An Avid Reader
May 31, 2025
We ordered the "Blue Dinosaur" suit for our little escape artist, who has a spaying coming up, and had already escaped out of another recovery suit we had bought for her. She is about 6 months old, and weighed almost 5 1/2 pounds at last weighing. Of course, it's always difficult to measure a squirmy kitten, but, as far as we could tell, her measurements suggested a size medium (back length: app. 12", neck diameter, app. 7", and chest measurement app. 11.5").*See below for review update.*When we tried the size medium on her, it appeared to be overall too big. We had to overlap all the velcro quite a bit, and the suit appeared to be overall too loose and too long. When we fastened the velcro straps around her hind legs and tail, the rear end of the suit completely covered up her private parts, so there was no way she would be able to "do her business" in it. I believe it is because the suit is too big and long for her, so we have ordered a size small which we will try out to see if we can get a better fit that will leave her able to use the litterbox with the suit on and fully fastened.That being said, although she did try to resist a bit, we found it far easier to get her into this suit than the kind that has to pull over the head. We opened the suit up all the way, and got her front legs through the leg holes first, then we quickly fastened the neck snugly so that she couldn't back out or run through. After that, we were able to fasten the back straps and the rear straps fairly easily. Once we got it on her, she didn't seem horribly upset like she was when we tried a previous suit on her. Also, even though the suit was clearly too big, she did not appear to be able to get out of it, I think because the neck design keeps her from pulling her head through. (Since it obviously didn't fit, we didn't keep it on her long enough for her to make a concerted effort to get out it, so we don't know if she could have figured out a way to escape if we had left it on her for longer.)The fabric is soft and stretchy, and she didn't seem terribly upset once we got it on her, so it must not be too uncomfortable. Also, the fabric didn't smell funny, as some new garments tend to, so I don't believe washing before first use would be necessary. The velcro is kind of stiff, but I think it probably needs to be in order to be able to withstand a determined cat trying to get out of the suit.The cons:Aside from the size chart being clearly inaccurate, we were disappointed that the straps across the back were snaps instead of velcro, which means they are not adjustable. I think it would have been better if these had also been velcro, just like the straps at the neck and rear. (It does say snaps in the description, so that was my fault for missing that prior to ordering.) I would say that, given the strength of the velcro, and the softness and thinness of the fabric, the velcro probably should have been sewn on a little better (maybe with double seams, instead of single), or the fabric reinforced around where the velcro is attached. All the velcro is just sewn on with a single seam, about 1/8" in from the edges. This has the effect that, when you pull to open the velcro, the loose edge of the velcro pulls up and places quite a bit of leverage on the seam, which I could see leading to the fabric tearing after repeated opening of the velcro, which you may need to do if you need to open the suit to check a surgery wound, or to take it off for cleaning. If the size small works for our kitty, I might see if I can make some improvements to reduce stress on those seams. I might also need to change the back straps to be velcro straps, if the length seems right, but the fit around the body still looks too loose.On the whole, though, I would say that, if you can find a size that will fit your cat correctly, this could be a more comfortable alternative to a cone in many cases. I will post an update when we get the smaller size in, and, if it fits, maybe some photos.Also, fair warning, there are multiple products displayed on this page, and they don't all work the same way, so, if you're wanting the straps that fasten across the back, the velcro neck, and adjustable straps at the hind end, you have to order the "Blue Dinosaur" pattern, and/or the "Pink Strawberry" pattern. The other styles on this page, including the "Colorful Dino" pattern, work completely differently, and do not have openable straps at the rear.*Review update: We got in the size small in the Blue Dinosaur suit, and it did technically fit our girl kitty. However, the suit covered up her "private parts." There is no way she would be able to use the litterbox in this suit, without the suit being unfastened at the rear. Let's be honest here, cats are not dogs, and they are not generally trained to come get you before they need to "do their business." They just go to the litterbox, and take care of it, so having to open the rear of the suit in order for a cat to use the litterbox is infeasible.I noticed, comparing the shape of these suits (only the "Blue Dinosaur" and, presumably, the "Pink Strawberry" suit, which has the same design) with the previous one we tried, that she escaped out of, was that these suits have the rear opening entirely on top of the suit, when the suit is laid flat. The other style suit had a U-shape to the rear, which did leave her "privates" uncovered, so, if that suit had otherwise worked (i.e., been "escape-proof", and not too small), she would have been able to use the litterbox in it without having to have the rear of the suit unfastened.I'm afraid I'm going to have to return the smaller "Blue Dinosaur" suit, and try to work with the size medium suit, and see if I can tuck up enough of the fabric on the bottom side of the suit to lower the opening so that it exposes her private parts enough to let her use the litterbox. I tried folding and safety-pinning some fabric on the underside of the size medium to see if it would help. When we tried it on her, it seemed like I was on the right track, so I guess I'm going to keep it to see if I can make it usable. It's too bad these weren't designed better, because I otherwise like them better than others we've tried, aside from the fact that the straps across the back are snaps, instead of velcro like all the other attachments on these.I'm attaching some photos to show the difference in shape between the Blue Dinosaur suits, and the suit we got from another vendor, and also how I pinned up the underside of the bigger one to change the fit. The size small is the suit on the left in both photos. In the first photo, you can see how the rear straps are completely on top of the upper side of the suit, with the opening completely on top. The second photo shows how, on the medium suit, which is in the middle, I folded and pinned excess fabric on the underside of the suit to pull the opening down to make more of a U-shape at the bottom, more like the gray suit to the right, which is shaped correctly. (Once I determine I have a good fit, I will stitch up the fold in the medium "Blue Dinosaur" suit, and remove the safety pin. The gray suit is the one we got elsewhere before we tried these. It would have been fine, if it wouldn't have been too small, and had a way to cinch up the neck to prevent escapes.)Also, FWIW, there is a big size difference between the size small, and the size medium. It seems like the medium is about 2 sizes bigger than the small. In this case, that will work in our favor, since I'm going to have to try to alter the suit in a way that will make it shorter.