February 2024 - Pawsitively Intrepid

Growing up in the 90s, the fanny pack was a fad that I didn't expect to embrace again. But when I adopted a dog in 2011, I found that I needed an easy way to carry treats with me on my walks. Originally, I started carrying these treats in a simple treat pouch, like the Chuckit Treat Tote. But a few years ago, fanny packs started to appear in stores again and I purchased an inexpensive fanny pack from Walmart. And it was great. All of a sudden, I had room for treats, my phone, and a dedicated pocket to hold doggy bags after I had picked up after my dog. That Walmart treat pouch wore out after a couple of years of regular use. It had a hole in one of the interior pockets, but I was still using it when I accidentally left it where my dog, Glia, could reach it. She ripped it further apart in her quest to empty the treats from their compartment. So I was on the hunt for a new fanny pack that would work for dog walking and hiking. The Walmart fanny pack had cost around $6 but was starting to wear out after just a year of use. I decided to spend a little more this time around and purchased a Sidekick Hip Pack from Muttruk. Then, almost a year later, a company called Wautton reached out to me. They asked if I had any interest in reviewing one of their fanny packs. I took a look at their website and was excited to tell them, yes! *Please note, this is a sponsored product review post. I aim to give my unbiased feedback in every product review, but I did receive these fanny packs in exchange for a review. Additionally, I have signed up as an affiliate for Wautton and may earn from qualifying purchases. Wautton Fanny Packs Wautton is an e-commerce business that sells various camping, cycling, hiking, and other outdoor equipment. And they have several fanny packs! They guarantee all products purchased are made of high-quality materials and provide a one-year warranty against any defect in material and workmanship. After having a relatively cheap fanny back from Walmart and then moving towards a high-end fanny pack from MuttRuk, I was interested to see how Wautton's packs would compare. Wautton has several different styles of fanny packs to choose from, but in this blog post, I am only going to focus on two of them: Wautton Best Waterproof Outdoor Fanny Pack (pictured below on the left) Wautton Large Capacity Waterproof Running Bag/ Waist Pouch/ Hiking Waist Bag (pictured below on the right) Both arrived in good condition and are of good quality. I have been using them for approximately one month now and am still impressed, especially with the large capacity running/hiking waist bag (pictured on the right). But let's take a look at the details of both. Waterproof Outdoor Fanny Pack This fanny pack is the larger of the two and has a pocket for a water bottle on each side of the exterior of the pouch. Below you can see a standard disposable water bottle in one of the designated pockets. Despite the side pockets intended for water bottles, the main pouch is large enough for a water bottle to fit in there also. As a result, I prefer to carry the bottle inside the pack. It keeps the weight closer to my body and there is no risk of dropping the water bottle. The water bottle holder is a little shallow for a standard bottle and if you bend over to pick up after your dog, it can fall out of the water bottle holder. Speaking of pockets, there are 3 different-sized pockets in this fanny pack. This is perfect for me. When I walk and hike with the dogs, I like to have a minimum of 3 pockets. One for my phone +/- credit card, ID, and other valuables, a second for treats, and a 3rd for full dog bags (I don't like carrying them in my hand for the rest of the walk). In this pack, you also have the option of designating one of the water bottle holders for full dog bags. Since I prefer to carry water inside the pack, it works great to use the water bottle holder for dog waste bags. This pack comes in four different colors: black, green, blue, and orange. Large Capacity Waterproof Running/Hiking Waist Bag Despite its name, the "Large Capacity" pack is smaller than the "Outdoor" pack described above. But honestly, I prefer the smaller size as it is still a large fanny pack. The smaller size holds everything closer to your body and center of gravity, thus pulling against your waist less. I also feel that if I need to pack more than a fanny pack of