Hi Boys and Girls,
Several of you have emailed me about dog booties. You’ve wanted to know what they are made of and when they are worn. So this post is for you!
Most dog booties used for dog sledding are made out of a material called Cordura 330. Cordura 330 is a lightweight flexible nylon material. There are other weights of Cordura that are used for tougher trails (like gravel) and for things like backpacks. But for booties on snow and ice, the 330 works just fine.
I bet you’re wondering why a dog would need booties. Ice and snow can pack between the toes and can cause small cuts and
discomfort to a dogs paw. The bootie stops this ice packing from happening. Booties protect a dogs paws just like shoes protect your human paws.
Another question that is often asked is: “Do the dogs like wearing the booties?”. I can answer that one. They are not my favorite thing to wear. When my human puts them on my feet, the first thing I want to do is take them off. I’ve tried shaking them and biting at them but they don’t usually come off. They are tighten with a a Velcro closure that’s really sticky and tough. That’s probably a good thing for dogs like me that try to take them off. Once I get running though, I forget I have them on and run the same as I do without them. I do know that I need them and that they keep my feet safe.
I have also been asked how many booties are worn during a race like the Iditarod. That usually depends on trail conditions. I’ve heard mushers take between 1500-3000 booties with them on the trail. The booties are changed when they wear out or fall off. I’ve heard some mushers say that they change the booties every 30-50 miles. Booties are taken off during rest times and feet are massaged and ointment is put on the pads. When a team is ready to start racing again, the booties are put back on.
Hope that answers some of your questions.
Hope you’re enjoying the race.
Gypsy
17 Comments
Hi Gypsy! How are you? I have a few questions I hope you can answer. Are the booties special fit to certain dogs? What if a dog has a extra big foot? We are following the Iditarod and we are interested in the dogs. In our class, my language arts teacher Ms. Logan is very into the Iditarod. She brought in her chihuahua named Stuart and now were interested in Huskies an Alaskin dogs. Please answer back!
-Your friend
Mariel
Great question. The booties come in various sizes and the dogs wear the size that fits them best. Thanks for writing. Gypsy
Hello! I’m Alyssa. I’m in Mr. Arno’s 5th grade class and Ms. Logan’s Language Arts class. We’ve been following the Iditarod, and have been looking at some of your blogs. And I just have a quick question. My question is, do the booties help them run; like do they help them not slip and slide on the snow or at least slide on the ice?
Tail wags to you,
Alyssa
The booties could help with traction but are usually worn for protection to the paws. Gypsy
Hi K9 crew!!!! My name is Emily. I love the article on the booties, they’re soooo cute. I have a question for you guys not concerning the booties but the transportation of the dogs. Where do you find those trucks with slots for the dogs? What is the maximum they can hold? I hope you respond my teach Ms. Logan and I are really wondering. Thank you a lot!!!! BYE-BYE!
-Emily
Hi Emily, Good question. You start with a truck- preferably one with a flat bed. Then a box is made to go onto the bed. Some mushers make their own and some have them made. Mushers with big teams, like those in the Iditarod, usually have trucks that hold at least 20 dogs. Small recreational teams may make boxes that slide in the back of a pick up truck. Those boxes hold fewer dogs. Hope that helps. Gypsy
Hi Zuma! I’m Briana and I want to ask you something about the doggie booties. When you or any of the dogs running on the iditarod trail kick off or lose a booty, does your musher stop the sled ammedietly ad put another on or wait until the next checkpoint? I’d like to know becuase in my fifth grade class room, we are studying the iditarod and keeping count of the iditarod contestants and volenteers. Thank you!!!!!!
Dear Gypsy,
Hello my name is Dakota. I love it when my language arts teacher Ms. Logan reads Zuma’s blog to my class every morning. I have a question for you… If you were to ever become an Iditarod race dog do you think you would get annoyed wearing booties, if I were a dog I think I would.
Tail Wags
Dakota H.
5th grade
Hi Dakota, I wear booties now when my teams goes for runs. Once I get running I don’t even remember that I have them on. Thanks for writing. Gypsy
Hello! My name is Briana and I just wanted to ask how old does a dog have to be to enter the iditarod? Please answer this question! Thank You!!!!!!!!!
Hi Briana, That depends on the dog and when he/she is ready. Most first year dogs I know of are at least 2 or close to 2. Thanks for writing. Gypsy
wow gypsy i wouldn’t have thought they would get comfortable after a while. So are you happy with Lance Mackey winning the Golden Nugget Award
Tail Wags to you,
-Dakota H
Hi Dakota, The booties are very comfortables. It just takes a little while to get use to having something on my feet. Gypsy
Hi Zuma and all your K9 friends! Our language arts teacher Ms Logan is really into the Iditarod. She enjoys reading us Zuma’s Paw Print every morining. I have a question; do racers carry extra booties for their dogs if they loose them during the trail. What happens if they don’t have extras. I have another question not associated to booties;is there a limited amount of spaces to compete in the Iditarod. I would really appreciate if you would send me a response.
Tail Wags from,
-Samiksha
Hi Samiksha, It is mandatory (meaning they have to) for the mushers to carry 8 booties per dog with them at all times. They all carry more than that. They send booties in their drop bags and pick them up when they come into a check point.
This year the race was limited to 100 mushers. If more than 100 signed up, the extra would of been put on a waiting list.
Gypsy
dear Libby,Do THE DOGS LIKE THE RUNNING AND THE IDITOROD. What do the dogs eat. where did they sleep,drink.Did they sleep in a box.
how come you look like you don’t know what the booties are? also I think you look really cute in them. do you know what booties are in real life? do you like to wear booties? we’re you getting ready to race in the picture?
Hi, Well I’m not use to wearing my booties in the house. I was very confused when my human put them on me. She said it would help my article if I had a picture of what the booties looked like. I do wear booties in real life but only outside when I’m running. Gypsy
Dear,Libby Soon,I got something for you
Hi Zuma! My name is Giancarlo and I have a question for you to answer. What happens if during the Iditarod one of the dog booties falls off? Would the Musher get disqualified? I hope you answer my question.
-Giancarlo
No the musher would not be disqualified. The musher has extra booties with them on the trail and will replace booties as needed. However, at the finish in Nome the mushers sled bag is checked for mandatory equipment and he/she must have 8 booties for every dog on the team.
if the dog sled team has to were booties.so do the haft to were them at home outside?Everyone did a good job on the Iditarod Race!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hi, no the dogs don’t wear the booties at home. Gypsy
thank goodness someone made booties becase if some one didn’t than the dogs feet would have cuts in them and those cuts would get biger if someone did not make booties for the dogs.thankes for reading my comment
Where can I get a pattern to make dog booties as a class project?
i would like to know what kind of bright lights they use at night. What colour they are cause they were green in the video.Also how long the batteries last?
I will try to check this out for you. I thought they used regular headlamps but they could be using something special. I’ll let you know what I find out.
Thanks For the info on booties Gypsy.It really helped but I don’t get how it makes dogs annoyed. I was wondering do the mushers go right through the night. The reason is I think some one did. THis thing I read made me think of when my dog ran on ice and his claws in the ground.My dog was dumb and ripped his claws out of the ground.He started to bleed and some more and some more.They grew back fast but he learned something.DON’T RUN ON ICE!
Dogs don’t usually wear anything on their feet. When they first start wearing booties, they just don’t understand why something is on their feet. They get use to wearing them.
Mushers do run at night especially if daytime temps are warm. It’s much cooler at night for the dogs. Thanks for writing. Gypsy