A protective garment for an animal includes a torso portion and an elongated groin strip extending rearwardly from a rear of the torso portion. The torso portion has a bottom, a first side and a second side, and a torso closure configured to wrap around an animal's torso when the garment is placed on the animal, and is configured to secure the first and second sides to each other at the animal's back. The elongated groin strip has an end portion and a length sufficient for the groin strip to wrap around a rear end of the animal and to be secured to the torso forward of the tail. The groin strip has a transition portion with an opening positioned and sized to permit the animal's tail to pass there through and to allow the animal to freely defecate while the garment is worn.