Sophie's feet are 0.5 inches wide? My goodness that is tiny and definitely smaller than Lu. If Sophie's feet are about 1/2" wide and size 0 fits her pretty well then maybe size 1 would be the correct size for Lu.
I got in touch with alaskayorkie and he sent me the site address of the lady he gets his fleece booties from. They are just fleece, but he said he has tried lots of different booties and these ones have worked the best. He also said they seem to keep his dogs feet warm even if the snow does dampen the fabric some and that they even help on ice for a bit of traction. I like the idea of fleece booties even if I do get a more formed boot as well.
I also got in touch with alldogboots and she suggested maybe going with the NeoPaws. She quite likes them, they do make really tiny boots and I have used the NeoPaws Original High Performance boot on a much larger dog several years ago, and they worked quite well. For going out for a walk or longer jaunts they might be worth considering but I would still like something that is a bit quicker to put on and off for potty runs when the weather is nasty.
With regard to the Epiks Lu's measurements do seem to indicate she would wear a size 1 but dang I would hate for them to be too large. Although if I order a size 0 and they're too small that wouldn't be any better. I have been told that the size chart is pretty accurate but I sure wish someone actually carried them where I live or that Epiks had a print off foot chart with paw or boot shapes in the correct sizes rather than just measurments. I'm going to have to make a best guess if I go with the Epiks.
Thanks so much everyone for all of your input. Lots to consider.
Oh on the topic of shoes and booties I did want to mention that yesterday I came across an article about sled dogs and that they sometimes wear booties etc. However, they also explained that dogs sweat through their feet and the sweat can be trapped by a bootie or shoe and cause fungus and other health issues if kept on for long periods of time. They said sled dogs have to be monitored because they can become overheated even though it is cold outside if they wear booties during a long race. Just something to keep in mind as I know there are people who put shoes, slippers and booties on their dogs all the time simply for the cute factor or leave them on because it's a pain to put them on and off. Being able to ventilate their feet is important. I didn't know there was a risk of a dog getting overheated even in the cold or the sweat building up and growing greeblies until I got reading about it but it makes sense. I knew that dogs bodies work quite a bit differently than ours and that their natural temperature is higher and they sweat differently etc. I just hadn't thought about what that means with regard to jackets and footwear etc. My dogs don't really wear jackets and footwear unless the weather is particularly nasty but still it's something I will monitor a little bit better now. |