[alaskayorkie]

My favorite answer to that "They've got fur, they don't need a coat" comment is to say, "And tropical birds have down feathers, but you don't see them flying around in the snow and cold, do you?"

People who don't have small dogs, especially Yorkies and other single-coated breeds, just don't get it. Don't give her opinions a second thought.

I can tell by watching my boys. Jack is 4 pounds, and when he starts shivering, the coat goes on. Eddie is 9 pounds. When he stops running around and exploring and instead stays real close to me, that tells me he's uncomfortably cold too.

Booties I use just for snow, but if they tolerate them and it doesn't make walking difficult, I say feel free to use them whenever.