COYOTE VEST FOR DOGS
We know many pet owners that are very concerned about the increased number of coyote in their neighborhoods. This situation has created a demand for a coyote vest for dogs to help protect pets from coyotes. One San Diego family has created vests featuring panels reinforced with Kevlar, yes the same material used by the military and police, to provide a barrier to sharp teeth from attacking animals. Their company, CoyoteVest, was on Shark Tank in May 2019 and has been featured in many magazines including Field & Stream, Popular Mechanics and People.
coyote vest protection features
After losing their dog to a coyote attack, Paul and Pam Mott developed a vest that is easy to put on and take off and still offers protection for vulnerable areas on your pet. A combination of Kevlar panels, hard spikes and long stiff whiskers are positioned to shield your pets neck, back and sides. The vests are made in the USA and have been tested for strength against an attack from a Police K-9 attack dog (as shown in the video below)
The company offers two different styles of vests. One attaches with snap buckles while the other is fastened with velcro. Therefore the main question is how you would prefer to fasten the vest. While the velcro model seems like it would be easier and faster to put on your pet, if your pet is afraid of the ripping sound of velcro they may develop a negative association with the vest…obviously not want you want.
The company offers two different styles of vests. One attaches with snap buckles while the other is fastened with velcro. Therefore the main question is how you would prefer to fasten the vest. While the velcro model seems like it would be easier and faster to put on your pet, if your pet is afraid of the ripping sound of velcro they may develop a negative association with the vest…obviously not want you want.
Vest Material
One other difference between the two vest styles is the material they are made of. The velcro vest is made of a ballistic nylon whereas the snap buckle vest is made of Kevlar. Both materials are stab and puncture resistant and are extremely durable.
does a vest work to protect dogs from biting teeth?
Of course the ultimate question about a coyote vest for dogs is does it actually work ? While we have not tried a vest on our dog, the video below shows the protection the vest offers during a Police K9 attack scenario. The police dog, a Malinois, lunges and sinks teeth into the vest wrapped around a Policeman’s arm. The video shows that this aggressive and strong attack did not result in puncture holes in the CoyoteVest.
This is an impressive video and one other factor to keep in mind is that here in the video the vest does not have any spikes nor stiff whiskers. In a real scenario, the vest would also have hard spikes or stiff, bristle whiskers. It seems that those additional features would make it even harder for a coyote to actually bite down fully like the police K9 is doing in the video.
Customer reviews
Customers have posted over 9 pages of reviews on the CoyoteVest website. A glance at the reviews shows that the majority have 5-star and positive comments.
The customer comments also point out that the vest helps protect against other dogs (!) This may not be on your mind initially however the vest can serve as peace of mind if you have a smaller dog and your pet may come into contact with Pit Bulls or other large dogs known to sometimes attack small dogs.