Two slit openings set well forward take the front legs on this crochet dog sweater free pattern easy, and the ribbed collar holds it in place rather than letting it slide back. Stripes work in rows so no colour gets carried up the inside.
Grey and red stripes run the length of this free crochet holiday dog sweater pattern for medium and large dogs, with a ribbed collar at the neck and two slit openings for the front legs. The body works as a tube with the leg holes left open as you pass them rather than cut in afterwards. The back sits longer than the belly so the sweater covers the spine without bunching underneath. Measure chest girth before starting, since that is the number the fit depends on.
Crochet Holiday Dog Sweater
Charcoal grey and deep red in uneven bands, a tall ribbed collar and two neat slits for the front legs. This holiday dog sweater is a small enough project to finish in an evening, and it sizes up or down entirely on the number of stitches you start with. Scale aside, it is built much like a baby sweater worked in the round from the neck. Working in a tube keeps the whole thing seamless. The collar starts as ribbing worked flat and joined into a ring, then the body carries on in rounds with the leg openings made by chaining across a gap and picking the stitches back up on the next round. Stripes change every few rounds, and the belly is shorter than the back so the sweater stays clear when the dog goes out.
Materials
- 7 mm crochet hook, US size S/7
- Medium weight, category 4 yarn in two colors
- Primary color: Red Heart Super Saver in Charcoal
- Secondary color: Red Heart Super Saver in Burgundy
- Stitch markers
- Scissors
Get to Know This Stitch
Sizing
This pattern is written for a medium to large dog. For a custom fit, measure your dog around the neck, around the chest just in front of the front legs, underneath the belly, and across the width of the legs before you start. Compare those numbers against your collar band and your first few body rounds as you go, since the collar length and the increase rounds are the two places where the sweater’s fit is decided. A longer neckband makes a wider body, and adding or removing an increase round changes the chest circumference.
The Pattern
Stitch Abbreviations
- ch = chain
- sc = single crochet
- dc = double crochet
- dc2tog = double crochet decrease over two stitches
- BLO = back loop only
- sl st = slip stitch
Part 1: Neck Band
- Row 1: Using Charcoal, make a slip knot and ch 9. Skip the first ch on your hook, then sc into the next ch and into each remaining ch across. Ch 1 and turn. [8 sc]
- Rows 2 to 50: Work 1 sc into the BLO of every stitch across, then ch 1 and turn at the end of each row. [8 sts]
- Place a stitch marker at your 10th row to help keep track of your count, and work 50 rows in total.
- Joining: Fold the two short ends of the band together.
- Sl st across both sides, going through both layers, to join the band into a ring.
Part 2: Body Foundation and First Color Change
- Round 1: Working in the round along the raw edge of the neckband, insert your hook into the next space, pull up a loop, and single crochet.
- Create a foundation turning chain, or ch 3, and place a stitch marker at the top of this first stitch.
- Work 50 dc evenly all the way around the edge, placing one double crochet into each single crochet row end. [50 dc]
- Sl st tightly to the top of the first dc of the round.
- Round 2: Chain up to start your first stitch, then work 1 dc into every stitch around. [50 sts]
- Color change: Stop at the very last stitch before your stitch marker and leave the final two loops of that double crochet on your hook. Snip the gray yarn.
- Pick up Burgundy, hold it on your hook, pull it through the remaining loops, and tie a secure knot with the tails.
If you’re a beginner and crochet patterns feel confusing, start with the video tutorial below, it’s the easiest way to learn as you go!
Part 3: Increases and Body Rounds
- Round 3 (increase round, Burgundy): Remove and reset your stitch marker, then work 1 dc into the first stitch.
- Work 1 dc into each of the next 4 stitches, then 2 dc into the 5th stitch, and repeat that sequence all the way around. [60 sts]
- Rounds 4 and 5 (Burgundy): Work 1 dc into every stitch around. [60 sts]
- Change back to Charcoal on the last stitch of Round 5.
- Round 6 (increase round, Charcoal): Work 1 dc into the first stitch.
- Work 1 dc into each of the next 5 stitches, then 2 dc into the 6th stitch, and repeat that sequence all the way around.
- Rounds 7 and 8 (Charcoal): Work 1 dc into every stitch around for two consecutive rounds with no increases.
Part 4: Leg Openings
- Round 9 (Charcoal): Work 1 dc into the first 5 stitches.
- Ch 10 loosely for the first leg opening.
- Skip 9 stitches along the base and dc into the 10th stitch.
- Work 1 dc into the next 41 stitches, counting the previous dc as part of this sequence.
- Ch 10 loosely for the second leg opening.
