# Sizing for Ruff Wear Approach



## kaylesraven (Jul 2, 2008)

I want to order a backpack for Riley. He is almost 13 mos old, 80 pounds, thin, long, 28.5" at the shoulders, and his girth is 33.5". I know he will continue to fill out over the next year. Based on everyone's experiences, I think we will go with the Approach.

Below are the sizes for the Approach:
Girth Capacity
M 26"-36" 12 L 
L 32"-48" 16 L 

I am wondering if I should opt for the medium or the large, as the sizes overlap. I am not overly concerned with the capacity, as the pack will be used mainly for exercise and day hikes. The directions say in the case of in-between sizes, to opt for the smaller pack. But I don't want to have it be too small since he is still a growing boy







.....any thoughts or experiences?


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

In your case I would go with the large.

He could be bigger than 36" or just at 36" when he is done growing.


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## Puddincat (Dec 14, 2008)

I would go with the large. He will be too big for the medium in my opinion.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

I would recommend getting the Medium, not the Large.

The reason for this is that girth is not the only measurement that matters, the front shoulder/neck straps matter as well. You want to be able to size them small enough so the pack sits forward over his shoulders, rather than behind the shoulders, since that is where the pack's weight needs to be in a dog.

With my girl, who's just under 24" at the withers and over 30" in girth, I've had to fold and pin/tape the front straps on the Medium to make it sit right, even after tightening them all the way. I can't imagine how much more strap I'd have on the Large.

Even if he outgrows the pack in girth, it would be easy to simply replace the girth strap when that time comes. It has a buckle on both sides, so the girth strap is simply one long piece of nylon web. You can buy nylon web at any sewing store and simply replace it, even without sewing, by putting the new strap on the old buckles, sizing it on your dog, and taping the ends in place after sizing it.


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## kaylesraven (Jul 2, 2008)

I just located a Palisades for 40% off...it winds up being $68 with shipping and handling, medium or large. That's cheaper than the Approach....









Chris or anyone...do you know if the same thing holds true for the Palisades re being able to replace the strap if Riley did outgrow a medium?


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

Wow that's a good deal! Especially since Ruffwear just raised the prices on their dog packs... The Palisades is now $125 (plus shipping) and the Approach is $75.

If you go to the Ruffwear website and go to "web specials" they do have the old style of Palisades on sale for about $40 though. They are out of medium but still have the large size left.


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

Back Country K-9 often has decent prices on Ruff Wear gear. I think they said they were keeping the price of the Palisades the same ($110) until they run out of stock. They're at http://backcountryk9.com/

The Palisades is built on the Web Master harness, and the panniers come off so you can use the harness by itself. I'm not sure whether you can replace the straps easily on that or not, as I don't have one, but I'm sure it can be done regardless of the design. If worst comes to worst, you may have to sew it on - all that requires is straight lines on a machine. (Or taking it to a tailor/dry cleaner shop.)


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## MrLeadFoot (Jan 4, 2009)

Chris, I just got my pack out after reading your post to see what the heck you were talking about. 

OP: My 8 month old female is 26" at the withers, with a 31" girth. I just got a medium, and I'm a bit worried about the girth strap, even though there seems to be 5 inches leeway at the girth strap and 8 inches at the belly strap.

With that said, I think Chris may be onto something, because there's also a two-part strap that goes across the chest and another strap that connect the chest strap(s) to the girth strap. For proper fitment on my female, the two chest straps are adjusted to their smallest size, and the chest-to-girth strap is 2" from it's smallest size. So, I have a total of 10" leeway for chest span and 4" extra on the chest-to-girth strap.

I think the reason the chest straps need to be adjusted to the smallest size for my dog is because she is female and still young, so she does not yet have much breadth in her chest.

I think that since your dog has a 34" girth, and if he is a typical male with a broad chest, you could probably go either way as far as fitment is concerned. 

Chris's suggestions about adding on some webbing strap to the girth strap, if/when necessary to accommodate for growth, is a very good idea, so I think it comes down to pack size for you at this point. The medium packs are suprisingly roomy. I was able to a fit a 9" Nylabone frisbee, 11" Nylabone tug toy, collapsible water bowl, 30 ft. training lead, and some tri-fold brochures, with room to spare in one of the packs of the medium Approach.

Hope this helps.


With all that said, being that your dog already has a 34" girth,


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## Caledon (Nov 10, 2008)

You have a good point. I bought the medium now because it was on sale and want to use it at the end of July for my big camping trip to Algonquin (not backpacking).

Dakota is 30" in the girth (9 months) and I have the chest straps done up as small as they will go. GSD do not have big broad chests like a boxer our rottie would.


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## kaylesraven (Jul 2, 2008)

Ok...I just ordered the medium Palisades. I can't resist that price. If I do have to adjust it later, if necessary, I will dust off my sewing machine and try to remember how to use it









I found the sale at Mountain High Outfitters out of Alabama if anyone is interested in looking that up. 

Thx for your help yet again!!


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## Chicagocanine (Aug 7, 2008)

I just got my Palisades pack in the mail! I am glad I got it instead of the Approach because the packs are really not that much bigger and the features are really nice, especially being able to remove it from the harness.


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## kaylesraven (Jul 2, 2008)

That's great news! Mine is supposed to be delivered on Monday. Will let you know how it fits the puplet!!


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## Jessica H (Mar 14, 2009)

Dozer is 6 months old and has a 28" girth, I ordered the medium and it fits perfect. I am glad I got the medium and not the large.


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## kaylesraven (Jul 2, 2008)

Our trusty UPS guy just jumped out of his truck, promptly deposited the box with our Palisades pack in it in front of the door, rang the doorbell, and streaked like a mad-man back into his truck. Poor guy...he appears to have dog fear, and probably with good reason, but not because of our dogs, other than our pups barking at him thru the storm door for years. 

Anyway, the Palisades is great! The medium fits Riley perfectly, with a few inches to spare on each strap. Even if he gains 3" in girth, it will still fit him comfortably. Any more than that and I will have to add to the straps, but that should not be terribly difficult, after I looked at the pack. I am glad I bought the Palisades instead of the Approach. I really like the detachable harness. The entire pack seems to be very well made, and the water bladders will be handy to fill with icy cold water to keep Riley cool in the summer.

Riley is not terribly thrilled though. He keeps forgetting that the pack makes him wider and keeps scraping the door jams and edges of the furniture with it. And he can't figure out why when he shakes it doesn't fling off of him!


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## AbbyK9 (Oct 11, 2005)

> Quote:He keeps forgetting that the pack makes him wider and keeps scraping the door jams and edges of the furniture with it. And he can't figure out why when he shakes it doesn't fling off of him!


Just let him wear it around and he'll eventually get used to having it on and the fact that it makes him wider.


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