A DASHing Dog Sweater

Meet Dash.

I’m biased, of course, but I happen to think my new puppy is, perhaps, one of the cutest puppies I have ever seen. We were smitten with each other right from the get-go, and our three weeks together, so far, have been amazing. Lots of cuddles, lots of trying to set a routine, lots of training, and lots of getting to know each other.

One habit I had to try and stop early was Dash’s thinking that my yarns in my stash were play toys. They are not. He does like soft and squishy toys, so any time he went for the yarn, I did my best to redirect to a more appropriate dog toy.

That said, when he went for the ball of yarn I bought to make him a sweater with, I had to take a picture before removing the yarn from his mouth. He looked hilarious, and that moment needed to be captured. It’s good to know that green does seem to be his colour!

My grandparent’s Jack Russell, Copper, wearing the first Hoodie Dog Coat I made

The sweater I’m making him is a pattern I’ve made twice before:
Hoodie Dog Coat (RAV LINK) by Bernat Design Studio. Now, the pattern… it’s not great… I don’t know why I’ve made it three times now… It’s not well written, and I seriously question the sizing. For example, I made a coat for my brother’s French Bulldog/Boston Terrier mix, and to accommodate for her solid, barrel chest, I made the size large. LARGE. She’s a sturdy dog, but she is certainly not a large breed. Even the sweater I’m making for Dash – it’s a size Medium, and he weighs about 13 pounds… I’ve tried it on him, and I’m nervous about the placements for the leg holes.

And yet, I keep opting to make this sweater! Why?

The first time I made it, I followed the pattern pretty exactly.

The second time, along the back, I made a series of Yarn Over holes to have the harness loop go through.

This time, for Dash, I knew I wanted something that would go over his harness, so rather than the small YOs, I did a two row button hole over six stitches, and I positioned it at the same point that you start shaping the leg holes. This seems to have been the perfect placement for it.

Even though I’m doubting the fit with his wide set legs, I’m going to trust the process with the poorly written pattern and see it to the finish. If it’s not the right fit, there’s always time to take a visit to the FROG pond, rip it out and start again…