Big Snoof Dog Gear is a small, California-based company founded by Audrey Ballew. They are focused on transforming the perception of muzzles and emphasizing their role as a positive tool in a dog’s life. They are combining safety with style, offering muzzles that are lightweight, comfortable, and designed with vibrant colors. Big Snoof aims to make muzzles more accessible and appealing, helping to improve the daily experiences of dogs while ensuring their safety and comfort.
Big Snoof Wire Muzzle
Highly customizable
The Multicolor Custom Wire Muzzle from Big Snoof is a fully customizable, lightweight, and bite-proof muzzle designed for safety, comfort, and style.
Disclaimer: this review contains affiliate links, which support Dog Gear Review if you purchase the product after clicking on it without costing you anything extra. Using affiliate links will never compromise us in writing unbiased, honest reviews!
Different Reasons for Muzzling
Muzzles are beneficial for a wide range of dogs, not just those labeled “aggressive,” as they help prevent accidents during play or from ingesting harmful items, provide a clear signal to strangers to respect nervous dogs’ space, ensure safety during vet or grooming visits, and prevent potential conflicts when introducing new dogs or managing reactive behaviors.
Since this is a more complex topic, we wrote an article about the different reasons for muzzling and why muzzling isn’t cruel for those interested in reading more on the topic. In addition, our “What to do around muzzled dogs” poster is also available on this link for downloading.
While there are many reasons for muzzling, some shouldn’t be among these - like using a muzzle to avoid barking. We feel it is essential to clarify that muzzles shouldn’t be used to prevent barking; it is a dangerous and ineffective way to address this problem. If you want to learn more, check out our article on why not use a muzzle to stop barking.
Big Snoof Multicolor Muzzle Review
The Multicolor Custom Wire Muzzle from Big Snoof is a fully customizable muzzle designed for dogs large and small - weighing between 15 and 180 lbs.
It features a powder-coated steel wire basket and adjustable BioThane straps. For a muzzle, you can choose up to three strap colors from 36 Biothane color options and match that with 45 powder coating color options (even adding two-toned powder coating colors). We also received a matching Braid & Joy collar and Leash to create a fully matching set.
Add-ons include a chin strap, treat hole, collar loop, forehead strap, braided straps (free), vinyl scavenger guards, and a muzzle message for personalization. The neck strap comes with an adjustable quick-release or belt-style buckle. The muzzle is lightweight and well-ventilated making it perfect for daily training and even outdoor adventures.
Finding the right muzzle size can be very hard but the Big Snoof muzzle is custom-built based on the dog’s measurements to ensure a comfortable and safe fit for every dog. As they are custom-made, orders take 5-7 weeks to ship, with an option to expedite it to 2-3 weeks.
Working with their team to come up with the right muzzle for Zulu was a great experience! She was very responsive and helpful in determining both the sizing and helping us pick from the endless color and customization options. To place the order, I have sent in measurements and photos of the measurements with the tape on Zulu to double-check we get the sizing right.
This muzzle was designed as a full-pant muzzle, leaving plenty of space in case it is worn over a longer period when the dog needs to be able to comfortably pant without their jaw pushing against the bottom of the muzzle. It is also intentionally designed to be wider than most muzzles to prevent any discomfort when the dog moves while wearing them.
Our muzzle ended up being a bit bigger than I expected/needed especially considering Zulu’s very narrow snout and she is not wearing it over long periods. However, while most oversized muzzles would move around and potenmtially annoy the dog, the addition of the chin strap and the nose band really helped to stabilize this one when Zu was moving. As this muzzle still stays in place well (even without the forehead strap), I wouldn’t be worried about it being slightly oversized.
While Zu is a dog who loves everyone and doesn’t need to wear a muzzle on a regular day, my previous dog, Mia was reactive and was muzzled for every walk by the end. Trying many muzzles and using them daily for years, really makes me appreciate the customization options for the Big Snoof muzzles. Just to highlight one feature: the wide nose band would have been so helpful to prevent chafing on the snout and make wearing a muzzle more comfortable!
Wire muzzles are considered mostly bite-proof but if you want to be sure that the dog cannot grab something between the wires, Big Snoof also offers a vinyl scavenger guard that can be added to the front of the muzzle to prevent anything getting through there.
I also love that Big Snoof has galleries of different product examples so you can see how color combinations would look in real life - which is really helpful with the huge range of colors they offer!
As with anything with powder coating: you can expect some scratches on the powder-coated muzzles over time especially if your dog is rubbing against things or rolling around while wearing the muzzle but so far ours looks like new, so I wouldn’t say it is overly sensitive to regular tear and wear.
Big Snoof Multicolor Muzzle Review Summary
Big Snoof Muzzles stand out for their customizability, making them a great option for dogs of all sizes - especially if you have a dog who needs full-pant room for regular muzzle use, or have a pup who is hard to fit in the off-the-shelf designs. Their extensive range of color and add-on options provide a personalized, functional, and stylish solution, making muzzles and muzzle training less intimidating. As a more affordable option, Big Snoof also offers standard sized muzzles with limited customization options.
Their customer support is also outstanding. If you need help with figuring out the sizing and measurements, you can reach out to Measurements@BigSnoofDogGear.com and have peace of mind before placing your order.
Big Snoof Wire Muzzle
Highly customizable
The Multicolor Custom Wire Muzzle from Big Snoof is a fully customizable, lightweight, and bite-proof muzzle designed for safety, comfort, and style.
Disclaimer: this review contains affiliate links, which support Dog Gear Review if you purchase the product after clicking on it without costing you anything extra. Using affiliate links will never compromise us in writing unbiased, honest reviews!
Additional resources
If you want to learn more about muzzles, you can join amazing groups on Facebook, like Muzzle Up, Pup!, or follow The Muzzle Up Project. You can also check out the Muzzle Training and Tips website and browse our articles, where we discussed many muzzle-related topics.
