A Frenchie owner wrote in a forum that the harness he likes “doesn’t go over the head (which my guy hates).” That one line is why this harness is built the way it is.
It lies open on the floor. Your Frenchie puts one front paw into each opening. You lift the straps over his back and close one buckle on top of it. Nothing passes over his ears, his eyes or his flat nose.
Here is the whole routine. Open the buckle. Lay the harness flat. Let him step in, one paw at a time. Lift the straps and click.
At the front, a broad piece of mesh with a soft rolled edge lies across his breastbone. It does not sit across his throat. A treat held at nose height gives him something else to think about while his paws go in.
If he freezes when a loop comes near his face, try this one first. If he pulls his paws away whenever you touch them, read the last section of this page before you order. If he sits down and will not walk, read the section on starting indoors.
Numbers first, so you can picture it before it arrives. The hardware fits in one table.
| Part | How many | Where it sits, what it does |
|---|---|---|
| Quick-release buckle | 1 | On top of his back, next to the leash ring. Closes the harness after he steps in. |
| Sliders | 4 | One on each shoulder strap, one on each side strap. This is where you set the fit. |
| Metal ring, back | 1 | On top of his back. The leash clips here. |
| Ring, chest | 1 | Low on the chest panel. Meant for an ID tag or a clip-on light. |
| Reflective piping | 2 sides | Around the edge of the chest panel and around the back panel. |
| Leash | 1 | 1.5 m (4.9 ft), flat strap in the color of the harness, with a clip. |
The four sliders do two different jobs. The two on the shoulder straps set how the chest panel sits at the base of his neck. The two on the side straps set how snug the harness is behind his front legs. You set all four on day one.
A small black triangle joins the two shoulder straps to the chest panel. The panel is edged with a soft, rolled binding, so the part that touches his chest is never a raw cut of mesh.
The strap under his chest has a stretch section sewn in, and it lets the fit give a little. It also lets a loose fit feel right. The fit section below shows how to check for that.
The panel is sandwich mesh: two layers of knit with air between them, and large holes across the face. It sits lighter on a chest than a solid pad would, and air reaches his coat.
Grey reflective piping runs around the edge of the chest panel and around the back panel. That puts it on show from the front and from behind. It does not glow on its own. It sends back the light of headlights or a flashlight, and in daylight it looks like a plain grey stripe.
The leash is 1.5 m (4.9 ft) of flat strap in the same color as the harness. Four colors are in the shop: lake blue, red, brown and ash. The piping is grey on all four. The size table below lists what each size weighs, from 125 g in the M to 140 g in the XL.
“Sizing recommendations for a typical 25 lb Frenchie?” Owners ask it all the time. On this harness the answer starts with a soft tape, not a scale.
| Size | Chest adjusts to | Dog weight (check) | Weight of the harness |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | 34–46 cm / 13.4–18.1″ | 3–4.5 kg / 6.6–9.9 lb | 125 g / 4.4 oz |
| L | 42–52 cm / 16.5–20.5″ | 5–7.5 kg / 11.0–16.5 lb | 130 g / 4.6 oz |
| XL | 42–58 cm / 16.5–22.8″ | 7.5–10 kg / 16.5–22.0 lb | 140 g / 4.9 oz |
Put the tape around his chest just behind the front legs, flat and snug, and read the number as it is. Below 34 cm (13.4 in) he is under the M. From 34 cm it says M, and from 44 cm (17.4 in) it says XL. Over 58 cm (22.8 in) he is outside this harness.
The L runs from 42 to 52 cm and the XL from 42 to 58 cm, so wherever the L reaches him, the XL does too. From 44 cm the XL leaves more room to tighten or let out than the L does, and that is the size the tape picks. Sliders can tighten a harness that is a little big. Nothing can loosen one that is too small.
Weight only checks it. The weight ranges leave a gap from 4.5 to 5 kg and meet at 7.5 kg, so weight cannot settle those dogs. The tape can. If his weight points to another size than the tape does, go with the tape.
A 25 lb Frenchie weighs 11.3 kg. That is above the 10 kg (22 lb) the XL is printed for, and there is no larger size, so this check does not clear him even if his tape lands inside 58 cm. Our front-clip harness in size M is sized for 16.5 to 38.6 lb (7.5 to 17.5 kg), which includes him.
Read the Chest column as how far the straps open and close. It is not the size of your dog, and no dog fills the whole range. Where two sizes reach him, the one that leaves his number farther from the end of its range wins, and a tie goes to the larger.
“I’m getting my first bulldog a week from now and making all my purchases now.” If that is you, there is no dog to tape yet. Ask the breeder for his chest measurement, taken just behind the front legs. That is the number the size table uses. If the breeder has only a weight, wait and tape him on day one.
The smallest size we carry in this harness is the M. It closes from a chest of 34 cm (13.4 in). A puppy who tapes less is below it, and our puppy harness has an XS for a chest from 32 cm. It is the one to look at for an eight-week-old. The M is printed for 3 kg (6.6 lb) and up, so a puppy lighter than that is below it on the weight check too.
Do not buy a size up to grow into. A harness that is too big for a puppy hangs loose, and a loose harness sits crooked.
On day one, tape him behind his front legs and keep the tape flat and snug. Then read the number against the size table above: M from 34 cm, XL from 44 cm.
Some puppies sit down and refuse to move in a new harness. One owner wrote that hers was “just stubbornly sitting and wouldn’t move.” That is not stubbornness to beat. It is a new strap on his body, and he has not yet learned to ignore it.
