"Don't Pet Me"/"I'm Working" Vests?

I'm looking for a vest for Jack that says "Don't Pet Me" or "I'm Working" or something along those lines...something to discourage people from trying to pet him.

I'm looking for something fairly lightweight, as he gets hot easily, and also fairly inexpensive - under $50 shipped would be nice.

Does anyone have a company/brand that they really like?

Julius k-9 has some nice ones.. Clean Run sells them for around $40 and the "labels" that attach to the side are like $4 each on ebay. You can get them to say anything.. even custom ones.

http://www.cleanrun.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=2992&ParentCat=202

I have liked the Raspberry Field vests I've gotten. They have a nice "Working - Do Not Pet" patch as well as some "In Training" ones.

I'm not a fan of using the vests for pet dogs. People will assume it's a service dog, and then when the dog acts NOT like a service dog, it reflects badly on service dogs.

I suppose to find the best solution, why is it that you want the vest? Is it people doing random petting annoy you, or is there a behavioral reason you want it? If it's the former, I recommend telling people to back off and not touch him. If it's the latter, then perhaps something like an anxiety wrap with a "Do not pet me, I'm _____" (shy, aggressive, reactive, whatever the problem may be) patch. Something that is definitely NOT service dog-like.

ETA: Something like this

With this on it

A bandanna with that patch could work well too. It's just that most people see "vest" and think "service dog." Many, many people with service dogs don't have actual "service dog" patches on the vest. Mine has "do not pet" patches, but not a "service dog" patch.

I also found this link but it seems to not be working at the moment http://www.thankfulpaws.com/deaf-blind-shy.htm

I don't think it's fair to presume service dogs have the market cornered on vests.

I have a leerburg vest with "Work Dog" on it. I like the julius K9 vests though, we sell them at my work and they feel nice.

Yep.

Having a whole coat like you linked on the dog is WAY different than a vest. And a bandana wouldn't really work, cause then people have to be right there to see the bandana

I got a vest like this one and put my own patches on it. I didn't want a service dog vest per se, just a brag vest, so people would be less likely to ask questions if they saw me working her off-leash.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Reflective-...874?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item23186454e2

it came out like this.

It is for a behavioral reason. Jack is people reactive, and while it's getting SO MUCH BETTER with training, he is not okay with random people trying to pet him without asking. We have a "routine" for meeting people, and he does very well with it, but it doesn't work when someone rushes up and tries to pet him.

I definitely don't want him to be confused with a service dog! The idea of using a wrap with a patch sounds like it would work - I have both a Thundershirt for him, as well as a few solid color "t-shirt" type things that I could put a patch on. He is visually impaired (which no doubt contributes to the issues) as well, so if I could find a "I'm Blind...Don't Pet Me" or even just a "Don't Pet Me" one, I think it would work.

I (weirdly) get asked a lot if Elsie's a service dog, and she doesn't wear a vest at all. Sometimes people just assume stuff.

Here are some things that just slide on your leash/collar, or clip on.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Collar-Slee...t=LH_DefaultDomain_0&var=&hash=item2ec023654c
http://www.ebay.com/itm/STOP-DO-NOT...ain_0&var=&hash=item231fc4441d#ht_2848wt_1049
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Leash-Sleev...ultDomain_0&hash=item2ec0239553#ht_1666wt_922

I'm definitely not going to take him anywhere that dogs aren't allowed normally. We do a lot of training at my work (a local pet food store) as well as Petcos/Petsmart...which is where people generally want to pet him.

I don't think service dogs should be the only ones allowed to wear vests either...but I also don't want him to be confused with a service dog, because it does change people's perceptions of service dogs in general when they see one behaving badly.

Just so you're aware, a lot of people stare curiously at my borzois but don't overtly try and pet them. The second I put a work vest on one and take them out EVERYBODY assumes the dog is now public property and that I'm trying to socialize them or something, and they'll just reach out and grab. Thankfully, the only with with problem is Kaia and she just gets distracted and wants to stare at them and lick them. :wall:

So... a vest may not have the desired effect. It might do exactly the opposite.

A dog that appears to be a service dog reacting poorly to strangers reflects badly on service dogs even when they are in dog-friendly places. SDs are allowed and common in pet-friendly areas, too. I'm only suggesting that you make it obvious the dog ISN'T a service dog. That's why I'm suggesting patches that say why you can't pet the dog, and a device that will actually help your dog if it's anxious about people.

People have to be right there to pet the dog, so I don't see the issue. The patch is the same size regardless of what you put it on.

Gavroche is not good with strangers, either. I tell people not to pet him. I step in front of people if I need to or send him to stand behind me. It's our job, as our dogs' handlers, to make sure their needs are met. If that means your dog doesn't like being pet by random people, and you see a random person approaching, you make an effort to block that person from petting your dog. A patch might help discourage people from trying, but it's ultimately the handler's job to stop it.

Now, the vest Bahamutt posted is largely advertised as a convenience vest, not a service dog vest. I have one for each of my dogs because they're nice for walks (they're called Poo Boss vests, because they're designed to hold empty poop bags on one side and full poop bags on the other). They're also reflective and I do a lot of night walking. Speaking of which, how about a safety vest with a "shy dog" patch? They have some vests like that available at Petco. Bright orange or yellow with reflective stripes.

I also don't have a problem with a pet in a pet-friendly area with a do-not-pet vest if the dog isn't acting aggressive, scared, or reactive.

I also find "working dog" to be a misleading patch for a pet. "In traning" is fine by me, but "working dog" generally means the dog has a job, whether it's an SD or a SAR dog or what have you, and is actively working.

The vest I have just says "Working Dog, Do Not Pet"

The issue is that not all dogs are cool with people approaching them with the intent to pet them/focused on them close enough to pet them. Or, you know, you just don't want people getting that close. At least when the dog has something visibly larger, (at least here) people stop and look/ask.

A note on "ask to pet me" patches - most people will assume it just means "PET ME! PET ME NOW!" so that's mostly the opposite of what you're looking for.

Here's a blind dog patch, top row, bright yellow: http://www.pupparel.com/contents/en-us/d110.html

Or this: at http://www.lonewolfdogwear.com/#specialtyvests

I don't think that a patch/vest will completely discourage people - it's just one more added thing, combined with me telling people not to pet him. I just don't understand why people think that dogs are public property, and that they're there for your amusement. It is completely baffling to people when I explain that not all dogs are friendly, not all dogs want to meet your dog, and not all dogs want to meet you.

I don't want a patch that says "I'm working", either, after thinking about it, since it's not correct - it was just what popped into my head when I started thinking about it and made the thread. I'm looking for ones that simply say "Do Not Pet Me" or "I'm Blind...Do Not Pet Me" or something similar.