Dog boots keep falling off? Check the sizing rule
FurPick · 2 November 2026 · 4 min read
Before buying a different size, check whether the boot chart uses paw width or length, how the maker says to measure and which rule applies between sizes.
If your dog boots keep falling off, check how you chose the size before ordering a replacement. The makers covered here use different paw measurements and different rules for paws between sizes. First establish whether the chart needs width or length, then follow that maker’s measuring instructions.
These checks can help you spot a sizing mistake. They cannot establish why a particular boot comes off.
Check whether the boot chart uses width or length
Ruffwear Boots, Hurtta Weekend Warrior Boots and Kurgo Blaze Cross Dog Shoes use paw width. Muttluks Original Fleece-Lined and All-Weather boots and Pawz Rubber Dog Boots use paw length.
Find the exact product on the boots chart page. You cannot use a width measurement in a length-based chart, even if the number falls within a listed range. A familiar letter size from another maker or another type of gear is no shortcut either.
Measure the paw using the maker’s method
Check how your dog needs to stand while you measure. If the maker specifies a standing or fully weighted paw, a measurement taken with the paw lifted does not follow its method.
For width-based charts
- Ruffwear Boots: place the paw on paper and lift the opposite paw. Hold the pen upright, mark the widest part of the paw, then measure between the marks.
- Hurtta Weekend Warrior Boots: with the dog standing on paper, trace round the paw and measure the widest point of the print. Measure front and rear paws separately.
- Kurgo Blaze Cross Dog Shoes: measure the widest part of the paw with the dog standing.
If you chose all your Hurtta boots from one paw measurement, repeat the process for front and rear paws as instructed. Write down each result so you can compare them.
For length-based charts
- Muttluks Original Fleece-Lined and All-Weather: place the front paw on paper with full weight on it. Hold the pen straight down the leg and mark the back of the heel, then the end of the longest nail. Measure between those marks.
- Pawz Rubber Dog Boots: measure from the bottom of the big heel pad to the tip of the longest toe nail.
Both methods include the nail, so stopping at the end of the toe gives you a different measurement. Use the maker’s starting point too: the back of the heel for the specified Muttluks boots, and the bottom of the big heel pad for Pawz.
Between sizes, follow that boot maker’s rule
Ruffwear says to size down between sizes. Pawz says to select the larger size. Check the rule for the boots you are choosing before rounding either way.
Hurtta says to choose the size closest to the paw width. Take the smaller size if the paw is less than 5 mm wider than the size mark, and the larger size if it is more than 5 mm wider. The wording leaves the exact 5 mm boundary unspecified; ask Hurtta if your measurement lands there.
Muttluks says to choose the smallest size that fits the whole paw, including the nails. The supplied UK guidance for Kurgo Blaze Cross gives no between-size rule. Comparing the nearest entries does not establish a Kurgo instruction to round up or down.
Worked example: a 60 mm width and a 60 mm length
Suppose the relevant measuring methods give a paw width of 60 mm and a paw length, including the nail, of 60 mm. This is a hypothetical example. The two measurements happen to share a number, but each belongs in a different kind of chart.
- Ruffwear Boots: the 60 mm width lies between the chart’s 57 mm and 64 mm entries, labelled 2.25 in and 2.50 in. Ruffwear’s size-down rule points to the 57 mm entry, labelled 2.25 in.
- Hurtta Weekend Warrior Boots: the 60 mm width matches XL exactly.
- Pawz Rubber Dog Boots: the 60 mm length falls within Small, listed at 51–64 mm.
- Muttluks Original Fleece-Lined and All-Weather: the 60 mm length falls within XS, listed at 57–70 mm, following its rule to choose the smallest size that fits the whole paw.
These are chart selections, not measured internal boot dimensions. Notice the letter labels too: the same paw length points to Small in Pawz and XS in the specified Muttluks chart. Carrying one maker’s label across to the other would lose that distinction.
If the boots still come off
Before choosing a replacement size, compare your measuring record with the exact product chart:
- Did you measure the required dimension: width or length?
- Did you follow the maker’s standing or weight-bearing instructions?
- Did a length measurement include the longest nail?
- Did you measure front and rear separately where instructed?
- Did you apply that maker’s between-size rule?
If your measurements and size choice follow the chart but the boot still slips, ask the maker for fitting instructions for that model. The sizing guidance here does not specify a fastening position, closure tension or tug test. Those questions need model-specific guidance before you decide whether another size is the answer.
FurPick checked the maker sources used here on 5 October 2026. See our method for chart sources and sizing limitations.
FurPick uses AI-assisted writing and automated checks. Its current workflow prepares up to one draft a day, with publication as a separate manual action. FurPick has not tested products. The sizing data it draws on is transcribed from each manufacturer’s own published chart, with the source and the date it was read. How this site works.
Common questions
Which dog boot charts use width rather than length?
Ruffwear Boots, Hurtta Weekend Warrior Boots and Kurgo Blaze Cross Dog Shoes use paw width. Muttluks Original Fleece-Lined and All-Weather boots and Pawz Rubber Dog Boots use paw length. Use the measurement required by the exact product chart.
Should I size dog boots up or down between sizes?
Follow the maker’s rule. Ruffwear says down; Pawz says larger. Muttluks says the smallest size fitting the whole paw, nails included. Hurtta uses a 5 mm width threshold but leaves the exact boundary unspecified. The supplied UK Kurgo Blaze Cross guidance gives no between-size rule.
Which Ruffwear boot size does a 60 mm-wide paw point to?
A 60 mm paw width lies between Ruffwear’s 57 mm and 64 mm chart entries. Its size-down rule points to the 57 mm entry, labelled 2.25 in. This is a chart selection, not a measured internal boot width.
Should I measure front and rear paws separately for Hurtta boots?
Yes. Hurtta’s Weekend Warrior Boots instructions say to measure front and rear paws separately. With the dog standing on paper, trace round each paw and measure the widest point of the print. Record each result instead of assuming the measurements match.