this size can hold, I prefer to just upgrade to a backpack. If you fully load the "Ourdoor" fanny pack it feels too heavy. This waist pack also has 3 pockets, but one of them is a security pocket on the back of the pouch. That pocket is good for your ID, cash, etc. However, it means that you only have 2 pockets to choose from for your phone, dog treats, and dog waste. As a result, I designated one front pocket for my phone and human accessories, such as a water bottle. And I split the pocket for both dog treats and dog waste. I figure the dog poop is in a secure dog waste bag and I can use a plastic bag as a liner for the treats to keep them separate. Plus, my dog doesn't care if those two things are right next to each other. Dogs sniff and eat poop all the time. Dogs are gross. It's amazing they are still so loveable. This pack comes in six colors: dark green, orange, black, grey, rose red, blue, and green. So how do they compare? It's time to compare the 4 fanny packs I have mentioned in this blog post: my Walmart Outdoor fanny pack, the Wautton Outdoor fanny pack, the Wautton Large Capacity running/hiking waist pouch, and MuttRuk's Sidekick. Comfort All four packs are comfortable to wear. If you fill the Wautton Outdoor pack fully, it can get a little heavy and stick out quite a bit from your waist. So I'll rate this one a little lower than the others. The Muttruk is probably the most comfortable as it has a wider waistband. But the Wuatton Large Capacity is right behind it. On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being uncomfortable to wear and 5 being as good a fanny pack as I have worn, here are my subjective rankings. Walmart OutdoorWautton OutdoorWautton Large CapacityMuttRuk434.55 Capacity The Wautton Outdoor fanny pack is the clear winner in this category. You can fit so much into this pack. So if the most important thing for you is how much you can carry in the pack, this is the fanny pack for you. The Watton Large Capacity pack is not far behind. Although I don't have the Walmart pack anymore for a direct comparison for this review, it was very similar to the one pictured above and should have had a capacity of 1.9L. Per MuttRuk's website, the Sidekick pack has a capacity of 2L. Walmart OutdoorWautton OutdoorWautton Large CapacityMuttRuk454.54 Quality The Walmart Outdoor Products fanny pack developed a hole in a pocket within a year of wearing, so I'll give that one the lowest score. But it also is the cheapest fanny pack on this list, so maybe that is to be expected. The MuttRuk Sidekick pack is specifically designed for hiking with dogs, so it includes things like a leash attachment point, a spot for a roll of dog bags, and removable pocket liners so you can wash out dog treat debris. Both of the fanny packs from Wuatton were of good quality for their price. And while not specifically designed for dog owners, they do include multiple pockets that are helpful for those of us walking with dogs. Walmart OutdoorWautton OutdoorWautton Large CapacityMuttRuk3445 Price Since nearly all of us are on a budget, I'm going to rank the lowest price as being the best score. Prices can change, but at the time of writing this post, the Walmart Outdoor fanny pack was under $10 and both Wautton fanny packs were around $25. The MuttRuk Sidekick pack was around $70. Walmart OutdoorWautton OutdoorWautton Large CapacityMuttRuk5$4$$4$$2$$$$ Best Overall Fanny Pack Walmart OutdoorWautton OutdoorWautton Large CapacityMuttRukComfort434.55Capacity454.54Quality3445Price5$4$$4$$2$$$$16161716 So overall, the best value of these fanny packs is the Wautton Large Capacity pack, with a score of 17! I didn't expect all of the others to have the same score. But the best fanny pack for walking and hiking with dogs depends on what you are looking for. The most budget one is the Walmart Outdoor brand. The highest capacity is the Wautton Best Waterproof Outdoor Fanny Pack. And the highest quality and most dog-specific is the fanny pack from MuttRuk. Regardless of which fanny pack you choose, I'd encourage you to consider a fanny pack as a great solution for carrying gear while hiking and walking with your dogs. It's so nice to have treats, dog bags, your cell phone, and more easily reachable while you walk. And if you are in the market for a nice mid-range fanny pack, check out Wautton's great selection. You can even get 15% off by using the code INTREPID at checkout.