So, clothes don't keep them warm, Huh?
 

I was at PetCo today, found tons of new outfits for the girls. As I was checking out, this snippy little clerk says "You know, those clothes do nothing for them". She went on to say that she had gone through training and was told that no matter the breed, even Chi's, don't get any warmth from wearing clothes. All the clothes do is hinder the dog's ability to generate its own warmth, and, clothes can lead to over heating. I thought to myself "you sure don't want to sell any clothes, do you?" I then told her that Yorkie's are not like other dogs, they have human like hair and get cold. She shook her head and insisted they did not. I then proceeded to tell her how at the beach, the girls were shivering in 48 degree weather until I put their sweatshirts on them. With that, I finished paying for the clothes and left. As I left, the gal said "They do look cute in those outfits, you got to give the clothes credit for that". So, what do you think? Is there any truth to what she was saying?

She sounds like she dosent know anything and that she probably had her mind made up to think what she was going to think no matter what you would have said my grandpa is like that he wont even listen cuz hes mind is made up. But I think shes wrong. When we went on our trip the hotel room stayed pretty cold and she would shake and I put her pjs on her and she stopped so obviously clothes do warm them up. But if she has clothes on and is panting I take them off so she dosent over heat. But if the clerk said that they can make them over heat then obviously they help warm them up when they are cold.

Exactly! What a stupid thing to say. They don't keep them warm but they will over heat them. I suppose Rambeau's raincoat doesn't keep him dry and his life vest doesn't make him float 'cause he's a dog. Sheesh!:confused:

I wouldnt pay attn to what she said...BUT if It were my business I would want to know if one of my employees was trying to discourage me from buying ANYthing:rolleyes:

i think she was talking just to hear herself talk. i KNOW Layla's clothes keep her warm. We live where there is snow and if I put Layla outside without her winter jacket on... she would freeze.. and you could probably even call it animal abuse. She clearly does not know anything about yorkies and sounds like a pretty crappy employee.

The clerk has no clue what she is talking about, one day when I took my puppy outside it was about 75 out but a bit windy, I thought it was perfect out but he started to shake from being cold, I went inside and put a shirt on him (his first time wearing clothes) and he didn't shake anymore, so yes I believe they get cold. I think the clerk only said that because she doesn't like dogs wearing clothes and she was just trying to be polite without flat out saying "I don't like dogs in clothes"

Sounds like an idiot to me... And anyway, she shouldn't be making comments to customers about their merchandise like that. Her goal is to serve the customer and sell the merchandise...not spout off whatever her little mind makes up.

That is an illogical argument. I'm not even sure I would have bothered to respond. LOL

Aside from that...How Bizarre????

Gee, I would be tempted to talk to the manager, you should not need to explain yourself to a sales clerk, but maybe you taught her something. I hate it when they group all dogs together and make blanket statements. Dogs show so such much variety, more so than any species I can think of. I heard a TV vet say dogs should never be given a bath more that every 3 months, "it destroys their natural oil, and will cause skin problems", this just isn't true with yorkies. Joey's breeder told me if you need a sweater, Joey needs one too. Joey starts shaking at anything under 70 degrees.

I disagree.
Dogs DO get cold, and do benefit from wearing some thing to help out with that.

Their paws are also affected by hot surfaces and they can burn, tear, lacerate their pads...I guess the clerk would say that would never happen and "doggie shoes" don't do anything for them either...

Sounds like they have a Nitwit behind the counter at that store. They need to educate their employees better.

she doesn't know what she's saying . I know that here is florida clothes are not really necessary because it's never cold (excepts for a few weeks in the winter), but I'm pretty sure the babies up north really appreciate that clothes are made for them :)

The clothes that you were buying, were they the last piece? Maybe she said that to change your mind so that she could buy it herself lol. I would be pretty mad if I am the store owner and one of my employees do that :rolleyes:

Chihuahua's can not hold there body Heat So she really doesn't know what she's talking about.

I did some research online, and even P.A.W.S. recommends clothes for the smaller breed dogs, as well as those who are old or sick. They clearly state that clothes help keep dogs warm. With that, I sent the following complaint to PetCo:

"Today, I purchased several items of clothing for my two Yorkshire terriers. Sarah was the clerk that checked me out. Without asking for her advise, she told me that clothes do nothing to help keep dogs warm. No matter the breed, clothes hinder a dog's ability to generate their own heat, and, will over-heat them in warmer weather. She referenced some training she had on the subject. This makes no sense. If clothing will cause a dog to over-heat, then clothing must provide some warming properties. When I attempted to correct her, she argued with me and was rather snippy. I have done some research online, including looking at recommendations by P.A.W.S. All say that clothes do help keep dogs warm, especially the smaller breeds who do not have as much body mass. If you are teaching this crap to your employees, please provide me with the source of the information based on veterinary research. I probably should not have purchased the clothing and other items to the tune of $111.64. Comments like that did not deserve a sale in return. I will think twice before purchasing from your store again."

I am debating on returning the clothes, but they are so dang cute! And they even have button holes for the harness lead to come through. I'll be happy if sweet little Sarah gets a good talking to.

AWeSOME!!:D:D

A letter goes a LONG way. Good job for writing to them.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
You go girl!

"The Chihuahua tendency to shiver or tremble is not a health issue but takes place when the dog is excited or stressed. One explanation is the toy dogs have a higher metabolism and so dissipate body heat faster than larger dogs. Shivering helps to generate body heat – that’s why people shiver when we are cold. However, rapid dissipation of body heat is a distinct disadvantage in cool or cold climates, so Chihuahuas should always be protected when taken outdoors in these areas. Fortunately, there are dozens of styles of protective sweaters available."

