By November the afternoon walk happens in the dark, and a driver on an unlit road picks up reflective piping long before they pick up a dark dog. That is the argument for this coat over a plain padded one. The piping runs along the lines of the body, so what a driver sees is an outline rather than a single dot of light, and an outline is what the eye recognises as an animal moving near the kerb.

The rest is straightforward winter kit done properly. A quilted padded body with a high collar that covers the base of the neck, a full zip rather than studs so the front seals along its whole length, and a D-ring set into the back panel for clipping a lead. The two-tone panels are purely cosmetic. Sizes run from XS to 2XL, which is a wider spread than most padded coats bother to offer.

• Reflective piping along the body
• Back D-ring for lead attachment
• Padded quilted body with a high collar
• Full zip fastening
• Sizes XS through to 2XL
• Two-tone colourways including grey coffee, red and grey, grey and blue, and black and grey

On the D-ring. A coat-mounted D-ring is fine for a lead on a pottering walk, but it is attached to fabric rather than to a harness frame, and it is not what you want to be relying on with a dog who lunges or one who could back out of the coat. Clip to a collar or harness for anything more than a gentle stroll, and measure chest girth behind the front legs before ordering.

Who it's for: Dogs walking unlit roads and paths through autumn and winter who need warmth and visibility from the same layer.