# Buddy belt harness review.



## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

I wanted to write this thread incase theres anyone on the forum considerring buying a buddy belt or maybe another harness. Before i joined this forum i didnt know anything about buddy belts and thought a collar was sufficient for my millie, she was about 10 weeks old when i was told by you guys that she would need a harness and was informed on the buddy belt. The Buddy Belt is an easy to use harness that reduces stress and strain on your dogs neck. 

I bought one, and its been one of the best things ive ever bought for my mills. The quality is awesome, the fit is perfect and most importantly i can confidently walk my chihuahuas on a leash without worrying about their necks. 

The idea on Buddy Belts was introduced in 1997 (same year i was born!) because of a minature dacshund named buddy. Buddy used to gag and cough on walks and so his owner decided she needed something other than a collar that she could walk buddy on to avoid damaging his neck/trachea. The owner designed and made buddy belts and the harnesses were launched in 2001. The buddy belts are available in a wide range of colours and sizes to fit all sized dogs from our dinky chis to our great danes.

Personally i havnt had any issues with the harnesses however ive heard of people that have, and recieved excellent customer service and a new harness.
Millie wears size 2.5, and she gets excited as soon as she sees me get it out the cupboard she even helps me get it on her by putting her little legs into it bless her. When the pups get to about 8 months they will all get a buddy belt too, i just use temporary ones for them for now as I dont want to have to buy multiple harnesses that they will grow out of. 

I love that there is 5 holes so that it is adjustable, i can easily make it abit bigger if necessary, for example if it is a cold day and millie is wearing a coat or tee she can still comfortably wear her buddy belt. 

The quality of the leather is amazing, its surprisingly soft and so is gentle on their under-arms, you can also buy soft liners (£7.80) if you want it to be extra soft around the dogs under-arms for added comfort and protection. 
I live in the UK and so it wasnt that easy for me to find a stockist I could only find a shop that was a few hours drive away and so it wasnt possible for me to try before i bought so i had to order online but i was not dissapointed. There are three online UK stockist, doggie fashions, not for pussys, and paws and play. I ordered my first one from doggie fashions- Buddy Belts | The all leather easy to use harness! and postage was quick although they only had the classic colours so i got a baby pink. The next times I ordered from Not For Pussys LTD Dog Store I ordered hot pink, baby blue, silver dapple and sunshine. I wanted gunmetal and tropic sea too however these wernt in stock which was a shame but the man refunded my money quickly and included some free treats for the dogs in the order for the inconvieniance which i thought was great customer service! 

The prices of buddy belts ranges from £25-£40 depending on which colour you chose and which quality you chose there is premium and luxury. They often bring out limited edition colours that cost abit more. However there is an option of a BB2 for £16. I personally havnt tried the BB2 just because the leather is synthetic so i worried that the harness wouldnt last very long. On some websites there is an option to add crystals for an extra £6.60 however this wasnt available where i ordered from but would be a lovely addition if you had the choice.

Buddy belts advises you to condition the leather every three months if your dog wears it often but I think this also depends on weather because millie wears hers often and ive never conditioned it and it still seems fine. Any advice on this, should i be using a conditioner?

Overall I highly recommend buying your Chihuahua a buddy belt if you don't already have one 
I would love it if people who have buddy belt harnesses could share your opinions/reviews and photos. Here are some of millie showing off hers.


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)




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## Peanuts Mommy (May 20, 2014)

My goodness you have quite the collection and as soon as Mr Peanut gets his I will be sharing reviews as well! And pictures haha


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Peanuts Mommy said:


> My goodness you have quite the collection and as soon as Mr Peanut gets his I will be sharing reviews as well! And pictures haha


Can't wait to see peanut in his when he's grown, how old is he now?


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## Peanuts Mommy (May 20, 2014)

Oh Peanut is grown! He is 2 almost 3! :daisy: You might of been thinking of Prissy who I have rehomed into a wonderful home! Now our lives are all back to normal! And he gets spoiled rotten!


