Snagged vests

[BigAinaBuilt]

I have been contemplating picking up a couple vests for my dogs and have no experience with them. I was told by a few more experienced hunters that they tend to snag on branches ?? Does anyone have this problem or any similar experiences?? I do not lead in any of my dogs so I am worried about a  dog getting stuck in the thick and me wondering where they are before having to track them down and climb in to get them free. I am looking at the Guardian Kevlar from Ugly Dog if anyone has experience with that specific vests.

[stoked]

i've heard about people getting their vests snagged and dogs getting stuck. i have only had that happen maybe once or twice and used to run vests on all my bay dogs. vests are good, but hot and dogs can't move well in them. if you have loose baying dogs, they will rarely get cut, but all it takes is one good time.

im fixin' to start runnin' a strike vest on all my bay dogs. it's short and gives decent protection without being too hot and it still allows a dog to move pretty well in thick cover. if you really think about it, dogs tend to get cut up front most of the time in the chest area, which is probably the worst place a dog can get cut, besides the neck area. you can find these vests at southern cross; hogdogcutvests.com

my buddy is runnin' a dogo in the gardian kevlar and loves that vest. so far, i haven't heard any negatives about it. alot of people on here have it, you should get a good responce about it.

hope this helps you.

[BigAinaBuilt]

Thank you for the response Stoked! My pack is a very loose pack besides my newest recruits Marley (18 month old Bull/Whippet) and Kale (8 months old GSP/Lab). They are still young and learning so I would like to be able to give them the extra security while they learn. I guess the only way to see how the vests do in my terrain is to purchase one and field test it myself huh??

[bob]

Ive found that my older bay dogs think there in trouble when I put a bay vest on them & they dont hunt like they do without it, but I have two guardian vest  & one guardian kevlar ,they have saved my dogs life several times , I wouldnt use anything but a guardian on my cds. me & my hunting buddys lost three bulldogs this year , all of them were stuck in the bottom jaw & cut the juggaler vein , several miles in & on mules theres no saving them but the guardian protects that area, and now they are coming out with the guardian titan  even better than the first two , also the people at ugly dog are the best in the world to deal with & very freindly, if you love your cds as I do give them the best protection money can buy , the guardian series vest      thank you ugly dog

[Lockedon]

The guys I hunt with used to run a few dogs with vest until one of them got hung up in a creek and drown.  All of the vest that were on bay dogs are now in storage.  I run a triple kevlar vest on my lead in CD and it has save his life many times, no doubt.  My CD has never been hung up on the way to a bay by his vest.

[catchrcall]

I have two vests from uglydog.  a devestator and a guardian kevlar.  I like them both a lot, neither has been cut through, neither has hung up on anything so far.  I prefer the guardian kevlar because it is one piece, which means in hot weather i can carry it until i hear a bay and put it on the catch dog quicker than I can the devestator.  overall no complaints on either vest.  I have not run a vest on bay dogs. 

[cantexduck]

 Dont get caught up in all the colorful vest. There is a very good place in Alto , Tx that will custom make the vest and have it at your door in less then a week. I think kevlar is over rated. It does nothing agent slashes and cuts. It is made for impact. I have had hog cut through my vests and colllars. No way in heck I am gonna rely on kevlar........Wet felt for me.

[Dirtydog]

ive had to help my dogo/ab through a fence or two and out of some bad brair patches but the protectcion is worth it. just keep em wet and cool. GOOD LUCK !

[Black Gold]

I think kevlar is over rated. It does nothing agent slashes and cuts. It is made for impact. I have had hog cut through my vests and colllars. No way in heck I am gonna rely on kevlar........Wet felt for me.

Not true.  We have done multiple cut and puncture tests with both kevlar and wet-felt......kevlar has much more cut and slash resistance than wet felt does......2 or more layers of quilted together kevlar gives unmatched protection from any other material available....that is FACT.....I've done the tests myself both in the field with hogs and with knives, icepicks, screwdrives......you name it......

I dont make a cent off of any vest anymore, but the quilted kevlar vests that Ugly Dog make are in a league of their own when it comes to protection......The new Guardian TITAN that will be released soon will be responsible for a LOT of catch dogs dying of OLD AGE....mark my word....

[Cull Buck]

Cody, do want to give us the skinny (or at least a little tid bit)on the titan vest?  I've seen it listed on their website but without the details.

[cantexduck]

I think kevlar is over rated. It does nothing agent slashes and cuts. It is made for impact. I have had hog cut through my vests and colllars. No way in heck I am gonna rely on kevlar........Wet felt for me.

