Last week I found out that the person who owns the house Delilah keeps running off to, actually owns land which enters the woods close to the hiking trail; and he hunts on it.
My walking buddy told me this, because she actually looked up from the path and saw him sitting in the woods; with a gun. Delilah is still on the check cord so she is usually no more than 35 feet away from me, so I don’t really worry about her, plus she’s dark brown in coloring. Sampson on the other hand has a color similar to a deer.
My friend has a reflective vest for her dog and Hubby and I thought it might be a good idea to get vests for Sampson and Delilah. Hubby went to Cabela’s yesterday and picked up these vests.
He got Sampson an extra-large and Delilah a large. Sampson’s was a little big, but the large was too small.
I think it looks beautiful with my coloring.
The dogs need to get use to wearing the vests, so I put them on this morning and we headed out.
About 10 minutes into our walk Delilah’s leash had become entangled with a small branch and rather than have her drag it and risk tripping or hurting one of us, I stopped to untangle it.
When I looked up Sampson was gone!
And then about 100 yards away I saw the fluffy white tail of a deer as it dashed away and jumping along behind it, a little orange vest.
Thankfully Sampson usually comes back when he is called and today was no exception; if he hadn’t had the vest on I’m not sure if I would have seen him or not.
Now that I know there is a hunter close by I will be sure to have the dogs wear their vests, and will do my best to keep them close to me when we are in that general area.
The vests were $20 each at Cabela’s and worth the money as long as I (and others) can spot the dog quickly.
Besides they are great for walking the dogs at night because of the reflective stripes on the side.
Safety First!
Those vests are a great idea. Anything that makes the dog’s more visible is a good idea. Our dog’s wear orange reflective collars at all times while walking (or hunting) in the woods. We stay out of the woods for the two weeks of firearm deer season though. (They close grouse hunting for those two weeks so it isn’t too much of a hardship….lol.)
PS you are lucky that you can just pop into Cabela’s to pick something up. Ours is quite a drive. 🙂
I had noticed the 2 brown dawgs collars are bright orange, I never even thought of the safety factor, I just thought they looked stunning against their fur. 🙂
Yes, we are lucky to live close to Cabela’s; nothing in CT is much further than 1 1/2 hours away (though Cabela’s is only about 15). I forget how lucky we are sometimes. 🙂
Those vests look great and what a smart idea! I do have to ask, though, are you wearing bright colors for your safety too?
Good question, no and I need to. Thank you for the reminder. 🙂
They look very snazzy! That is so scary to have a hunter around. May Sampson and Delilah be safe and protected!
They look good on the dogs!
That is a great idea for being seen in the woods. Humans might want to wear that color except around here that’s the color jail inmates wear, so it might not be such a good color choice.
I definitely wouldn’t want to be mistaken for a prisoner! LOL
I’m glad you found something bright and they look pleasant to the eye, us girls and the way things look! lol All the ones where I work are these blocky orange capes and they don’t stay on very well. For my sister in-laws weimaraner, I actually got her waterproof led collars, she’s a big time trail hiker/camper. They are kind of expensive, but you can see where ever your dog goes in the dark! They are pretty cool for those late night adventures! ^_^
I didn’t know they made those Nicole, I will have to check them out; while we aren’t out a lot at night, on those nights we are it sure would come in handy!
Very good reminder. We generally avoid the woods when we start hearing gunfire. But the vests are a good extra precaution. And yes, you should get one for yourself.
It really freaks me out a bit, but I try and make as much noise as possible….maybe he will find somewhere else to hunt. 🙂
OH YES indeed… if you are going to be walking NEAR ANY area where there are deer hunters… NO SHOOT ME vests are a MUST…
I think I may have to invest in one Frankie!
We deal with this issue in Texas alot! I dont allow Haylie to go near woods during hunting season, everywhere there is land around here people are on it with guns. Haylie wears a bright orange color on the few times that we have headed out to the wood around hunting season. I like the vest’s and that is a good price. Fred doesnt ever go off leash so I dont worry about him but he has a collar that is orange that I put on him as well. Thanks for the good reminder !
You’re welcome Kari, it is a simple thing that I wouldn’t normally think of. You are smart to have Haylie wear one.
There is no hunting or trapping allowed in the forests we generally take our dog, thank goodness. The one a few blocks from our house is only home to a few raccoons and squirrels, hardly something a hunter would be after. But I think these vests are a very smart idea for anyone hiking away from parkland. Especially in Nova Scotia where the government is currently running a bounty on coyotes. You can never be too safe.
When walking at night, now that it gets dark by six-thirty, I usually make Shiva wear a makeshift reflective vest, even if we’re just roaming around the neighbourhood. The more visibility, the safer you are.
Pictures please…..I would love to see your ‘makeshift’ reflective vest. 🙂
You are lucky there is no hunting in your area, there wouldn’t be in mine either if the guy didn’t own the land. 🙁
Hi Jodi,
Since I don’t know exactly where you take your dogs, I wouldn’t know if those are legal hunting grounds but you might want to find out. Even though an owner may own excess undeveloped land, it may not be permitted for hunting depending on how close it is to other structures and the public park. If you have any question about that, you might call the town zoning department [if it’s not zoning they can tell you who to call.] Once I lived on my own 2+ acres that backed up to a neighbor’s big plot of land & that was lots of guns going off back there. When I complained I found out that because the neighbors land was surrounded by residential housing, the hunting was illegal in that location.
And may I also throw in my 2 cents and strongly urge you to wear an orange vest when walking the dogs there during hunting season. There are too many hunting accidents involving booze and/or morons out there.
I will definitely check it out Kathy, thanks for the info!
Those are a great idea–not a bad idea for the humans either! I love going camping in the fall but we never feel too safe with hunters out and about.
Fall is my favorite time of year for walking Kirsten, I haven’t ventured camping with Ms. Delilah. 🙂
Great idea, and they look very nice in their vests 🙂 And please be carefull out there, wear something bright yourself.
Will do Misty!
These sound like a great idea.
And essential if you are walking your dog in the woods during hunting season!