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## debrawade10 (Oct 10, 2013)

Great review Jessica...you have beautiful collection. I love the sliver dabble. It looks like it has quite a bit of gold?? Got to get some more...😉😉😉


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## Moonfall (Nov 16, 2012)

I love them. In my opinion they are the best on the market for tiny dogs. Mine have held up well to abuse and hard wear and still look nice, one even took a dip in the river once before I knew Kaira liked to swim the way she does! (I take it off now for anything with water)

I do condition mine especially after water exposure. I use a saddle soap and leather conditioner meant for horse tack and they do a good job. I got them at the feed store (I am a horse person LOL). 

Here are ours. 
Doug's sprout bb


And Kaira's cloud bb- not the best but all I have at the moment with a view of the BB.


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## queenladydragon (Jul 20, 2015)

I ordered a red BB2 (the imitation leather) for Hunley and am now teaching him to "Step in". Bless him he is trying to do it but gets so excited to go out he puts one foot in and raises the other one thinking its already in lol. I tried the bb2 first to see how it works for him and I like how it fits and he seems to be comfortable in it as well, but I see fraying of the imitation one at certain points. Not sure if this is from him still learning not to pull (gawd, those lessons are taking forever for him to learn!) or the rubbing of putting his sweater on over his harness???? Next time i purchase it will be the leather one and see if that will be better. All in all, I like the design and hope I can give a better review when I have the genuine leather one.


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## Peanuts Mommy (May 20, 2014)

queenladydragon said:


> I ordered a red BB2 (the imitation leather) for Hunley and am now teaching him to "Step in". Bless him he is trying to do it but gets so excited to go out he puts one foot in and raises the other one thinking its already in lol. I tried the bb2 first to see how it works for him and I like how it fits and he seems to be comfortable in it as well, but I see fraying of the imitation one at certain points. Not sure if this is from him still learning not to pull (gawd, those lessons are taking forever for him to learn!) or the rubbing of putting his sweater on over his harness???? Next time i purchase it will be the leather one and see if that will be better. All in all, I like the design and hope I can give a better review when I have the genuine leather one.


HAHA I can just picture him getting excited! That is so precious! These babies bring us more joy than they can even fathom don't they?


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Peanuts Mommy said:


> Oh Peanut is grown! He is 2 almost 3!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Oh yes I see that was me getting confused with prissy. I'm glad to hear peanut is spoiled rotten and you have found a wonderful home for prissy, have the new owners kept in touch with you so you know baby prissy is okay?


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

debrawade10 said:


> Great review Jessica...you have beautiful collection. I love the sliver dabble. It looks like it has quite a bit of gold?? Got to get some more...😉😉😉


Thanks darling, the silver dabble is lush!
Yeah when it catches the light certain parts appear with a golden tone, here are a couple more photos of it the detail is great the pattern is like textured it really stands out...


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Moonfall said:


> I love them. In my opinion they are the best on the market for tiny dogs. Mine have held up well to abuse and hard wear and still look nice, one even took a dip in the river once before I knew Kaira liked to swim the way she does! (I take it off now for anything with water)
> 
> I do condition mine especially after water exposure. I use a saddle soap and leather conditioner meant for horse tack and they do a good job. I got them at the feed store (I am a horse person LOL).
> 
> ...


I'm glad yours have held up well over time  and thanks for the advice about conditioning them. My mother in law is a horsey lady like you so I will ask her if she has any of the saddle soap and leather conditioner I could use. 
The sprout colour is so nice it's from the same collection as the sunshine one I have I would really like to add the sprout colour to Millie's collection. 
Kairas cloud one is a great choice too, I was in two mind between the gunmetal, cloud and silver dabble but might get the cloud in the future 
I wish the fairy dust one was still available or the purple Python these are my favourites!


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

queenladydragon said:


> I ordered a red BB2 (the imitation leather) for Hunley and am now teaching him to "Step in". Bless him he is trying to do it but gets so excited to go out he puts one foot in and raises the other one thinking its already in lol. I tried the bb2 first to see how it works for him and I like how it fits and he seems to be comfortable in it as well, but I see fraying of the imitation one at certain points. Not sure if this is from him still learning not to pull (gawd, those lessons are taking forever for him to learn!) or the rubbing of putting his sweater on over his harness???? Next time i purchase it will be the leather one and see if that will be better. All in all, I like the design and hope I can give a better review when I have the genuine leather one.


