I often hear from customers that I really want you to make such a beautiful leather harness for my dog, but I will wait a little longer until he has grown. I always find this such a shame to hear, because it is not without reason that I say please buy one now and when it has grown out it will be a forever harness. In this blog I will explain why I think that a leather harness is very important for a puppy.
A harness for a puppy
I make the model harness that I make (the Y-harness) because all organs, vertebrae, the trachea and the esophagus are then exposed while the dog wears the harness. I have written a blog about this before, so you can read more about this model of harness. If your puppy does not wear this harness or you wear a collar, this means that your puppy will experience oppression from a very young age. And by compression I mean that the harness or collar then pinches the organs, vertebrae, esophagus and trachea. You understand that everything in the body of people, but also of dogs, is closely connected to how things are going on the inside. Which means that wearing the wrong harness or collar can have consequences for the entire body.
Besides that, a puppy is of course still discovering the world around him and can sometimes dart to the left or right because a leaf is drifting over. These are all reasons why you would want your puppy to wear a good harness.
A leather harness from puppies onwards
Okay, it's clear why it is so important that a puppy wears a Y-harness, but that's not the only thing. It is also very important that the harness fits perfectly . And then we haven't even mentioned the fact that you want it to last longer than a month, so it also has to be easily adjustable.
I am a lover of leather and especially dog harnesses. You want your dog to wear a well-fitting harness and you also want it to be comfortable for the dog. Because leather completely molds to the body, you create this. And for puppies or small dogs I also use very soft leather, so that this is the case from day 1. You don't want your puppy who has just arrived to immediately get an unpleasant association with a harness. You have some dogs that really hate wearing a harness and this could be one of those reasons. This soft leather also ensures that you do not get chafing spots or a matted coat.
When you see a leather harness in the pet store, it is usually made of 1 layer of leather and always made of harness leather. I love leather, but I hate saddle leather. At least for dog harnesses. Because harness leather is very stiff, because it has hardly been treated, okay that is not entirely true, it has been treated, but different from the leather that I use, but that is a completely different topic. Harness leather only becomes stiffer after 1 rain shower. And you don't want that for a harness that your dog wears every day, even several times a day. You want it to feel comfortable for your dog when it is put on. So I make my harnesses from cowhide and always check when purchasing whether it is not too stiff. I do have slightly stiffer leather for the large and strong dogs, but that also fits very nicely around the body within a week. And as I said, for puppies or small dogs, you want this immediately.
A perfectly fitting leather harness
And then we come to the last part now that you know why you would like to put a Y-harness on your puppy and why you would like it to be made of leather. And that means that the harness must also fit perfectly. By this I mean that you want to put about a small hand behind the front legs before the harness starts. This way your dog has complete freedom of movement. And you create this by making a long back section and a long section that runs between the front legs. And also that the latter is adjustable.
I have not seen all these 3 points + the fact that you want the harness to be easily adjustable before, but because we It is possible to make all harnesses by hand in our workshop in Dordrecht . If you measure your puppy correctly, I can ensure that you can adjust the belly, neck and the part between the front legs as much as possible, so that you should certainly be able to make progress with it at around six months of age. And after this it is time for a harness that is wider and larger and therefore more adjustable.
Do you want a perfectly fitting leather harness for your puppy? Then I will explain in this blog + video completely explains how to measure this. Don't you trust it? Then film your dog while being measured and WhatsApp it to me so I can watch with you. Do you live near Dordrecht? Then you can of course also come by by appointment and I will measure the dog for you.
Love Amy