The Line Harness by Non-stop dogwear is among one of the trickier fits of the harness world.
With the sizing for the Line Harness being primarily based on the neck measurement, this is unlike a lot of the harnesses available on our website, which would normally use the girth measurement to determine a size.
Not to worry, we're here to explain how to size & fit the Line Harness, in hopes of that great fit, first time.
Remember - you are welcome to try on all items indoors. As long as the item is returned in as new condition with intact tags, you are welcome to return, or exchange for the correct size.
Measuring
Non-stop dogwear's sizing charts are 100% accurate and factual. They have high adjustability, so the size ranges are based on the harness size at the loosest and tightest settings.
The most important step to getting the best size for your dog is establishing the neck measurement. You can do this by looping a tape measure around the neck, as it meets the body.
You can also measure the girth, around the widest point of the chest just behind the front legs.
Choosing a Size
Once you have these measurements, compare this to the size chart below to establish the likely size.
If your dog is on a sizing border, the general advice is to choose the larger of the two sizes, or buy both and return the harness that doesn't fit for a refund.
For puppies, we advise waiting until the pup is near fully grown before investing in a harness. The best time to buy is when your pup is near the bottom of the sizing bracket. If you purchase when the pup is too young, you will likely have to replace the harness.
Familiarising Yourself With Your New Line Harness
The harness will come packaged on a black backing card. It will be attached via an elastic cord - find the section that hooks around the cardboard, and undo it. This will allow you to remove the harness from the backing card, without damaging the packaging.
These can be a little intimidating at first - especially if this is your first harness - so it's important to familiarise yourself with the webbing straps and how they adjust. Just like a rucksack, there is a rectangle-shaped plastic slider that, when moved towards the male buckle, loosens the strapping to allow it to be fed further through the buckle.
When fully adjusted out, it will be mostly a single strap with the rectangle slider sitting very close to the male buckle. With this particular harness, you will need to allow some of the tail length to remain - this harness' girth strap tail can double over, to lock it into place.
When adjusted smaller, the rectangle slider will sit very close to the male buckle, but much of the tail will be left.
Fitting your new Harness
Step One: Loosen all the straps
As with most harnesses, we would recommend loosening all of the straps first. For the girth straps, simply unbuckle and loosen by sliding the adjuster towards the male buckle.
Step Two: Place the harness over the dog's head
After fully loosening off the harness, place this over the dog's head. This should be positioned onto the dog with the Non-stop logo on the dog's back, and the webbing loop at the dog's chest. Buckle up your dog.
Step Three: Tightening the straps
Once your dog is buckled in, you can begin adjusting the girth strap. As above, you can adjust this by moving the slider towards the top piece of the harness, feeding the webbing through as you go. Ideally, the straps will be a reasonable from the dog's armpits. Try to balance the adjustment so that the straps are similarly set on each side, ie. avoid one being longer than the other.
The goal here is to have the straps fitted but not too tight.
Step Four: Ensure your dog is comfortable
The harness should be a snug fit, but with enough room to fit one to two fingers between the dog and the straps. Both loose straps or tight straps can cause discomfort to your pooch, so ensuring a good fit is key.
The chest panel should sit on the sternum of the dog, with the neck straps keeping clear of the neck, especially if your dog is an avid puller. This helps avoid pressure on the neck.
Top Tip!
The Line Harness buckles can be locked into place to help prevent them loosening. Simply feed the tail back over itself, through the buckle as pictured.
Your first fitting is done!
As you start to use the harness in every day situations you may need to tweak its sizing a little bit. Getting those adjustments set 100% right first time is rare, so adjust as you go.