more to do with their tolerance then any other single item.

I found it difficult to get dogs to drink water at those extremes. We went to great lengths to provide food that had been soaked in warm water or milk, making kind of a gravy to get liquid in them. They will eat better that way also. If we could get beaver meat, they sure did well on it.

[eskinner45]

Thank you very much guys I appreciate all the input!

[pegleg]

If given a choice dogs normally choose the right thing. Here they will refuse dry food if dehydrated. Its probably not worth the effort for some guys but if extremes of any type are expected a mixture of powdered eggs and dry milk can be carried easily. If mixed with water and added to a good kibble it will encourage any dog to eat. And if fed as a pure liquid it is even easier to get them to consume it. A little common sense in Its temperature helps. Warm in cold climates and cool in hot. Dogs get exhausted just like us and revive quicker if fed before resting. I've had dogs to tired to show interest in raw meat unless it was cut into slivers for them but would drink milk and eggs. Thought I would add. Fats and oils can be added as a conditioner and to give better resistence to cold but I don't typically feed them alone or in excess to very tired dogs. They seem to handle tallow " beef fat" easiest and pig fat fine so long as not over fed for what work your asking of them or run hard soon after feeding. 3-4 hours. Several feedings of small amounts of high quality kibble work best if the dogs are worked continously for a few days. If your hunting your dogs very hard for extended periods then feeding gets to be more technical and you have to get it figured out more on a individual basis per dog and climate or problems crop up. And at that work load most dry foods aren't sufficient .