- Skip 9 stitches along the base and dc into the 10th stitch.
- Work 1 dc into the remaining 4 stitches to reach the marker.
- Round 10 (Charcoal): Work 1 dc into every stitch around, working evenly across the top chains of the leg openings and keeping them from twisting.
- Change back to Burgundy on the last stitch.
Part 5: Stripes
- Rounds 11 to 15 (Burgundy): Work 5 consecutive rounds of 1 dc into every stitch.
- Change back to Charcoal on the final stitch of Round 15.
- Rounds 16 to 20 (Charcoal): Work 5 consecutive rounds of 1 dc into every stitch.
- Change back to Burgundy on the final stitch of Round 20.
- Rounds 21 and 22 (Burgundy): Work 2 rounds of 1 dc into every stitch.
- Change back to Charcoal on the final stitch of Round 22.
- Round 23 (Charcoal): Work 1 final round of double crochets.
- Sl st to the marker, ch 1, tie off, and cut your yarn.
Part 6: The Back Flap
- Find the underside belly area where you finished off.
- From your ending point, count 20 stitches to the left and place a stitch marker.
- Count 20 stitches to the right and place a second stitch marker.
- These markers set a 32 stitch span across the back of the sweater for the flap.
- Row 1 (Charcoal): Turn the sweater so the back faces you, away from the leg holes.
- Attach Charcoal at the right side stitch marker.
- Ch 3, counting it as your first dc or using a foundation chain method, then work 1 dc back into that same stitch.
- Work 1 dc into each of the 32 stitches across to the other marker, then turn your work. [32 sts]
- Rows 2 and 3 (Charcoal): Work 1 dc across all 32 stitches. [32 sts]
- At the end of Row 3, stop at the last stitch and change to Burgundy.
- Rows 4 and 5 (Burgundy, decreases begin): Ch 2 and turn.
- Work a dc2tog over the first two stitches.
- Work 1 dc across to the last two stitches.
- Work a dc2tog over the final two stitches.
- Repeat the same decrease process for Row 5, decreasing at both the start and the end of the row.
- Row 6 (Burgundy): Begin with a decrease, dc across, and work a decrease at the end.
- On the final stitch of that decrease, change back to Charcoal.
- Row 7 (Charcoal, final flap row): Ch 2 and turn.
- Work a dc2tog at the start, dc across, and finish with a dc2tog at the end.
- Ch 1, tie off, and cut your yarn.
Part 7: Edging and Finishing
- Attach Charcoal at the bottom corner of the back flap.
- Ch 2, then work a border of single crochets evenly all the way around the raw edges of the flap.
- At the top sharp corners of the flap, work 1 sc, ch 1, 1 sc into the same space to turn the corner cleanly.
- Sl st back into your starting point, ch 1, tie off, and secure your yarn.
- Leg hole edging, optional: Attach Charcoal at the corner of one leg opening.
- Ch 1 and work a round of loose single crochets all the way around the opening.
- Sl st to join, fasten off, and repeat for the second leg hole.
- Weave in all remaining yarn ends securely on the inside of the sweater.
Tips
- Keep your leg opening chains genuinely loose. Tight chains across the armpits are the most common reason a finished dog sweater restricts movement, and no amount of blocking will fix them afterward. Move your stitch marker up at the start of every round rather than trusting your eye, because the color changes make it easy to lose the round start once the stripes begin. When you change colors, do it on the last two loops of the previous stitch as written, and knot the tails firmly. Dog sweaters get dragged through undergrowth, and a loose color change knot works free fast.
- Try the sweater on your dog after Round 10, once the leg openings exist. That is the last easy point to add or remove a round before the striping locks in your proportions. Check that the collar sits comfortably rather than snugly and that the leg holes fall just behind the front legs. Acrylic like Red Heart Super Saver is the practical choice here for a reason. It machine washes, dries fast, and holds up to a dog that will roll in things, which matters far more than softness for a garment worn outdoors.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do I adapt this for a smaller dog? Shorten the neckband first, since fewer rows means fewer stitches picked up around the base and a narrower body. Then reduce or skip one of the two increase rounds and work fewer stripe rounds before the back flap. Measure against your dog as you go rather than converting the numbers all at once.
- Where exactly should the leg openings sit? They should fall just behind the front legs, so the dog’s shoulders can move freely. If you are unsure, hold the work against your dog after Round 8 and mark where the front legs meet the body before working Round 9.
- Can I make the back flap longer? Yes. Work additional straight rows before you begin the decrease rows, keeping the stitch count the same. Just remember that a longer flap on a male dog needs checking for length, since the belly edge and the flap are working in opposite directions.
