Hey Woofa’s,

Christmas time is here and people are thinking of Santa pics with their dogs and should they put Christmas outfits on them or not??

Or should you put a Christmas outfit on your dog for Christmas Day, or just put on one in general??

With the dogs that come into my Dog Grooming Salon I do try to take Christmassy pictures.

For some it’s putting reindeer ears on them.

And for others who can’t stand the ears on them, I get them to sit by the Christmas tree (with schmacko bribes) and take one that way.

So with the question of – should my dog wear a Christmas outfit – here’s my answer.

SHOULD MY DOG WEAR A CHRISTMAS OUTFIT?

The simple answer is – it’s purely up to your dog!

Some dogs are more tolerable of wearing outfits than others.

You can generally tell the dogs who aren’t into wearing outfits!

Signs Your Dog Doesn’t Want to Wear a Christmas Outfit!

1. They try to get away as soon as you come near them with something to put on;
2. They swat the reindeer ears off as soon as you put them on;
3. If you do manage to get something on them, they rip it off as soon as they can;
4. The dog will growl at you if you lift their foot to put it into an outfit;
5. They’re not use to wearing anything let alone a Christmas outfit;
6. Some dogs will just put up with wearing an outfit even though it’s uncomfortable for them;
7. Your dog struggles to get away from you while you’re trying to put the outfit on!

If your dog doesn’t usually like wearing anything, then don’t stress them out buy making them wear a Christmas outfit.

Read your dog’s body language!

If your dog is cowering down, tail between their legs, or growling and trying to rip off the outfit, take it off them.

THINGS TO TRY INSTEAD OF A WHOLE CHRISTMAS OUTFIT!

Instead of trying to make your dog wear a whole Christmas outfit, trying something a little less invasive.

1. you could try a Christmassy dog hat/beanie – again read your dog’s body language if they keep swatting it off leave it off them;
2. a Christmassy bandanna – you can get ones that loop through their collar, or ones that loosely tie around their neck;
3. if you want a Christmas picture and your dog won’t wear anything, use treats and have them sit still by the Christmas tree and take one that way;
4. I’m not a fan of putting Christmas lights around your dog’s neck to take a picture, but you could try some tinsel, purely for a quick picture and then remove it.

While we might think it’s a good idea and cute to put a Christmas outfit on our dogs, our dogs may think otherwise.

I can’t stress enough how important it is to read your dog’s body language while putting the outfit on and while they have it on.

Do not leave the outfit on your dog all day!

Put it on for some quick pictures and even a video but do not leave it on all day.

WHAT DOES ALL THIS MEAN?

As dog lovers we want to include our dogs in everything we do, including Christmas.

Does this mean our dogs should wear a Christmas outfit, well that’s up to your dog.

Read your dog’s body language while putting the outfit on, and once they have it on.

You should be able to tell if your dog isn’t happy wearing the outfit, if they aren’t, take it off.

We want everyone to enjoy Christmas, including our dogs.

IN THE COMMENTS BELOW – BILLY WOULD LIKE TO KNOW – IF YOUR DOG LIKES WEARING A CHRISTMAS OUTFIT?