Aww hunley sounds like Millie she gets all excited too haha, bless them! It was a good idea to test the BB2 first, maybe the fraying is off the extra pressure/rubbing from the coat. I think you will love the leather one the quality is great, what colour are you going to get next?


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## Moonfall (Nov 16, 2012)

The cloud is lovely in person. It's got some very nice changes in shade and pale greys in it that don't photograph well.

I will say that the textured leathers don't seem to hold up as well as smooth leathers. Doug's sprout does much better than the cloud one, although both are lovely and I love the cloud one. The smooth leather is also much easier to clean.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Someone went buddybelt crazy lol! KC has a bb2 light pink one and ill have to get Dex one as well. He's been using one similar to buddybelt but made with recyclable materials


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Moonfall said:


> The cloud is lovely in person. It's got some very nice changes in shade and pale greys in it that don't photograph well.
> 
> I will say that the textured leathers don't seem to hold up as well as smooth leathers. Doug's sprout does much better than the cloud one, although both are lovely and I love the cloud one. The smooth leather is also much easier to clean.


ah I see, well this is my first textured so it will be interesting to see how it holds up. I asked my mother in law about the leather conditioner and she has some so I will use some of that.


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

pigeonsheep said:


> Someone went buddybelt crazy lol! KC has a bb2 light pink one and ill have to get Dex one as well. He's been using one similar to buddybelt but made with recyclable materials



Im obsessed I already want more colours haha! The baby blue and silver are for millies birthday though  she turns one on the 11th of December.
I would love to see KC in her BB and Dex in his recyclable material version!
do you have any photos?


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## Moonfall (Nov 16, 2012)

Jessicashield said:


> ah I see, well this is my first textured so it will be interesting to see how it holds up. I asked my mother in law about the leather conditioner and she has some so I will use some of that.


Just be gentle when cleaning- don't rub too hard and be careful not to use a shaggy towel or rag, because the texture will catch on the fabric and get peely. If you're careful it should hold up just fine.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

lol this was last year. it's hard to find a good pic of them in it because their fur eats it up LMAO!


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## queenladydragon (Jul 20, 2015)

Jessicashield said:


> Aww hunley sounds like Millie she gets all excited too haha, bless them! It was a good idea to test the BB2 first, maybe the fraying is off the extra pressure/rubbing from the coat. I think you will love the leather one the quality is great, what colour are you going to get next?


As I was buckling and unbuckling his harness today after one potty session I realized where the fraying was coming from.. the actual motion of putting and removing the harness. This also coupled with the leash snagging on the extra bit of harness sticking out after being buckled on.. I really do hope the genuine leather will hold up better. As for the color, I have no idea. I was hoping for a nice teal/aqua color, but nothing comes close to what I have in mind. I will keep looking at the site and decide on something for him. Perhaps a dark blue? red again? decisions, decisions, decisions!!!!


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

pigeonsheep said:


> lol this was last year. it's hard to find a good pic of them in it because their fur eats it up LMAO!


its nice to put a face to the name pidge ive never saw a photo of you


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

queenladydragon said:


> As I was buckling and unbuckling his harness today after one potty session I realized where the fraying was coming from.. the actual motion of putting and removing the harness. This also coupled with the leash snagging on the extra bit of harness sticking out after being buckled on.. I really do hope the genuine leather will hold up better. As for the color, I have no idea. I was hoping for a nice teal/aqua color, but nothing comes close to what I have in mind. I will keep looking at the site and decide on something for him. Perhaps a dark blue? red again? decisions, decisions, decisions!!!!


I defo think the leather will be a huge improvement, and Im looking forward to seeing what you chose


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## zellko (Jul 3, 2013)

I bought the BB2 first also, and it cracked at pressure points. Buddy Belt offered me several options and I paid the difference for a BB. We're very happy with it. I posted this recent pic.
I really like that it can adjust to be worn under or over clothing. I wanted to go for one of the beautiful colors, but the black was obviously the best choice for him. He hardly ever coughs or 'honks' anymore. Also, he could wiggle out of many other harnesses and so far not the BB. I did notice that the sizing was not the same for the BB2 and BB.


