Whole Dog Journal’s 2022 Dog Gear of The Year

The most exciting and useful dog products you can use in the new year.

IN.LINE HARNESS $35 – $42

in line dog harness

Front-clip harnesses are often recommended for managing a dog who pulls; attaching the leash in front of the dog’s chest helps disrupt his straight-ahead pulling by shifting his chest and shoulders to the side. But a front-clip harness can be successful at this only if the whole harness doesn’t slide sideways on the dog when he pulls, and many front-clip models do. Also, those with designs that cross the dog’s chest horizontally are known to interfere with the dog’s shoulder movement.

The in.Line Harness solves these problems with a unique feature we haven’t seen anywhere else: a cleverly designed front connection point (seen in inset photo) that tightens on only one side of the front of the harness when pulled; it also helps prevent the whole thing from sliding out of place under pulling pressure. 

close up of inline dog harness

The in.Line has a second D-ring leash attachment on the padded back, so it can be used with a double-ended leash (connected in front and back) or just on the back like a regular harness. The underside of the harness is also padded for comfort and to help secure its ergonomic position. 

Another nice feature: The receptacles for the girth strap buckles are positioned on top of the back pad and made with a plastic shield that prevents a long-coated dog’s hair from getting caught in the buckles as you are trying to fasten them. 

The in.Line harness comes in five sizes (XS to XL) and two colors. – N.K.

14 COMMENTS

  1. Do these harnesses control dogs who pull? I generally find harnesses that attach to the leash from the front give somewhat more and easier control than those that attach from the top and it is not clear to me how these harnesses attach to the leash. Thank you!!

    • The Baumutt In.Line Harness has a unique attachment point on the front of the harness, making it perfect to manage dogs who are still learning not to pull. If has an extra attachment point on the back of the harness for when they behaving better 🙂

  2. The Heyday beds look nice and practical. That said, for BIG dogs (mine is 100lbs) I’d like to recommend the Big Barker line of orthopedic beds specifically made for the needs of big/heavy dogs. WDJ please check them out!

    • I got both of my dogs Kopek’s orthopedic beds even though they are still young. I bought one for Ramses when he was 12 and should have bought one much sooner. Not only is the foam great but it has both an outer microfiber cover that washes beautifully and in inner waterproof liner that is also washable. I originally got Ramses a DogBeds4Less for the bedroom and that was also very good and fit quite well next to the bed. Also with both a cover and liner and good foam mattress. He had that in the bedroom and his Kopeks in the living room. When I got Freyja I bought her a round Kopek’s and this morning when I woke up she was sleeping in it. She hasn’t done that for months but I guess with the cold weather she wanted a bit of warmth and to be closer to me. Diana is still sleeping in the bed so she has an Olympic Queen Serta or Sealy or whatever it is with a memory foam topper. Her Kopek’s is in the living room.

  3. I think both Diana pawPrints and Freyja Grey are in Kurgo, Freyja inheriting the harness Diana grew out of. I bought both because they were so highly rated for the car. I can put them in any harness for walking but for the car I want a harness that is the best rated in case of accident. They don’t like being buckled in but who does? It’s for their own good and I don’t want them flying through a windshield because a quick release buckle broke. I research from time to time but every time, those quick release buckles no matter what the design fail in car accident tests. I believe Diana’s large Kurgo has an infinity loop to secure her. Freyja’s smaller harness has metal tabs that go through metal loops to secure her. Sure it’s more difficult as she is a spinner, but it is a small price to pay for their safety.

  4. It’s so nice to see Otto modeling again. I’ve been an Otto fan since first graced WDJ’s pages. I just adore him.
    About doggy seat-belt harnesses, traveling in a crate has been proven to be much safer. Having said that, I admit to using a harness more often because I’m an inconsistent human being. Rufus, too, is a spinner. We get around that problem by attaching the harness to the seatbelt with a rotating hook cut from an old leash.

  5. As a professional trainer that routinely utilizes harnesses and recommends that my clients do as well, I have observed a lack of choices when it comes to harness, including this one as described. Yes, there’s tons on the market, but when looking for correct sizing (almost impossible to find for dogs under 10 lbs), that ALSO have a neck adjustment and release and a front buckle attachment for the leash, the choices are very, very few. More harnesses need to have the neck adjustment and release because there’s many dogs that are fearful of equipment going over their head. I’m at the point where I think I need to design my own just to offer these options. Currently the 3 n 1 harness accomplishes this but is limited for use in smaller breeds.

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    Ne vous contentez pas d’habiller votre chien, habillez-le avec style avec les vêtements et accessoires de Dog Love Design…