REVIEW – Pinewood training vest
Earlier this year I was lucky enough to be asked to review the Pinewood light Pro training vest by Happy Hotdogs in conjunction with The Ladies Working Dog Group.
I have tried numerous training vests in the past for my gundog training and they are always too bulky or make me too hot or don’t have adequate space.
That is until I tried the Pinewood ‘New’ Light pro training vest!
Pockets galore in the Pinewood!
The first thing that needs to be noted is that this vest has no lack of pockets!
There is a spacious rear pocket that easily fits all the dummies I need for training and some tennis balls. I usually carry around 6 dummies but it would take more. The rear pocket has magnets that lightly close the pocket shut which helps to keep your dummies in place. This is a fabulous idea as I have had other similar size vests previously that dummies regularly fall out of which is a real pain.
As well as the large rear pocket, there are two dummy sized elasticated pockets which would accommodate a further two dummies or water bottles for you and your dog.
Moving to the front there are two decent sized outer pockets, great for treats or balls, or whatever you fancy really. The flaps of these also have magnets that keep them tucked in if required to allow easy access to the pocket.
There is a high zipped front pocket on the left chest which easily took my phone and kept it safe.
This is accompanied by two chest pockets that seal with a popper, that again would take a phone or keys or anything else small you may need to keep to hand.
The last thing on the front is the little elasticated whistle pocket, great to slide you whistle in when not in use so you do not have any ‘dipping’ accidents when clearing up after your dog. (I’ve been there, its not pleasant trust me)
You are probably thinking wow that’s alot of pockets, but it doesn’t stope there! there are further two decent sized zipped pockets inside. One has the rather special feature of a small opening that allows you to dispense poo bags from! Ingenious! It works fabulously with the rolls of poo bags you can purchase from most pet stores. The pocket the other side is a plain zipped pocket, but again great for anything you need to keep secure. Maybe a snack pocket with energy bars for you and your dog? Who knows, but whatever you want to take with you it will fit in this awesome vest!
Other features of the Pinewood
So apart from the more than ample pocket space what else can I say.
One feature I really like is it is made of hardwearing but super lightweight material, with a mesh section across the back and under the arms. This kept me cool even on warmer days where in my old vests I would have been seriously over heating.
MORE pockets! I forgot to mention 4 more pockets, yes 4! I wouldn’t suggest that these are pockets to keep things in but more for warming your hands. There are two high on your chest and two lower behind the front larger pockets. These are a great place to pop your hands when walking or training. I have tendency to over use my hands when training so they are great for me to pop my hands away as a conscious thing to get rid of them. Equally on a cooler Autumn day they would be great to pop a couple of hand warmers in to warm your hands.
The front of the vest also has a small loop next to the left zipped chest pocket, this is great to attach a whistle on a cord to. This ensures you always have a whistle to hand with your vest and no panic that you have forgotten it.
Colours
Finally this vest in available in 4 different colours.
Moss
Plum
Brown/Olive
Black
I opted for the brown/olive as wanted a colour I could wear when out working the dogs, but the other colours are great.
In Summary
I’m not sure I have anything negative to say about this vest! It’s lightweight, has tonnes of pockets, nifty little features like the poo bag dispenser and magnets and has a flattering shape.
They are currently £85 from Happy Hotdogs who offer excellent customer service with quick delivery. Go get yours today!
