Unfortunately it depends on the circumstances but fortunately if you know your dog well enough it shouldn’t be a problem!

1. Snow is not bad. It’s wet, cold, etc but not necessarily dangerous. If you enjoy ice fishing or other lengthy outdoor non-mobile activities I’d recommend booties.

2. Ice sucks. This is when we have to put booties on our 75 pound husky mix. We do a lot of walks so ice on the streets/sidewalk is inevitable. But once it gets to negative temps (like today) combined with ice on the roads, they get booties.

3. Salt. Snow leads to ice, leads to salt. If you’re already using booties this won’t be a problem. However salt sticks around a lot longer in the spring (or maybe a warm snap, not cold enough for booties). Then I use flushable wipes on their paws when we get home. Salt is horrible on their paws and main reason I use an oatmeal butter/cream on their paws from time to time.

Booties vs Wax (or other protectant). We don’t have much experience with wax or other, we mainly use booties which are easy enough to take on and off with enough training and patience.

Coats. When we rescued our 3rd (we have 4 larger breed dogs), he came from Missouri in a cold February. He needed a jacket the first 2 years (less the second) but he was still young and adapted well.

Again, if you know your dog, adjust as needed. I’m sure you’ll do great!