I purchased and tested these Guard Dog pepper sprays. There is good and bad with each of them.

What pepper spray you rely on for your safety is a personal choice. Read this article find out what pepper spray features will serve you best. You can watch me test the sprays in the video below.

Watch the video to see these sprays tested and reviewed.

Guard Dog Pepper Spray Keychain with Case

Guard Dog made a good package with this spray and holster.

The holster offers good trigger protection. It has no sharp edges and it’s made of metal in the right places. The lids lock button is made of metal and the hole the key ring is through is metal too.

The spray has a 5 to 10 foot range. It’s a decent range for a small spray. However, it’s better to carry a larger can with a longer range if you can.

Pros

• Good Holster
• Keychain Attachable
• Decent Range

Cons

• Large Sprays are Better

Conclusion:

If you want to carry a pepper spray on a keychain and in a holster, then this is the pepper spray for you. I recommend the larger sprays on this list though.

Guard Dog Instafire Xtreme with Knuckle Defense

This runner pepper spray takes a different approach than the other 4 sprays. Instead of wrist holster, there is a knuckle enforced hand sleeve. The spray sits in the palm of the hand sleeve. With the spray in the palm, this should be the fastest into action spray on the list.

The hand sleeve is comfortable enough. I don’t know if jogging or running with anything on a hand can truly be comfortable because of sweat. It has some knuckle padding. This will help prevent knuckle cuts when punching.

There is enough juice in the can for at least 2 assailants. The spray pattern is a baseball size cone. The range is 5 to 8 feet realistically. You can see the spray getting used in the video. 

Be careful when placing the spray in the hand sleeve. When I did, the safety started to move off safe. Since putting it in the sleeve requires pushing down, I almost fired it. Putting it in the sleeve requires pushing straight down with the safety on.

Pros

• In Hand Carry
• Knuckle Protection
• Comfortable Enough

Cons

• Short Range

Conclusion:

Super fast deployment and knuckle protection are the main features.

Guard Dog Accufire

This pepper spray has a laser sight. I don’t think it’s helpful. In a well lit area, the laser is invisible. In low light the laser can be seen. The problem with shooting in low light is that the target and the spray will be difficult to see. A pepper spray shooter needs to be able to see the spray fly and land on the target.

I view the laser as useless and guard dog should have put a LED light were the laser is. 

The package says it has a 16 foot range. I shot this at about that distance. There were a few hits in the eyes of the dummy head. Technically, it can reach 16 feet. However, at 8 feet there was a lot more spray reaching the target.

Pros

• Decent Range

Cons

• Useless Laser

Conclusion:

People with certain vision problems might find the laser useful. Click on the underlined text to see 8 great pepper sprays for every day carry.

Pepper Spray FAQ

Why Carry Pepper Spray?

There are many reasons to carry pepper spray.

One of the most important is that it’s non-lethal. Most self-defense situations involve non-deadly force aggression. As a result, a non-deadly force self-defense tool is more frequently needed than a deadly force tool.

It’s a crime to use deadly force on an attacker who is using non-deadly force.

How to Use Pepper Spray?

There are two things to always do when using pepper sprays.

Pepper spray should be sprayed at one ear and to the other with a continuous stream. This will get the spray in an attacker’s eyes and noise. The result will be involuntary eyelid closure and painful breathing.

Also, vertical, canister type pepper sprays should be shot using the thumb. This will insure a strong grip with 4 fingers grasping the canister. Shooting with the index finger will result in only 3 fingers gripping the can. The picture below shows the right and wrong way to hold.

Does Pepper Spray Expire?

Yes, pepper sprays lose their effectiveness over time. They are always leaking pressure. After the expiration date, a pepper spray might not effectively shoot it’s contents. To be super safe, you can replace your pepper spray a year before expiration.

Can Minors Carry Pepper Spray?

In many jurisdictions, it is legal for people under 18 to possess and use pepper spray for self-defense. For example, California permits 16 year olds to carry pepper spray in public. It is often illegal for minors to purchase pepper spray.

What’s the Difference Between Mace and Pepper Spray?

Mace is a company that makes pepper sprays. Just like the word “Xerox” was used to refer to copying documents, some people use “Mace” to refer to pepper spray.