EAST TEXAS HOG DOGGERS FORUM

does anybody got one they dont need or dont use that i could buy, i need it for my pit, i dont want to hunt her with out one just yet. But i heard something and i need an opnion on, my friend told me that its not a bad thing to get a vest but it also cant be a great thing because when they go in all the briars to catch a hog they can get hung up and get cut even worse and maybe kill em. i didnt know if that would really happen.

There is good and bad with everything, cut vests included. ;)

I think the good outways the bad with cut vests. My biggest concern is overheating, not getting hung up in vines.

yeah thats what i was thinking. especially in the summer when it gets real hot. my dog gets hot right now with just her cut collar on.

I dont let my catchdogs go with out one on.  During the summer months i just put it on my extra leash and carry it until the dogs strike.  Would rather them get tangled up and not get there. then get hurt bad.  Just my .02

 I will never turn a bulldog loose without a GOOD vest on. Remember you get what you pay for. Dont go cheap. Tejas offers a felt vest with legs flaps and neck flap for 103 to my door. That is the felt one. Just got mine the other day. I havent got to test it any, but it seems like one heck of a vest.

Thats who I'll probally be ordering from now on. They definantly stand behind their products and honor their word. A buddy of mine here recently, took in several vests to them that he has been useing a good long while that were starting to show some wear and tear. They repaired them for free....

Yea i dont live to far from his shop.  He has been the only guy i have ever used.  He will do just about anything for you.  And he will modify the vest just about anyway you would like. Its best if at all possible you can take your dog to him so he can measure it. and then build the vest for that dog. 

The heat would be your main factor in summer time. And you do get what you pay for.  I run ugly dog vests and so far have been fine. The heat is key here.

My bulldog has already had a heat stroke...in December.. :o He was caught to long..

Right now I'm torn on putting one on him when the temps heat up because of this, I ran him without one a couple weeks ago because it was so muggy and had no problem, I guess it just depends on the situation, like if he's gonna be riding on a truck or 4 wheeler or walked the whole hunt. Normally I wouldn't ever run a catchdog without a vest, but I have this to factor in.

As far as the vines and briars go, bulldogs are gonna get their face cut up in vines, vest or not. I wouldn't worry about that, and if they do get hung up, oh well a missed catch, you'll get em again... ;D

If his health is fine, get a good vest and keep it on him during hunts....like Chris said, the good outweighs the bad.

id watch my dog in the water

Mike im glad you like your vest.. hope it works out good for ya

 I am sure the water will weigh down te vest a little but not to the point of me having to worry about .


  Clint, I am doing some L3 "sustoms" to it, like reenfornce the leg flaps ets with webbing. I am impressed by it thus far. We will see how it works in the woods. Called monday with the measurements, at my door thursday.

Those "sustoms" is why I have my own breastplates coming out in about a month. With the style of dogs I hunt I have never been able to buy what I like off the shelf, so started making them my self. Bought some Australian breast plates in the past, but at $50 shipping that wasn't a good idea ether. They will be more practical, tuffer, and better made than anything yall have seen made in the US. No leg holes ether. I have always hated how a dog runs in a vest that has leg holes. So I found away to protect the dog in the right spots and still eleminate the leg holes. Your dog should not run any differnt than he does in a cut collar, but still off the protection of a vest. Dont want to give away to many details but I will say this, it takes a full blown saddle makers machine to sew my breast plates.

L3 can't wait to see them!!!!!!!!! What kind of a price will they have ? Hope it's cheaper than the ones from Austrailia.

Range of motion and ventilation is main concern in a cut vest.  Leg flaps, extra plates, and jaw breaks are good in theory, but they havent done anything but slow my dogs down.  Speed is always a key factor and I think that it compensates for less protection and gives the dog a better chance of not getting hurt, drowning, or overheating.

Joey

 I dont get the "better" mobility factor. When a dog is caught, it is caught. There is no jumping around. It bites and holds. I like to drop the bulldog from the box. The last thing a bulldog is thinking while running to the bay is how the vest feels. I would rather have the extra protection the  less. I can handle keeping the heat at bay but I be damned if I loose another bulldog to a sub par vest. I know not all vest are cut proof but I am going to do the best on my end. I dont cut mine out at long distances. I have a pup,catdo, that i might let out early but no the bulldog I have now.

cantex he made them for style he hunts. i think he is a big running catch dog/ one out guy.

A dog is caught then it is caught for sure, but getting there is the difference.  The faster a dog gets there the less time a hog has time to break and run.  The better a dog can move the quicker he is.  The more ventilation he has the better off he is with cooler air running over his body. 

Joeey

kinda a BOLD statement, but maybe I'm a little biased....... :-\

Yes black gold I agree with you I run a tejas suit and a all wet felt suit that we made but I have had very good luck with them no dog ever killed in one but I did run a boar buster suit about 10 years ago and sent it back he was not baying the same hogs I was my catch dogs stayed cut up with the boar buster suit since I have been running the tejas suit none of my dogs have been cut bad enough to put them out of hunting they can run and don't have any problem getting there.I sold suits for awhile all wet felt they are tuff but dog can't swim very well but no matter what the suit is MADE OF WHEN YOU START SELLING THEM YOU WILL FIND SOMEONE WHO HAS A COMPLAINT ABOUT IT.

have you been testing any proto-types??