Today we’re posting  answers to the last five, of our top ten most frequently asked pepper spray questions.  I hope they’ll help some of you, so here they are:

Q. Which pepper spay do you recommend for me to use against dogs?

A. Mace makes a canine blend for use on dogs called Muzzle. This is a good choice against dog attacks and uses stream delivery. Actually, all pepper sprays will work just fine against a dog but with loyal, loving pet owners that regard their dogs as family, court issues may be an outcome of your decision to spray a dog. In this case, having the Mace “Muzzle” canister that was used, could definitely carry the day in the courtroom, proving that you used an approved canine defense spray and did not use excessive force against the neighbor’s dog.

Q. Which pepper spray do you recommend for me to use? My dog keeps getting attacked!

A. If you’re a pet owner who walks their dog in a neighborhood where there have been attacks on you and/or your dog, by unrestrained neighborhood dogs, then the issues become slightly more complicated. First and most paramount is YOU – you must protect yourself in a dog attack, which can be quite fast and furious. Razor sharp teeth can do a lot of damage to both you and you pet. Your pet could even become confused and accidentally bite you. In these situations (legalities aside), I think that a full strength pepper spray with stream or gel delivery should be chosen, to pinpoint the attacking dog and offer the opportunity to defend against the attacking dog only, while avoiding the “fall-out” contamination from a mist pepper spray that may affect your dog or yourself. Political correctness be darned – if there are “tough dogs” that occasionally or regularly roam in your neighborhood, and menace people and pets – I for one am going to call the Police and alert them to the situation (cover my backside) then purchase a full strength, red hot pepper spray with stream or gel delivery.

Q. What is your favorite pepper spray and what others do you recommend?

A. My favorite, bar none, is Mace pepper gel.  It covers every base and does so exceedingly well. I can find no faults with this product for self defense applications. My second recommendation, for self defense use, is WildFire 18 percent OC pepper spray. It’s available in every variation that you could imagine, from smaller keychain models to 1 pound canisters with pistol grips – for the serious minded consumer. Wildfire is super hot stuff and can be delivered in stream, spray/mist and the large models have high capacities, delivering up to 75 large bursts, which will blast out a cloud of hurt. Definitely a product that will break up any gathering of thugs or other miscreants, if they’re dumb enough to hang around!

Q. How long will my pepper spray last?

A. Opinions vary as to how much of a decrease in potency there is as time passes. Some opinions I’ve read state 2 to 4 years, but that’s kind of ambiguous. Personally, I swap out my family’s pepper spray about every 18 months.  When purchasing pepper spray, the product comes with an expiration date on the canister. I would definitely replace it by that date. You can take your old stuff out and practice with it, using it to sharpen your skills.

Q. Where should I pepper spray an attacker to obtain the best results?

A. You should always aim to hit the “mask area” of the face, as we call it in martial arts parlance. More specifically, you would target the eyes, in order to blind them and escape. I watched a professional police instructor teaching a course on the use of pepper spray and he instructed, that one “should aim at the mouth and sweep up to the level of the eyes.” I thinks that about covers it! I would add that smaller keychain pepper sprays don’t have the same range as say a pocket, personal or police model. When selecting your pepper spray look for the range that’s advertised, as well as double checking it upon arrival. For point blank range shots where your life is actually at risk, just let the attacker have it repeatedly, square in the eyes and mouth.

If you’re threatened from a distance you may want to take the range of your pepper spray model and it’s delivery system into account. This may be at issue with wind or when a certain amount of distance lies between you and your assailant.

One last consideration is that, you should be familiar with your pepper spray and its delivery system. If there’s a safety lock that must be flipped up or slid to the side, then practice arming and aiming it a few times until you’re comfortable with it.  I don’t mean to make this sound too complicated. Consider how simple it is to use a squirt gun right?  This “ain’t rocket science” as the old saying goes.  Stay safe!

*Disclaimer* This material is offered as advice and not to be taken as a specific recommendation for your situation. We offer this as a teaching guide and “we assume no liability for your decision of product choice, usage or courses of action!”