In Action The Wasdale dog takes up the story...
Search Dog Training Event Wasdale - Cold,
showers and windy.
"Positives The jacket allowed lots of
flexibility around the front shoulders area of the dog, its elastic
rope seam system held the jacket in position even when the dog was on
the move yet did not restrict the dog's shoulder movement when it was
climbing steep banks or crags.
"The dog did not seem deterred by the material as
it was soft pliable and none rustling. The warming aspect of the
jacket was apparent for this dog which in these conditions would usually
become cold in between the individual training sessions.
"During this day the dog did not suffer at all
from the cold. The material's smooth surface did not snag and seemed
to be very tough when exposed to sharp gauze bushes and craggy
surfaces. Seemed to be a very effective fabric.
Training in Buttermere in December - Very
wet and very cold.
"Positives The jacket afforded good
protection on the underside due the generous length that could be
tucked under the belly, we don't know if this was by design or by
virtue of the fact of the size of the coat however the under and over
aspect was great and really did cover the underside well, this was a
good design feature.
"The length was good as well, covering the whole
of the dog's hind quarter which is often a problem with most other dog
coats that have been trialled. The Velcro fastening was quick and easy
to apply and gave a degree of flexibility for sizing.
"Negatives This particular jacket was very
large, it seemed to dwarf even our largest search dog. The initial
impression was one of over complicated design with one or two bits
that raised an eyebrow. A couple of the dog handlers felt it was a
bit like a sexy basque! [Hmmm.... Ed.]
"We did feel that the elastic shoulder section was
a bit overkill, the same effect could have probably been achieved by
inserting a continuous piece of stretch lycra rather than the
elastic string which may become snagged. We found the collar
arrangement quite confusing but eventually worked it out.
"We all feel that Velcro is a difficult and
eventually unreliable fastening material for dog coats as it becomes
balled up with fur and eventually stops working, in very cold and
snowy conditions it stops working altogether. One of the first
things to fail on any dog coat is the edging material, these often deveelop
loose stitching which then catch.
"This jacket seemed to have a lot of this type of
edging. A recent design feature that is appearing on most dog coats
is a small webbing band on the top side in-between the shoulder
blades for holding some form of flasher, this coat did not have
one.
"Suggested Modifications Possibly needs the
overall design simplifying. Replace the elastic string with single
pieces of lycra. Remove the collar - it did not seem a necessary part
for the jacket. Possibly different colours that are geared to
high visibility and at least two strips for reflectors on each size.
Replace Velcro fastenings with snap buckles. Try and use stitching to
edge material rather than adding a tape type material. Webbing band
for a night light or flasher." | 