Question: Cold Weather Camping & Senior Pup

Hello, just found this subreddit and it seems the best place to ask! I have an almost 13yo poodle terrier named Pan. He's my old man but has plenty of spunk and mischief left in him, and he's still going strong. He's never been camping and I was considering taking him for one night tonight (my fiance has a campsite with his siblings in Joshua Tree right now and I'm not far, just stayed home for work). Honestly not sure how much he'll like it but that's why I figured one night is a good trial to see if he'd like future trips or if it's not his thing.

Since he's older his hair is very thin. The temperature tonight in Joshua Tree is going to be an expected low of 36 degrees F. He has sweaters and jackets and if y'all think he would be okay to go with certain supplies, I'd make a trip to the pet store before taking him. My question: do y'all think there are any supplies that would help and make the trip comfortable for him, so it would be safe? Or is that weather too cold in general no matter what supplies I bring/get? I'm not willing to risk his safety for the night and so am really debating whether to go or not. It just snowed in Joshua Tree last night and was colder, but weather is supposed to be getting better over the day. I'd at minimum bring his warmest sweater/jacket, some blankets for him, and one of his beds. He'd sleep in the tent with my fiance and I at night and would hang out with us by the fire before bed (on leash). Basically I'd love for him to experience camping but if it isn't the right trip for him I don't want to go, but I don't know if I'm being over paranoid!

Thanks if you read all that and I'm happy to answer any questions. My boy is my little baby and I'm just trying to give him some adventure while being safe.

in BackpackingDogsby MusicMauMau

100%

1mo

scientifichooligan76

1mo

Probably just make sure you have hand warmers inside a sock for him to hunker down most of the night. Temps in the 30s will probably be a bit rough on his old joints and paws.

Atxflyguy83

1mo

With your body heat, his, and your fiance's, you'll be more than okay at 36*. Have fun!

kai_rohde

1mo

Bring a bunch of old “dog blankets”? For winter car camping my dogs have their own sleeping pads and bags for a bottom layer plus blankets over the top because if I don’t they try to steal mine haha

kirmichelle

1mo

I camp with my pugs, who don't have very thick/warm coats. They wear sweaters and/or jackets when we're outside of the tent, and when it's time to sleep they get in my sleeping bag with me and sleep at my feet. They learned pretty quickly that crawling into the bag with me is the warmest spot to sleep.

Vivid_Swordfish_3204

1mo

If you can lay a blanket down to keep the dogs "clickers" from popping the air mattress you should be just fine letting him sleep inbetween the two of you or under the quilt I always share my bed and quilt with my dog and it works great down to 30 or so with a ccf mat and an extra 6 panels either to double up where my torso is or to lay out perpendicular to the full sized mat at my feet a few panels of ccf mat and a blanket could be a good idea if your dog doesnt like snuggling up with you two.... YMMV my dog does have kind of a thick coat one thing to consider if you use an air mat is using something like a fleece blanket or a ccf Mat and shock cord to protect the the mattress from popping if you want to share the bed with the dog there's also silver reflective insulation that works good too but you've gotta make sure to get the stuff with foam in the middle I accidentally got the other kind with air bubbles like you find in packages in it which isn't good for laying on shoot I've even used a ground sheet over my air mattress and with a nemo tensor and 20 degree bag been too hot at 16 degrees I've heard of people bringing stuff to knock the snow off of paws because it's supposed to get stuck in the fur on the feet for some dogs I've never experienced that issue though lots of people like to use the slipper style boots to prevent that like the kinds on dog booties .com they are cheap I have 2 pairs but I haven't actually used them yet so I cannot tell you if they are great or not but they're like 3-4 bucks a pop so it's not terrible to get some just in case also something like mushers wax isn't very expensive and is good for to keep paw pads from getting too raw I keep some in my 1st aid and rarely use it but if you walking in the snow for long periods it doesn't hurt to bring a little in a tiny container I hope the 3 of you have a fantastic time cheers