It was a golden moment. After more than 20 hours of driving – which I did straight through, so excited about the hunt that I’d only stopped for gas – my dog and I stood looking over an expanse of waving grassy fields. The only landmark we could see was a distant tower.

I looked down at my dog to find he was looking up at me, anticipation and delight plain in those wise brown eyes. I gave him the go-ahead and he jetted off into the grass, unable to resist a couple exuberant impala-like leaps.

Then he came leaping back to me and put his paws up on my vest. He knew this was something that was not allowed; he also knew that given the excitement of the morning, he could probably get away with it. He looked up at me, emotion plain in his expression, “Thanks for bringing me!”

He turned and ran again. This time, with incredibly bad luck, his body grazed an old steel post, probably the only hazard for hundreds of acres. The post opened a long, fortunately shallow gash along his lower side.

Golden moment over.

Last month, I wrote about all the inoculations your dog should have before hunting season, especially leptospirosis. During the past month, there have been two reported cases of canine leptospirosis in the Williamsport area; one of the dogs didn’t survive. If you’re vigilant about keeping your dogs up-to-date on inoculations, flea and tick control, identification, regular veterinary checkups – you’ve got the inside of the dog covered.

But what about the outside? As I’d learned in South Dakota, even an expanse of grassy field can hide hazards; the woods also hold plenty of danger, especially branches sticking up from deadfalls. That’s why getting a protective vest for your dog makes a lot of sense. For well under $100, you can protect your dog from thousands of dollars in injury. And not only can a vest protect your dog from injury, it can also make the dog warmer, and much more visible. If you have a long-haired dog such as a setter or springer spaniel, as a side benefit a vest can save you – from hours of time pulling burrs and stickers from the dog’s coat.

“I want people to be able to see my dog, especially if I’m guiding or hunting public land,” said Jerry Popelka, Colorado, who manufactures the Sylmar Body Guard vest. “And also I’ve heard all the horror stories, the branch impalements, the barbed-wire gashes – so my dogs are always wearing the vests.”

Since even dogs from the same breed can have varying confirmation, make sure that the vest you choose is adjustable.

“You can get the right size usually by weight, and then fine tune the fit,” Popelka said. “All dogs are tapered differently, but the most important measurement is around the girth, right behind the front legs.”

You can tell the intended function of a vest by its design and material. Some vests are intended solely for visibility, some for warmth. A fleece vest may help prevent snowball build up on the belly of long-haired breeds. Vest designed for protection are usually made from rip-stop 500 denier cordura nylon overall and should have an additional layer of 1000 denier cordura nylon for the chest and body plate. Some vests also have a layer of neoprene to provide additional protection against cold.