If your dog sleep's outside in a dog house at night, you might want to consider some products to help it stay warm during these winter months.

The SnuggleSafe Heating Pad is well suited for outdoor use. It's a microwaveable disc that contains a non-toxic gel called "Thermapol". You nuke it for 5 minutes, and the gel retains the heat for as long as 8 hours. All you do is slip it under your dog's bed. At $19.99 it's affordable.

There are other pet bed warmers out there that have electrical cords coming out of them, but for outdoor use you ought to beware. Rain and snow can short them out at the plug end, plus dogs will actually pull their bedding out of the dog house and sleep outside if they feel too warm, and you don't want an electrical bed warmer to get rained on.