So you are a dog owner and an outdoor enthusiast? One of the first questions you might ask yourself is what gear you should get for your dog. A very important piece of gear is a sleeping pad. Without insulation from the cold ground your dog will be facing cold nights (if the outdoor temperature is cold enough), it could even lead to hypothermia. In this article, I will specifically discuss the best sleeping pads for your dog.
Is a sleeping pad necessary for a dog?
The simple answer is it depends…
It mainly depends on the temperature and the dog breed. Certain dogs are more resistant to cold than others. But much like humans they will need both a sleeping pad and a sleeping bag on a cold winter night.
It might not really be necessary on a warm summer night, but I would still say it’s recommended. You wouldn’t like to sleep on the ground either right? Also, a summer night can still be colder than you might anticipate during summer. All that being said, dogs are generally less vulnerable to cold nights because they have that cosy coat.
At what temperature does a dog need a sleeping pad?
Once again, this is very different depending on the type of dog.
A very quick summary from somerzby should give you at least an idea:
“When the temperature drops to 10 degrees Celsius, it is starting to be too cold for some dogs. Seven degrees Celsius is possibly dangerous for some breeds.When the temperate drops to 4 degrees Celsius and below, it can be life threatening for most dogs.”
Keep in mind that temperature is not the only factor, if you are cowboy camping for example, you should think about rain and wind. If it’s very windy outside and your dog is not sheltered, it will suffer faster from the cold.
Best sleeping pads for dogs
If you are looking for a sleeping pad that will provide a lot of insulation (read: a good R-value). You should not look for a sleeping pad dedicated for dogs, you should rather look for a regular sleeping pad. If you want to prevent carrying a big sleeping pad for a small dog you could always consider cutting the sleeping pad.
Except for a good R-value you should also care about durability. Dogs and their paws are not best friends with an air inflated sleeping pad, so foam based . sleeping pads are usually recommended for dogs. There are two clear winners here (at least in my opinion): the Therm-a-Rest Zlite sol and the Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Classic.
Keep in mind that you will also need a good sleeping bag for your dog on a cold night!
Therm-a-Rest Zlite sol
The Therm-a-Rest Zlite sol is an absolute classic when it comes to sleeping pads.It has been used by many hikers for many years and with good reason!
If it’s good for humans it’s (most of the time) also good for dogs. It has an R-Value of 2.6 which is a recommended rating for nights around freezing temperature.
Another reason why this is great for dogs is that it’s an almost undestroyable sleeping pad. You don’t have to worry about the paws of your dog making a hole in the pad.
If you are interested, this pad is available on amazon: Therm-a-Rest Zlite sol
Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Classic
Another great option for your dog would be the Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Classic. To be honest, this sleeping pad is very similar than the ZLite Sol. It’s also near indestructible and has an R-Value of 2.6.
More information can be found here: Therm-a-Rest RidgeRest Classic
Best sleeping pad alternatives for dogs
If it’s not very cold, your dog might not care too much about the R-value of a sleeping pad, because it won’t be really cold anyway. In this case, you could simply bring a dog blanket or a down throw.
Best sleeping bag for dogs
Even though this article does not focus on sleeping bags for dogs, I do quickly want to cover it because it goes hand-in-hand with a sleeping pad. If one of the two isn’t great, your dog will be cold during the night.
Therefore I will quickly go over the best options you can buy online:
Ruffwear Highlands Dog Sleeping Bag
This sleeping bag is pretty popular among dog owners. It does not have an official temperature rating or anything, but it should be fine in mild freezing temperatures. It’s one of the warmer sleeping bags you will find.
If you own a large dog, it might not be a great fit, so I would recommend to check that first.
More information can be found on amazon: Ruffwear Highlands Dog Sleeping Bag
Chuckit! Travel Dog Bed
The Chuckit is great for smaller dogs, it’s cheap, easy to carry and acceptable in quality.
Another plus is that it’s pretty easy to clean.
Once again, u can buy this product (or find more information) on amazon: Chuckit! Travel Dog Bed
Conclusion
So what are the best sleeping pads for dogs? Well there aren’t really dog specific sleeping pads, so you might want to look at human sized sleeping pads. If you care about them being too big (because of packability or weight for example) you could always cut them. Especially the hikers among us might care about this.
Obviously there are alternatives for sleeping pads, like a down throw or a dog blanket, but these are generally not warm enough for really cold nights. In order not to lose body heat we need insulation between us and the ground and therefore we need a good sleeping pad with a high R-Value.
If you have other recommendations when it comes to sleeping pads for dogs I would love to hear them!