Review: Raw Dog Tactical Breathable Ankle Holster

by
posted on March 20, 2021
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Ankle holsters often meet with strong support or opposition. Hardly ever are gun folks ambivalent about them. They love them or hate them, with very little middle ground. It’s not typically the holsters themselves they oppose but rather the idea of ankle carry in general as a viable concealed carry option. While I’m not a big fan of ankle carry, sometimes you don’t have a choice. Whether or not you’re a fan of ankle holsters, however, the Raw Dog Tactical Breathable Ankle Holster is a great option.

The holster starts with a one-piece, highly breathable mesh wrap that is extremely soft yet strong enough to stay in place under the weight of a small gun and spare magazine. The top and bottom are each held together by generous hook and loop fields for a range of adjustability to a variety of calf and ankle sizes and thicknesses, even if your ankles are more like cankles.

One feature the Raw Dog Tactical Breathable Ankle Holster has that a lot of competitors lack is a spare mag pouch built right in, sitting behind the gun pouch. Both the holster and mag pouch have a solid and sure snap closure to keep everything secure yet ready to draw when needed.

While I am much more of an IWB carry guy, sometimes I need an ankle option. For example, shortly after receiving this holster, I had a meeting with a freelance client outside of the gun industry and needed to wear a tucked-in polo with slacks, a perfect opportunity to try out the holster. So I strapped it onto my ankle, threw my Shield 9 mm into the holster and a spare mag into its pouch, and off to the meeting I went. The pouch is universal, so you can carry a variety of small guns. My Shield worked great.

I’m not used to ankle carry since I don’t do it often, so I found myself more than a little self-conscious about my pant leg, checking it frequently for bulge or ride up. Thankfully, neither happened. Slightly baggy khakis were all that was needed to hide the gun from anyone but the savviest gun spotter. Nobody saw it, or if they did, they didn’t say anything.

Raw Dog touts this holster as ambidextrous, but with sewn in pouches that can’t be repositioned, it only works for lefties if you don’t mind the mag pouch being on the front of your ankle.

Ankle carry fan or not, it’s nice to have the option when necessary. At an MSRP of $34.95, the Raw Dog Tactical Breathable Ankle Holster is certainly worth considering.

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