PerfectFit Dog Harness Review.

Disclaimer - This review contains no affiliate or advertising links. The PerfectFit dog harnesses were bought by us and this review is merely my opinion. You may have a differing opinion and that's fine!

The "Too Long; Didn't Read" Summary

A great fitting harness that's well made, has useful features and backed up by great support. There are 1 or 2 niggles but overall we'd recommend giving one a go.

Why We Bought a PerfectFit Dog Harness

We were first time dog owners when we brought Lumi into our household and just about every purchasing decision was researched for far too long. Buying a harness was no exception as there are a wide range of opinions on harnesses vs collars and then you have a huge amount to choose from.

Ultimately, we decided that we wanted to get a Y-shaped harness that was well reviewed and was going to be a good fit. The PerfectFit range seemed to fit the bill so we got Lumi's first harness for her to wear as soon as she was old enough to go for walks. It was only about 3 and a half months before we had to go back to PerfectFit to order a bigger size and hopefully now Lumi won't outgrow this one.

What Is a PerfectFit Harness? 

They are quite unique in the fact that they come in 3 pieces. You need top, front & girth pieces. These come in 3 widths and more colours than you can shake your dogs stick at. All of this means you can get a harness that actually fits your dog really well. Dogs come in so many different shapes and sizes it makes sense to get a harness that can be tailored to them individually.

Based on our usage, here are some pros and cons that we've discovered whilst buying and using them.

Pros

Can Achieve a Perfect Fit!

As I mentioned above, due to the huge range of sizing options you should be able to get a harness put together that fits any dog. Where other brands might be limited to 5 or 7 sizes, PerfectFit have dozens of combinations. We're happy knowing that Lumi is wearing a harness that isn't going to be too loose that she could get out of it or be too tight and uncomfortable.

Secure, Strong and Well Made

We've had no complaints thus far on the build quality and/or the quality of the components. The D-rings are securely attached and the clips have been easy to use and show no sign of getting weaker through use.

Top Piece Has 4 Clips

This wasn't something we had considered much when we first bought a harness. By having 4 clips on the top, you can undo 3 of them to put the harness onto your dog. This means you don't need to get your dog to put their head through the harness to put it on. Lumi isn't exactly a fan of putting her harness on so being able to clip it around her neck rather than going over her head is very useful. She's fine with the harness once it's on!

Soft Fleece Padding

All the individual pieces have a fleece lining that helps to give the harness a soft and padded feel. It's the top part that comes in an array of different fleece colours. We stuck with black as we wanted the reflective webbing option.

They Have 2 D-rings

Having 2 metal D-rings is a great option to have. The idea being that you use a double-ended lead attached to both D-rings. We've used this method occasionally when Lumi has been pulling too much although I think we, as first time dog owners, need more practice. She doesn't tend to pull too much anyway but it's nice to have the option.

Machine Washable

Harness gets dirty. Throw it in the washing machine. Harness now clean. 

There is one caveat and that is the fact it will take quite a while to dry out afterwards as the fleece is rather absorbent. Even in a warm airing cupboard the harness takes a while to dry. Make sure you're not going to want to use the harness too soon after washing it!

Excellent Customer Service

I exchanged many e-mails with Gemma from PerfectFit during the purchase of our 2 harnesses. She was always very helpful and was able to provide sizing advice based on the images I sent of Lumi. We couldn't have bought the harnesses without that help.

As we weren't sure about the sizing of the front piece on the most recent harness, PerfectFit sent us the next size up to try without charging further postage. The idea being you then send back the piece you don't need. We ended up keeping both and paying for the extra piece as we felt Lumi was just on the edge of moving up a size. It's a great service from PerfectFit to send out the different sizes.

Cons

Sizing Is a Bit of a Mystery

The sheer amount of sizes and possible combinations makes buying a PerfectFit harness rather bewildering. There is a size calculator but if your dog is a mixed breed or under a year old then the advice is to contact them. Only the girth pieces provide a measurement so if the size calculator doesn't tell you which top and front piece to use then you will have to contact them.

Some of their stockists seem to offer a fitting service so it's definitely worth checking out your local options. 

Lumi's first order was a "15mm XXS-XXS-S" harness and she has now moved onto a "20mm S-XS-M" harness". There is no way we could have settled on those sizes without the excellent customer support from Gemma & PerfectFit.

Soft Fleece Padding

Yes, I hear you all shouting that I've already listed this as a Pro. It's both a Pro and a Con. 

I mentioned earlier that the fleece takes a while to dry after being washed but the problem for general use is the fact that rain is wet! Lumi has no issue with going for a walk in the rain but this obviously means the fleece on the harness soaks up the moisture. We try to get it dried between walks but there has been once or twice when the harness got wet on her morning walk and was still damp later in the day for her second walk.

The other issue with fleece is that, when it gets muddy, it's not particularly easy to brush off dried dirt. Some other harnesses use ripstop fabric that would possibly be more practical for rain and mud loving dogs.

The Price

Is this a Con? It's not a Con once your dog has stopped growing. Lumi's second harness cost just under £45 delivered which isn't the cheapest but once you factor in the customer support and the sending of other sized pieces to try then I'd say it's very cost effective in the long run.

The price is more of an issue when your dog is still a growing puppy. Lumi's first harness was around £40 delivered and she outgrew it in around 3 and a half months. There are many puppy harnesses available for a cheaper price but do they fit your puppy perfectly? Probably not.

It Ruffles Lumi's Fur

Lumi's asked me to mention this. The harness often ends up ruffling her fur and it'll be sticking up in all directions until we tuck it in. We've told her she still looks beautiful but she's a bit of a diva ... 

vs The Competition

For Lumi's first harness, we just bought the PerfectFit harness straight away. For her second harness we decided we should at least take a look at another option just in case the PerfectFit harness could be beaten.

Ruffwear Front Range Dog Harness

Lumi wears a Ruffwear Front Range Collar which we found very good and we thought the matching Front Range Harness might be better than the PerfectFit with the issue of getting wet and dirty. I found it at a price similar to the PerfectFit and we gave it a go.

Unfortunately, we had to send it straight back! The piece that went between her front legs was simply too wide and was going to rub. The Ruffwear measured about 5.5cm between the legs whereas the PerfectFit is just the width of the nylon webbing at 2cm.

Whilst the outer fabric on the Ruffwear would be better for rain and dirt it does have a mesh lining that is probably not much better than fleece. Their Hi & Light Lightweight Harness supposedly has a "debris resistant" liner but, with the fit being an issue, we decided not to try it at this time.

It's worth pointing out the Front Range Harness only has 2 clips on top which means it has to go over your dogs head when putting it on. The front lead attachment is made from some form of webbing/fabric unlike the PerfectFit's metal D-ring and, should it get dirty, they recommend hand washing it only. In the brief time we had it, it did feel well constructed and would probably be robust.

Conclusion

Overall, we'd recommend trying a PerfectFit harness. Short of getting a made-to-measure harness, I am yet to see any other options that offer such a vast amount of sizing options. We're happy in the knowledge that Lumi has the best fitting harness we could find.

Make sure to use their customer support or have a fitting with a stockist to get the full benefit of all the sizing options.

It's not necessarily the best for wet weather or for tackling serious mud but, as a general all-round harness with a great fit, I'm not sure it can be beaten.

Website - PerfectFit Dog Harnesses
Facebook - PerfectFitHarness