As the winter season arrives, the temperature will soon get colder, and pets have to be kept warm as much as possible. Dogs are one of the most common pets in households, and taking care of them and making them feel comfortable is essential.
Yes, you can take a hot water bottle and keep it on your dog’s bed or kennel when they are about to sleep. This will ensure that your dog gets all the heat required to beat the cold during winter nights.
To find the answer to whether can I give my dog a hot water bottle, let’s take a closer look at some tips on how to go about this.
Is It Safe To Let Your Dog Sleep On A Hot Water Bottle?
Placing a hot water bottle on your dog’s sleeping area during winter will ensure it stays warm throughout the night. However, it is not safe to leave the hot water bottle on its own without taking some preventive measures.
If you leave the hot water bottle without covering it with something, your dog might come in direct contact with the heat. It can burn their skin and cause them pain.
To ensure your dog is always safe, you must follow a couple of preventive measures.
- Wrap A Cloth Around The Bottle
Imagine seeing a water bottle without knowing there is piping hot water inside and grabbing it. You will get the shock of your life and drop the bottle. Next time, you will ensure you don’t simply grab a bottle without checking whether there is hot or cold water.
It is the same with pups and dogs. There is no way for them to know that there is hot water inside the bottle. So if they see one, they might go and sniff the bottle or lie on it, not knowing the dangers of the heat.
To avoid such unfortunate incidents, you must wrap the hot water bottle with a towel or a thick cloth. This will prevent your dog from coming in direct contact with the heat.
- Use Warm Water
Most dog owners tend to add boiling hot water in the bottles for their dog’s beds. However, that is not the best way to keep your fur buddy safe from the heat.
The best way to ensure your dog does not get burnt by the bottle’s heat is to add warm water instead of hot water. When you add warm water, you will not require a cloth to wrap around the bottle.
You can boil some water and let it sit until it cools down. When the water is warm or lukewarm, you can pour it into the bottle and directly place it in your dog’s crate or bed. This will ensure your dog has a warm and cozy place to sleep in during winter nights.
- Know When To Place The Hot Water Bottle
The idea of placing a hot water bottle is to warm up the dog’s crate or bed so they can comfortably sleep. Chilly nights can be challenging for animals, but you can make them easier for your pet dog by warming up its sleeping area.
The best way to ensure the dog has a cozy and warm bed is to place the hot water bottle in the crate a few minutes before sleeping. Placing the hot water bottle on the bed for a few minutes will warm up the sleeping area, making it easier for your dog to fall asleep.
It would be best if you placed the hot water bottle beforehand, so it has time to warm up the sleeping area.
- Ensure There Is No Leakage
Dog owners may sometimes forget to close the lid of the bottle correctly. When this happens, there will be leakage on the dog’s crate or bed. Instead of keeping the bed warm, it will soak the bed and make it damp.
The water spills on the bed, making it colder for the dog to sleep in. This might cause your dog to fall sick because of the drop in temperature during winter.
Keeping the lid closed as tightly as possible ensures that your pet friend does not have to sleep on a wet and cold bed.
What Is The Best Position To Place The Hot Water Bottle?
The best way to ensure your dog has a warm and sound sleep is to ensure you keep the hot/warm water bottle under its stomach. You must train your dog to get used to this way of sleeping when it is still a pup.
Some dogs do not agree with sleeping with a hot water bottle under their belly because they weren’t trained to use it as pups. When it is still a puppy, you should place the hot water bottle on your lap in its crate and wait for it to jump. Once the pup lands on top of the hot water bottle, you must let it remain in that position till it falls asleep.
This is how you train your pup to get used to sleeping with a hot water bottle under its stomach.
What Are The Benefits Of Giving Your Dog A Hot Water Bottle?
The most significant benefit of letting your dog sleep with a hot water bottle is the warmth it provides. The hot water bottle warms the dog’s sleeping area, helping it to have a warm sleep, especially during the winter months.
Other than keeping the bed warm, a hot water bottle also helps relieve pain in the dog’s body. It can reduce inflammation and stiffness associated with arthritis.
Conclusion on Can I Give My Dog A Hot Water Bottle
This article clears any doubts owners have about giving their dogs hot water bottles. Making your dogs sleep under a hot water bottle is entirely normal.
However, it would help if you took a couple of precautions before placing the hot water bottle on the dog’s bed, like wrapping it with a towel, tightening the bottle cap, using warm water, etc.
A hot water bottle keeps the body warm and helps ease body pains in dogs.
Some of My Favorite Products For Dog Owners
I hope this article has helped you just a bit in everyday life as a dog owner. Being a dog owner for more than 25 years, I’ve tried many different products with varying success, but these products below are some that I can highly recommend to every dog and their owner without hesitation!
These links are affiliate links, so if you do end up using the links, I will earn a commission. But it’s products that I use daily myself, and I have the utmost praise for.
Dog Food: Every dog needs to eat correctly, and finding the best food for your dog can be challenging, as the market is absolutely flooded with products. But since 2015 when the company was founded, I’ve been using Ollie Petfood. With their product being tailor-made to suit every dog’s specific needs, and as my dogs absolutely love the product, I’m pretty sure I’ve found a product I will continue to use for many years more. If you use my link you can get 50% off your first order.
Dog Training: If you’ve ever owned a puppy, you know that it requires a lot of training to grow into a well-behaved adult. Brain Training for Dogs has helped me immensely with the mental training part of raising a dog, and it’s something I strongly recommend you consider.
Grooming: If you have a dog in your home, you’re going to need a brush, and for this, I recommend a Hertzko Self-Cleaning Slicker Brush. For that price, you simply can’t beat this brush for everyday grooming.
If you’re looking for the most up-to-date recommendations, check out my recommended products section that I’ve created to help every dog owner!
