Reflective Winter Dog Coat with Built-In Harness

For the dog who still gets the long walk in January.

Your dog gets the whole route again: a padded body under a waterproof shell, covering the chest, the flanks and the back to the base of the tail.
The harness is already in it: two steel rings sit on the back of a webbing chest strap, so the leash clips straight to the coat.
Cut for the bigger end of the park: six sizes running from a 52cm chest to 82cm, made for Labradors, German Shepherds, Boxers and Huskies.
You choose how much neck it covers: the deep plush collar stands up against a headwind and folds flat when it turns mild.
Headlights find your dog before the driver does: reflective strips run the length of both flanks and across the shoulders.

Why it stays put on a big dog

Most coats this size are held on by one strap under the belly, which a strong dog can shrug half off in the first hundred metres.

This one goes on over the head, then a chest strap pulls it in behind the front legs. The buckle sits tucked under the coat rather than out on the side where a knee or a gatepost can pop it open.

The 6am walk, before it gets light

Half the winter you are out in the dark twice a day, on a pavement with cars turning out of driveways.

Reflective tape runs down both sides and over the shoulders, which is the part a headlight sweep catches first. Two of the colourways go further: the whole upper panel is printed in reflective material, so under a beam your dog goes from a dark shape to a white one.

Warm without the weight

The whole coat is 260 grams at XL and 520 grams at 6XL. That is less than a folded towel, sitting across the back of a dog built to carry a great deal more.

The warmth is not coming from bulk. It comes from a padded layer holding air against the coat, with a shell over the top for the wind to hit instead.

Questions

Which dogs is it cut for?

Medium and large. The range starts at XL, which is a 52cm chest and a 42cm back, and finishes at 6XL with an 82cm chest and a 71cm back.

That covers a Border Collie, a Labrador, a Boxer, a German Shepherd and a Rottweiler, right up to a 44kg shepherd in the top size.

How do I choose the right size?

Use the three measurements and go up. Chest around the widest point behind the front legs, back from the collar to the base of the tail, neck where a collar sits.

This one runs snug, so take the size above the one your tape lands on, and two above it if your dog has a heavy winter coat or you want room for a jumper underneath.

Can I clip the leash straight to the coat?

Yes. Two steel D-rings sit high on the back, mounted on the same webbing strap that runs round the chest, so a pull loads the strap rather than the fabric.

The whole strap and ring assembly detaches, so you can lift it off and clip to your own harness underneath instead.

Does it handle rain as well as cold?

The outer is a waterproof Oxford weave, so light rain and wet snow bead on the surface instead of soaking into the padding.

The belly is left open, so your dog can move and squat normally and nothing stays pressed damp underneath.