My dog doesn’t care that it’s raining. Here’s how I stopped dreading the 6am walk.

It starts the same way every morning. The leash comes off the hook, the dog is at the door, and it’s pouring.

In sneakers, I was soaked by the end of the first lawn. It’s the wet grass that gets you, not the rain. Rain boots kept me dry, but I’d come home and change before work.

Some days I cut the walk short. The dog noticed.

Another owner at the park was standing in the soaking grass in what looked like regular sneakers. Completely dry. I asked. “Vessi. They’re waterproof.”

The waterproofing is knit into the shoe (Dyma-tex™), never sprayed or coated on. They’re light enough for a long walk, and after a muddy one they go in the wash on a cold cycle.

The one people recommend is the Weekend Classic: $150, rated 4.67 out of 5 from 20,583 reviews.

If you want something sportier or a boot, the same waterproofing comes in the Stormburst and the Classic Chelsea.

Every option I’d tried fixed one problem and created another:

What I wanted was simple: a shoe that keeps water out and looks like a normal sneaker.

First week, we went back to the long route through the field we’d been skipping. Puddles, dew, the muddy bit by the creek. Dry socks every time.

The dog was thrilled. I was mostly surprised.

The dog gets the long route now, rain or not. I stopped checking the weather before the walk.

The rain boots are by the door. They don’t get used.