The reason to walk a small dog in a harness at all comes down to the throat. A collar concentrates every lunge and every startled stop onto the windpipe, and small breeds are the least able to take it. A step-in design spreads that load across the chest instead, which is the entire argument for one: your dog steps in, the buckle closes over the back, and nothing tightens around the neck.

The webbing is soft and open-weave, so it moves air rather than trapping heat against the chest on a warm afternoon, and the V-shaped front panel keeps the straps clear of the point of the shoulder where rubbing usually starts. Straps adjust at the chest and across the back to close the gap that lets a determined dog reverse out. The matching lead is a 1.4m flat rope, a sensible everyday length: long enough for a dog to sniff a verge, short enough to keep them off a road.

• Step-in harness with a matching 1.4m flat lead
• Soft breathable webbing in pastel rainbow stripes
• V-shaped chest panel spreads lead pressure
• Adjustable straps with a buckle closure
• Sizes XS to L
• Colourways include purple, blue and pink

One honest correction. A harness will not stop a dog pulling. No harness does, and the clip position makes far less difference than training does. What this changes is where the force lands, on the chest rather than the windpipe. Measure the chest girth just behind the front legs before ordering, and check you can slip two fingers under the strap once it is fastened.

Who it's for: small and medium dogs walked on a collar until now, and owners who would rather not buy lead and harness twice.