Dog Jaunt

The PuppyPurse carrier is getting some buzz lately, perhaps because it’s summer again and dog owners quail at the thought of closing their dogs into a regular carrier in all this heat. The PuppyPurse is really a sling for your dog, with four leg holes. The sling wraps around your dog’s torso and closes along your dog’s spine, presumably with Velcro. There are D-rings at the neck and tail to which you clip two straps that can be shortened to go over your shoulder, lengthened to go across your chest, removed altogether (so your dog becomes a handbag), or half-removed and used as a leash. You can even use one of the straps to lash your dog to your hip, like a fanny pack.

It’s meant for small dogs, between 2 lbs. and 6 lbs. “plus” (the XXL size will fit a dog with a 16.5″-18.5″ chest circumference). I think Chloe would fit into the XXL, and she’s a rangy 11 lbs.

Some comments express concern about the degree of support the PuppyPurse provides to a dog’s back end, but it looks as though the sling extends far enough behind the rear legs that that wouldn’t really be a problem (and the makers of the PuppyPurse assure us that it’s “great for pets with arthritis, a broken leg, or other medical or physical problems”). The pictured dogs all look happy as clams, for what that’s worth.

I do see that it’s breezier than a regular carrier, but it doesn’t work for me for a number of reasons. First, the reason I put Chloe in a carrier is to conceal her in a place that doesn’t allow dogs, or contain her appropriately in a place that requires dogs to be in a carrier (on public transit, for example). Otherwise, she walks on her own. The PuppyPurse obviously wouldn’t work in either of those situations.

Second, I carry a purse every day of my life, and I know what I do it — I cut a corner too close, or I lean a bit going through a door, and my purse gets whacked. I fear that if Chloe were over my shoulder in a PuppyPurse I’d lose sight of the fact that she’s a dog and treat her just like my regular purse. I think it’s safer for her to have a carrier’s protection.

And keep in mind that a regular carrier provides protection in the other direction too. If you have a cranky or nippy dog, the PuppyPurse seems like a problem waiting to happen: There your dog is, looking adorable and attracting pats — and right at nipping height, especially for youngsters who are likely to be the first to tick off a cranky dog.

And finally, carrying Chloe over my shoulder in a PuppyPurse would mean that I’d have two things over my shoulders in this heat — at least with a carrier, I can stick my essential purse items in the pockets. So nope, this product is not for me. But maybe I lack vision — let me know what you think!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 30th, 2009 at 7:00 am. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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