I'm sure yorkie's are very simular.
Health Chihuahualoving.com

She did not know what she was talking about tust me! They are not fully trained to know much about dogs or specific breed. I dont know how much you paid for the clothes but Walmart has a new line of clothing that looks just like those boutique $45 dresses and shirts! I saw some adorable outfits for only $7-$9.99
I asked a salesperson recently at PetSmart if they carried any books on Whelping. She was totally clueless on what whelping was and asked me if I said " Helping?"
Yorkies do get cold, Ihave 2 of them I should know! I do dress them when it's chilly or put on a regular tank tee on them if we take them out.Some salespeople at those stores do have some basic knowledge of animals but most of them do not in my opinion.


Genie,Cookie,Lola & Angel

We got Hot Rod at Christmastime and we live in an area on the water in MD that is pretty flat. When you go outside the wind is very wicked and cold off the water. I immediately bought him a parker type of coat and that definitely made a difference. He was only about 15 weeks old so it made perfect sense to get him some type of coat.

I've never really like shopping at Petco. The sales people in the one by me have never been overly helpful. I was looking at the beds in the very back of the store and one time and I asked a worker what the price was and he me that he was too busy and that I needed to take in to them front of the store to the cashier to find out.

The people at the Petsmart that I go too are definitely more knowledgeable and helpful.

ETA: Already posted but just noticed you said you DID send a letter. Kudos to you!

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Personally, if it had been me....

I would have asked for the manager, right then and there. Then I would have told him/her that you brought these things to the checkout, fully intending to make purchase. However, the clerk talked you right out of it. I would have related the conversation, left the stuff at the counter and left the store.

But then...I detest people that do things like that and believe they should learn their lesson early on. What do you think the manager might have thought of the whole issue? I would have made sure I got her name and written or emailed corporate regarding the incident as well.

I am sorry. I am sick and fed up with people that have no idea how to do a proper job. Especially ones who try to make the customer feel or look foolish. She didn't represent her company very well, did she? I think they should know. I would want to know if she was working for me.

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Okay. Stepping off my box now. ;)

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I was the type that thought dog clothes were so stupid... until we got Penny and I realized the true need for some dogs. Penny will actually ask for her sweaters when she is cold. And one day when it was cool in the house she kept refusing her t-shirt I was trying to put on her because she wanted a sweater. Then just a few weeks ago I met a lady walking a rescue Yorkie. He is her first Yorkie, and she told me the VET said "If you go outside and need a jacket, so does he."

That clerk was just jealous she didn't have a baby to buy clothes for. :p

That letter you wrote rocks! Way to go! I agree with others...that half the people working at these stores know little to nothing about pets.

I not only dress my dogs in the winter, but also in the summer. They both have the black body and black soaks the sun right in. I like to keep light colored clothes on them to keep the sun from baking them. Sometimes just a white tee shirt and I feel better about them being outside. I could be wrong about that, but they do take longer to get heated when wearing a light colored outfit of some kind.

I do the same thing with McKenzie! On walks her black hair soaks up all the sun and she's panting like crazy so I always slip on a thin white tank or tee for our walks, and I can tell she's much more comfortable with the sun reflecting off of her.

I think the exact same thing. Lacy is black on her back and it gets so hot when the sun shines on her hair. I feel like a light shirt or dress helps to protect her from the heat.

I find the best way to make people realize they are wrong...yorkies do require clothes when it's cold...is to explain why.

All dogs are not the same.
Dogs that don't get cold in cold weather have a double coat. They have an undercoat that keeps them warm in winter. When the weather starts to get warmer, they don't need the undercoat, so they shed it.
Yorkies do not have an undercoat. They are a single coated breed.
Yorkies have hair that is a lot like our own. I tell them I put a coat on my yorkie for the same reason you put a hat on your child.

It doesn't take long to explain and I've never had one person argue further. Whether they just want me to shut up or they realize they don't know what they are talking about, I'm not sure. :D
Either way, they drop it so I win. ;)

Seriously though, it works.

hey everyone be nice!!! i work at petco!!!! and sometimes i run the cash register too! however...i have purchased matching outfits for my two dogs....24 outfits to be exact that were on sale with the buy one get 3 free sale...LOL my manager was like...david...you should leave some for the customers!!! LOL but clothes totally keep a dog warm!!!! and i work at petco and i have gone through the training of being a dog trainer...and im a trainer at petco! and they do keep the dogs warm. we are told to warn you about over heating though. which is easy to tell..and believe me i have never seen my yorkie overheat in the winter! lol i have no idea what that girl was talking about! but peeps...be nice to us (me) petco workers!!!!! we have to answer some of the dumbest, craziest, redundant questions all day...and then most of the time, the customers ignore what we have said, and they are right back! in fact i just got home from mopping up marking pee all over the store tonight, so what she said was wrong...just realize you all have a YT that works at petco! LOL good luck,...and girl keep buying those clothes...i have a seperate closet for my dogs apparel. lol good luck!

I don't have anything against Petco. I don't have anything against ALL people who work at Petco. Just the ignorant ones. :p

I do know what you mean about some folks (goofies, idiots, rudesters..whatever you want to call them) that come to your shop. They are all over everywhere here, too. So I know you go through some grief working in the public arena. But I'll bet you would have been able to check her out in a friendly professional manner. I think that's probably all she really wanted. ;) And then she wouldn't have wanted to send that letter. :D

i totally agree!!!!!!!!!!! well said sammiz!!!!!!!!!!! i would have checked her out in a way that was very friendly!!!! and i am glad she did send the letter...that is the best way to get anything done!!!! but what a perfect way of saying it sammiz!!!