Start on the kitchen floor. Lay the harness open next to his bowl and let him sniff it. Drop a treat into each opening, so his paws land where they will go later.
Once he steps in for the treat, close the buckle and give him his meal. Take the harness off when the bowl is empty. That is one short session, with a start and an end.
Clip on the leash only when he wears it around the apartment without a fuss. If he sits down again outside, stop and stand still. Let him decide to get up, and do not pull him along by the leash.
“Always causes chafing/redness under my pup’s armpits.” Owners bring that complaint up again and again. On a step-in, the place to look is easy to name.
The two side straps run behind his front legs. They should lie across his ribs, behind the elbow, and not sit in the crease where the leg meets the body. You move them with the side sliders.
Check the fit with your fingers. Slide two flat fingers under the strap at his chest. They should go in without a fight and without falling out. The stretch section can make a loose fit feel right, so trust the fingers, not the feel.
Then read his coat after each walk. The table says what to look at, and when.
| Walk | What to look at | What to change |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Flattened or damp coat behind the front legs, or a strap sitting in the crease where the leg meets the body. | Move the side sliders until both straps lie across his ribs. |
| 3rd | The gap under the chest strap. Two flat fingers should fit, and no more. | Take up any slack at the side sliders. |
| 10th | A rubbed, bare or flattened patch of coat where a strap runs. | Loosen or move that strap. If the skin looks red or sore, stop and call your vet. |
A slider can fix a strap in the wrong place. It cannot fix skin that is already sore, and that is a job for your vet.
“The harness tends to pull and twist to the side a lot.” If that sentence is yours, here is what to know about this harness before you buy it.
It has two rings. The one on top of his back is metal, and it is for the leash. It pulls from behind his shoulders, straight back against his chest. That is the direction a dog leans into, so a hard leaner keeps leaning.
The ring low on the chest panel is small. It is meant for an ID tag or a clip-on light. Put the leash on the ring at his back.
A leash clipped at the chest pulls from the front and turns a leaning dog toward you. This harness is not built for that job. If your Frenchie is a puller, our front-clip harness has the chest ring and the broad chest panel for it. Even that harness turns him. It does not teach him to stop.
A twist to the side often means slack. Set the side sliders first, then look again.
Some dogs will not fit this harness, and we would rather say so now than have you send it back.
First, a dog with a chest over 58 cm (22.8 in) or a weight over 22 lb (10 kg). The XL stops at both, and a Frenchie at 25 lb is over the weight.
Second, a dog who tows you down the street. This is a walking harness with one leash ring. A hard puller belongs in a front-clip harness.
Third, a dog who fights every time you lift a paw. Stepping in needs two paws to go into two openings. A dog who will not allow that will dislike this harness as much as any other.
Fourth, an owner who wants a handle on the back. There is none. On top of his back you get one buckle and one ring, and nothing to grab.
Everyone else gets a harness that opens flat, closes with one click and comes with a leash in the box. That describes a Frenchie with a chest of 34 to 58 cm (13.4 to 22.8 in) who dislikes things pulled over his head.
Plan on 14 days. Your harness is pulled off the shelf, checked, packed and handed to the carrier — then it travels to you. When carriers are swamped, a busy week before Christmas or a storm across half the country, it can take a few days more.
Shipping is free on every order. No minimum and no handling fee, and duty and import tax are included too — the price you see is the price you pay, with nothing to settle at the door.
A tracking number appears on our tracking page the day your parcel leaves the warehouse. Before that there is nothing to track, so we show you the stage instead.
If day 14 passes and nothing has moved, email hello@frenchieharness.com with your order number. We will chase the carrier and tell you what we find.
This one runs on an elastic chest panel, so the range per size is wider than usual. Measure behind the front legs anyway — elastic hides a bad fit until he pulls.
| Size | Chest | Neck | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|
| M | 34–46 cm / 13.4–18.1″ | 28–36 cm / 11.0–14.2″ | Puppies |
| L | 42–52 cm / 16.5–20.5″ | 32–42 cm / 12.6–16.5″ | Small adults |
| XL | 42–58 cm / 16.5–22.8″ | 38–48 cm / 15.0–18.9″ | Most adult Frenchies |
The tape reads M from 34 cm (13.4″) and XL from 44 cm (17.4″). The L sits inside the XL’s range, so wherever the L reaches him the XL does too, and from 44 cm the XL leaves more room. Hand‑measured, so allow two to three centimetres. The widest this closes is 58 cm — a very broad adult needs the tactical or no‑pull cut instead.
Measure snug, straight off the tape. Do not add centimetres for slack — the chart already has it.
No tape at home? Use a shoelace, mark it, then hold it against a ruler. If his number falls in the gap between two sizes, take the larger one, because the smaller one stops short of him. If two sizes both cover his number, take the one where it sits farther from the edge of its range: that strap has room to tighten and to let out. If it sits exactly on the line where one size ends and the next begins, take the larger, because a harness can be taken in but not let out.
You have 30 days from delivery to send an item back. It has to be unused and in the condition it arrived in, with the tags on.
Return postage is yours. We do not send a prepaid label. If we sent the wrong item or it arrived damaged, that one is on us — postage included.
Email hello@frenchieharness.com with your order number to start one. You get the return address by reply, usually the same working day. Do not send anything back before you have it.
Once your parcel reaches us we approve the refund within a working day or two; your bank then posts it back within 5–7 working days.
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Frenchie Harness