Not true.  We have done multiple cut and puncture tests with both kevlar and wet-felt......kevlar has much more cut and slash resistance than wet felt does......2 or more layers of quilted together kevlar gives unmatched protection from any other material available....that is FACT.....I've done the tests myself both in the field with hogs and with knives, icepicks, screwdrives......you name it......

I dont make a cent off of any vest anymore, but the quilted kevlar vests that Ugly Dog make are in a league of their own when it comes to protection......The new Guardian TITAN that will be released soon will be responsible for a LOT of catch dogs dying of OLD AGE....mark my word....

     If 2 layers is unmatched why make vest with more then two?
 If I remember you are a LEO. Is someone is coming at you with a knife what did they teach you to do? Take it in the vest or cover your vitals and take in the arms?

     I also have some kevlar cut collars that were cut over 5 times all the way through. They were from Flatwater. Very well made but the kevlar didnt help much. They will never be on my dogs. I do like the UD d.........(dont remember the name) collars. I really like those. And at under 25 bucks a very good price.

[Black Gold]

Nothing is cut proof....you will see that "cut resistance" is the phrase I used.......more kevlar = more cut resistance........wet felt doesnt hold a candle to kevlar.....and yes...there are cut "resistance" vests for LEO's as well.....they are made with KEVLAR........some other companies (other than Ugly Dog) buy kevlar poly blends and try to pass it off as kevlar.....not even close to the same thing........ballistic grade dupont kevlar is all that goes into Ugly Dog cut gear.....not the cheap knock-off blends that "others" use....

[uglydog]

URBAN LEGEND or FACTS??

Everybody has had somebody tell them the dogs get hung up wearning vests and collars, But Who can say they had it happen to them???


I have been in this game over ten years. I have yet to get a dog hunt by their vest on a stick or vine.

I have run vests on my catch dog all these years and on afew ceratin bay dogs. Yes the low wire on barbed wire might hold an over tenacious bulldog up for a few seconds, but so does the cut collar & tracking collr at times, 1 in 50 times on rats nest of wire fences, it may cost them a few seconds.

The worst episode of dog getting hung up was in a swift moving current the dog was washed into a pile of limbs hung in middle of river,the dogs regular collar got stuck on a branch and the swift water pushing the dog kept it from freeing itself, I was there and jumped in and pulled Mr.Mason Blue dog off the branch and then she joined in on the water catch.,

[Mike]

Never had or seen a dog get hung up because of their vest or collar...

...and kevlar over wet felt anytime, anyday, anywhere.

[FcHogDog]

Only time I've seen dogs get hung up is a catch dog in the bottom barbed wire on a fence, but it definetly did not last long enough for me to call it a problem.  It wasnt the difference between a caught hog and a broke hog.

[hogdoggintexas]

when i worked for TDC if you worked seg you had on a kevlar shank vest    and i had 1 dog hang up to where it was a prob but that was all me the vest on the dog was too big for her now she has 1 that fits and shes fine

[cantexduck]

when i worked for TDC if you worked seg you had on a kevlar shank vest    and i had 1 dog hang up to where it was a prob but that was all me the vest on the dog was too big for her now she has 1 that fits and shes fine

  That shank vest was tested and approved by a test done with an ice pick.  When the same vest was tested with a knife it didnt pass. I am talking about the one that was first made with turtle skin and then made with kevlar. CDC did the testing.

[Black Gold]

We can debate this all day long.....I've tested every material I could find.....there is only 1 material that is more cut resistant than kevlar and it is sold by the square inch and has to be woven to the shape you want because it cant be cut by even diamond sheers (would cost bout $600-$700 for a 1 layer vest).  Every other material can be cut by regular sheers including wet felt.....kevlar takes diamond sheers......

When it comes to cut gear Dupont Kevlar is in a class of its own.

[Cull Buck]

Cody, according to the ugly dog website the guardian with 2 layers of kevlar offers more cut protection than the devestators 3 layers.  Why is that?  I assume its the way its quilted together.

[USHOG]

Dupont Kevlar is by far the best material for the money on this planet. I have never heard of an officer wearing a nylon vest to stop bullets. It is just silly to think otherwise.

I have never had a problem with vests getting hung up and I do hunt some very thick land almost everyday of the week. I also have watched these vests save my dogs life over and over and over again. Ugly Dog vests are tried and true and I wouldnt use anything else as long as they make them. I have 19 RCDs and not one of them has every been cut where the vest covers. Kevlar is by far the best material.