Long haired dog in Belize

We took our 60 lb dog to Belize last year.  We were there for 4 months.  Our dog is a German Shepherd cross.  In addition to the long guard hairs, this type of dog has an undercoat of fine wooly hair next to his skin for insulation.  Dogs native to Belize have only guard hair, no undercoat(you can see their skin through the hair), therefore they can tolerate the heat. Even with his hair cut short, our dog could not tolerate the heat.  He rarely left the house and panted constantly.  He was much happier when we brought him back home.  For more information you may want to email Lilly at the Belmopan Humane Society.

Hey Lookie. We have a (long-haired) border collie that we bring with us to Belize each year. We usually get her hair trimmed to one inch in length before coming so that she is not too hot and as it grows out, she has time to acclimate to the heat. We live in Placencia, and so get some nice ocean breezes. But overall, she does just fine. Best. Kferris

a long haired dog will be miserable here in Belize.   There is no such thing as "aclimitatization".   A dog may survive here in the winter
months, but they will not be happy.   My sharthaired no undercoat pups are begging to be let in an AC bedroom now.   We moved from the country where I had the AC on all the time, to the sea front because it would be cooler.   Dogs and I miss our AC.    Your dog may survive here, but they will be unhappy and you will have to coat strip and provide a wading pool.    Shaving is a No NO.