FieldSkin Dog Suit: Full-Body Protection for Hunting Dogs

FieldSkin Dog Suit: Built for Dogs That Don’t Know When to Quit

FieldSkin Dog Suit - Anyone who hunts over a good dog knows the routine.

You finish a long morning in the field, unload your gear, put the gun away and then take a look at your dog. That's when the real work sometimes starts.

Burrs tangled in the coat. Cockleburs buried around the legs and belly. Scratches from briars. Mud, sticks and everything else your dog managed to pick up while doing exactly what you asked him to do.

Most hunting dogs don't have an "easy" setting. When they're sent into cover, they go.

That's exactly the problem the FieldSkin Dog Protection Suit was designed to address.

More Coverage Than a Traditional Dog Vest

We've sold hunting and dog training equipment for a long time at HuntEmUp Outdoors, and traditional dog vests certainly have their place.

But FieldSkin takes a different approach.

Rather than protecting primarily the chest and torso, the FieldSkin suit provides considerably more coverage over the dog's body and legs. The idea is simple: put a protective layer between your dog and the stuff he encounters in the field.

That can be especially useful when hunting areas loaded with burrs, briars, tall grass and other rough vegetation.

FieldSkin is designed to help keep burrs and debris on the outside of the suit instead of buried in your dog's coat.

If you've ever spent an hour after a hunt picking burrs out of a retriever, setter, spaniel or pointing dog, you immediately understand the appeal.

Protection Is Great—But the Dog Still Has to Move

One of our first concerns with any full-body dog suit is mobility.

A hunting dog isn't walking around the backyard.

He's running, jumping, turning, swimming, climbing over logs, crashing through cattails and changing direction in an instant.

Put something restrictive on him and it isn't going to last very long.

FieldSkin uses four-way stretch material designed to move with the dog rather than fight against his natural movement. The suit is intended to provide additional coverage while still allowing the dog to run, retrieve and work normally.

That's an important distinction.

The goal isn't to wrap your dog in armor. It's to provide another layer of protection without taking away the movement that makes a good working dog effective in the first place.

Built for Burrs and Heavy Cover

Burrs may seem like nothing more than an inconvenience until you've dealt with a dog that's completely covered in them.

They can work deep into the coat, particularly around the belly, chest, armpits and legs. Once tangled into the hair, removing them can turn into a lengthy and unpleasant job for both dog and handler.

That's one of the areas where FieldSkin makes the most sense.

Instead of letting the dog's coat take the abuse, the suit becomes the first point of contact with the cover.

That can mean less time sitting on the tailgate pulling burrs and debris from your dog's coat—and more time enjoying the hunt.

A Good Fit for Upland Dogs

If you hunt pheasants, grouse, quail or other upland birds, you already know how much ground a dog can cover during a day.

A pointing dog or flushing dog may travel considerably farther than the hunter, and much of that time is spent directly in the cover.

Tall grass, brush, briars, crop stubble and burrs are simply part of upland hunting.

The FieldSkin Blaze Orange Suit makes a lot of sense in this environment because it combines body coverage with increased visibility. The bright orange makes it easier to keep track of your dog as he moves through tall grass and heavier cover.

And because FieldSkin is designed to remain flexible while the dog runs and turns, it provides protection without turning your hard-running bird dog into the kid wearing the snowsuit from A Christmas Story.

What About Waterfowl Dogs?

FieldSkin isn't limited to upland hunting.

The FieldSkin Camo Suit is designed for working dogs encountering marshes, flooded timber, reeds, brush and water.

The material is quick drying, which is particularly important for dogs moving repeatedly between water and land. FieldSkin also incorporates drainage into its design for wet working conditions.

For hunters who regularly deal with burr-covered shorelines or nasty vegetation around their blinds, that's an interesting advantage over traditional torso-only protection.

There's Even a Place for an AirTag

One small feature we like is the built-in Apple AirTag holder.

An AirTag isn't a replacement for a dedicated GPS dog tracking system, especially when you're running dogs over large areas. But having another way to locate your dog's gear can certainly be useful.

It's a thoughtful addition that doesn't interfere with the primary purpose of the suit.

Who Should Consider a FieldSkin Suit?

Not every dog needs full-body protection every time it leaves the house.

But there are certain situations where FieldSkin starts making a lot of sense.

If your dog regularly hunts burr-heavy upland fields, briars, thick brush, marsh edges, cattails, rough vegetation or other demanding cover, additional protection can be well worth considering.

It can also be useful for sporting dogs used for training, hunt tests, field trials and other outdoor activities where they're repeatedly working through heavy vegetation.

And it isn't just about avoiding scratches.

Sometimes the biggest benefit is what happens after the hunt.

Fewer burrs buried in the coat can mean less time spent brushing, cutting and pulling debris out of your dog when you get back to the truck.

Blaze Orange or Camo?

FieldSkin is currently available at HuntEmUp Outdoors in two versions.

The FieldSkin Blaze Orange Suit is a natural choice for upland hunting, where visibility is important. It's currently offered at $189.

The FieldSkin Camo Suit is geared toward hunters who want the same style of protection in a camouflage pattern, particularly for waterfowl and other situations where visibility isn't the priority. It's currently offered at $199.

Both are designed around the same basic idea: protect the dog without preventing the dog from doing his job.

Our Take on FieldSkin

We see a lot of new hunting dog products come to market.

Some solve a genuine problem. Others solve a problem nobody knew they had.

FieldSkin falls into the first category.

If you've never hunted a burr-infested field, you may look at a full-body dog suit and wonder whether it's really necessary.

If you've spent the ride home with a dog covered from chest to tail in cockleburs, you're probably looking at it very differently.

Our dogs don't know when the cover is too thick. They don't stop at the edge of the briars and look for an easier route. When we send them, they go.

That's one of the reasons we enjoy hunting over them.

And it's also a pretty good reason to give them a little extra protection.

FieldSkin Dog Protection Suits are available now from HuntEmUp Outdoors in Blaze Orange and Camo.

Protect the dog. Hunt the cover. Spend less time picking burrs.