Abby Sunshine

It’s probably a dead giveaway as to where we live, since I talk about the weather constantly. What am I supposed to talk about? It was -15 degrees this morning!! That air has a “bite” to it. 

 Here is what Abby is doing today. She has snuggled among our boots at the doorway. It is winter vacation, so I guess she’s planning on a day of rest and relaxation!

On these cold days, I notice that Abby really laps up her water with gusto! I think the air is very dry and her “dog instinct” is reminding her to hydrate herself. I set up our humidifier, too, so that should help all of us. I was just reading about dogs eating snow and that it is NOT a good way to keep hydrated. It requires additional energy. It’s very important to keep a full water dish available to your dog.

I notice that heated water dishes are available. They seem like a nice idea and I’ve heard people rave about them, but I’ve also read that for birds, heated bird baths are dangerous. In heated bird baths, supposedly the birds bask in the delight of unfrozen water- to then fly away and have water freeze in their wings and cause grave danger- and death. I don’t remember where I first read that, but now I haven’t found any articles to corroborate if this danger is real. In fact, I could only find articles to the contrary. Could it be an urban legend? (like the one about being able to see the Great Wall of China from outer space-I heard that one isn’t true!) While researching this, I’ve only discovered writings that mention the benefits of birds getting hydrated and preening their feathers successfully with this available open water.

Periodically refilling Abby’s outdoor water dish works well for me. In temperatures as low as today, it freezes quickly, but most days it doesn’t require that much extra attention. I’m not sure how often birds seek out water in dog dishes anyway!