Activities For Dogs Who Like Snow

Your dog doesn't have to be a sled-pulling Husky to glow in the snow. In fact, most people who enjoy skiing find skijoring just as much fun, if not more so. Skijoring is a combination of mushing and skiing - your dog pulls you along on your skis with the help of a line and special harness. If you already have skis, all you need is a special towing harness for them (evenly distributes weight/pull across their chest/back better than a standard harness), a towing belt for you, the line, which can be as simple as a long leash, and a dog over 35 pounds or so that can manage pulling your weight without struggling or hurting themselves. It's reserved for winter as you need snow, but only takes a few additional supplies for most skiers and therefore imparts only moderate costs and can be done as short or long as you can both remain comfortably upright.

The best part about winter besides sitting inside and drinking hot chocolate is that Mother Nature pummels us with the most malleable form of precipitation possible: Snow! While most people think snow forts and snowball fights, there's certainly plenty you can do with snow as long as it's just wet enough to mold and hold. Making snow tracks and courses can be one of the most fun ways to spend a snowy afternoon and will get both you and your dog some well-needed exercise (plus you can still go inside after and have your hot chocolate anyway). All you need is a shovel and good, packable snow (at least 4 to 6 inches to make it well-defined) and you've got the makings of some seriously fun minutes, if not hours. So what are snow tracks? Anything you want! You can make race tracks and obstacle courses of all shapes and sizes. And best of all, if the weather holds, your track will stay in place for days, if not longer, meaning you can re-use or re-make them any way you like for as long as they last.

Fetch is about as standard as it gets when it comes to dog games and while many owners regularly employ it, others may have grown weary of its simple mechanics and repetitive nature. But snow fetch? That's a completely different story! Not only do dogs have to work harder due to the resistance of the snow, they also can't use their eyes as much since the toy often disappears into banks and drifts when it finally plops down, forcing them to search longer and use their noses as well, combining a scent-based exercise with one that's a bit more high energy. Plus, it's easy, cheap, since you likely already have a fetch-able toy, needs only snow and open space, and can be done for just a few minutes or over an hour, depending on both of your endurance and tolerance for the cold.