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Jessicashield said:


> its nice to put a face to the name pidge ive never saw a photo of you


hehe! im all over fb lmao!  just got my hair done recently too woohoo :toothy8:


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## Kismet (Jun 18, 2014)

Great review Jessica and I love the colours you have. I have more BBs than I care to admit - I love them! I think they are perfect for the little dogs. They are soft, secure and fit beautifully with no chafing. I did splurge on a size 8 for my Koolie but it's not been a huge success. I needed to get the liners for him and he can slip out of it so I won't get him another one. I will get other colours for the Chihuahua's though, I'm obsessed. Lol. 

My favourite is probably Nibbler's natural one. I read an article about developing the patina on natural leather and I love that it becomes an expression of all you have done together. You can read it here: 
https://schipalong.wordpress.com/2015/04/01/review-buddy-belts-harness/

I'll add some pics below of my guys in their BBs.


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

zellko said:


> I bought the BB2 first also, and it cracked at pressure points. Buddy Belt offered me several options and I paid the difference for a BB. We're very happy with it. I posted this recent pic
> I really like that it can adjust to be worn under or over clothing. I wanted to go for one of the beautiful colors, but the black was obviously the best choice for him. He hardly ever coughs or 'honks' anymore. Also, he could wiggle out of many other harnesses and so far not the BB. I did notice that the sizing was not the same for the BB2 and BB.


oh I thought the sizing would of been the same, interesting that its different.
I love the photo of him wearing his BB the black looks lovely on him it really stands out


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

pigeonsheep said:


> hehe! im all over fb lmao!  just got my hair done recently too woohoo :toothy8:


aww I don't have facebook, I don't use any social networking. your hair looks nice!


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Kismet said:


> Great review Jessica and I love the colours you have. I have more BBs than I care to admit - I love them! I think they are perfect for the little dogs. They are soft, secure and fit beautifully with no chafing. I did splurge on a size 8 for my Koolie but it's not been a huge success. I needed to get the liners for him and he can slip out of it so I won't get him another one. I will get other colours for the Chihuahua's though, I'm obsessed. Lol.
> 
> My favourite is probably Nibbler's natural one. I read an article about developing the patina on natural leather and I love that it becomes an expression of all you have done together. You can read it here:
> https://schipalong.wordpress.com/2015/04/01/review-buddy-belts-harness/
> ...



thankyou  I love that you share my BB obsession, I agree about them being better for small doggys. the photos are great, I love the powder blue colour! is it the same blue one as I have? the baby blue...


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## debrawade10 (Oct 10, 2013)

Kismet said:


> Great review Jessica and I love the colours you have. I have more BBs than I care to admit - I love them! I think they are perfect for the little dogs. They are soft, secure and fit beautifully with no chafing. I did splurge on a size 8 for my Koolie but it's not been a huge success. I needed to get the liners for him and he can slip out of it so I won't get him another one. I will get other colours for the Chihuahua's though, I'm obsessed. Lol.
> 
> My favourite is probably Nibbler's natural one. I read an article about developing the patina on natural leather and I love that it becomes an expression of all you have done together. You can read it here:
> https://schipalong.wordpress.com/2015/04/01/review-buddy-belts-harness/
> ...


I love your collection also..so fun to see them all. I need to get on the ball!


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## pigeonsheep (Nov 8, 2008)

Jessicashield said:


> aww I don't have facebook, I don't use any social networking. your hair looks nice!


that picwas before i got it done  LOL. here's it now. hold on 

took a pic with my bf's fav kitty :]


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

Aw it looks great pidge


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## BasketMichele (Sep 9, 2014)

Great idea and review, Jessica! You have a beautiful collection of Buddy Belts. They are my favorite for harnesses too.


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## zellko (Jul 3, 2013)

Adorable pets!


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## Jessicashield (Feb 13, 2015)

BasketMichele said:


> Great idea and review, Jessica! You have a beautiful collection of Buddy Belts. They are my favorite for harnesses too.


aw thankyou  what size buddy belts are your babies?


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