Dog Lead Security

[arealhuman]

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I was wondering what opinions people have on how secure their dog leads are. A week or so ago when out walking my dog in our our street, the spring part of the clasp failed, allowing the clasp to fall open (its default position with no wire/broken wire spring it), disconnecting the lead from our dog's harness. We were lucky, as our dog didn't realise it had happened and just carried on plodding along, and the street we were in is usually quiet (not too much traffic). The only signal I got that this had happened was that the lead suddenly went slack, on looking down I saw it had disconnected and held on to our dog whilst we got a spare lead.

To try and illustrate the type of clasp, see this at Amazon. The internal wire spring failed meaning the clasp hinge was loose and flappy and therefore useless (this isn't our lead, just an illustration). Obviously you can also get leads with this type of clasp - is this any more secure? If the internal spring fails I would imagine it's also likely to disconnect from harness or collar. I've seen leads with carabiners and I guess whilst not as easy to detach and reattach, if the carabiner itself is of good quality metal, this looks more secure.

I'd be interested in any thought or reports from your own experience. Thank you!

 

[JoanneF]

The leads I use have the type of clasp in your second illustration. I haven't had ne fail yet but if the spring did break, I think it would default to the closed position and because there is more of a hook, any tension on the lead would still keep the catch attached. I occasionally oil the spring to keep it moving freely.

I once had the stitching fail on a handle - we were away travelling and I can highly recommend dental floss for an emergency repair instead of thread.

But a good reminder @arealhuman to check equipment for wear and tear.

 

[Mad Murphy]

I must say we check quite regularly for wear because Remy was a chewer so its become a habit to check leads and OH has a thing about oiling and making sure springs latches locks clasps etc are smooth and supple.

 

[Caro Perry]

I have the second style too. I have never had one fail on me other than when the mechanism got full of sand. It jammed shut.

I do check all his equipment daily - he's chewed through more than one lead already little wretch.

 

[leashedForLife]

.

I check my dog gear the same way i checked my horse gear - every time it goes on, every time it comes off. Paranoia, maybe, but so far, the only thing that's failed during use was that cr*ppy, cheap-o "donated" BUCKLE COLLAR on my P.A.C.C. foster, Dakota, back in Ol' Virginny.

I swear, that took 5-years off my life, watching a spooky near-feral dog sprint suicidally toward Great Neck Rd's busy Saturday afternoon traffic!...

But as the = open gap = in the bent-metal D-ring was completely covered by the fabric of the collar, I wouldn't have seen it unless I could slide the vertical part of the "D" out of the sewn collar seam, & i don't think that would be possible.

Since then, I've never used any collar or harness with a BENT TO SHAPE D-ring unless it was welded shut at the gap, for lifelong solidity. // I actually prefer solid-metal, sand-cast buckles, D-rings, etc, but they aren't easy to find.

Mrs Bones sighthound style martingales are my preferred collars - all hardware is one-piece sand-cast brass, made by the same maker who supplies COACH luggage / hand-bags / back-packs with their hardware.

- terry

.

 

[Dinky Dillon]

I don't walk Dillon so I don't really know how often OH checks ours, but we use a training lead one end on his collar the other end on his Dogmatic head collar, so it's unlikely that both to fail at the same time.

 

[arealhuman]

Thanks for the replies. Yes, his kits gets checked but that's just the thing with the hinged class thing - a visual inspection can't reveal if the springed clip is about to break, the first clue you'll get with the one we have is when it fails

 

[arealhuman]

Well, we bought a Ruffwear lead with a very secure carabiner on it - this one. However, if your dog does anything other than walk in a straight line, the lead kinks up and becomes a twisted mess, as the carabiner doesn't swivel on the end of the lead. We sent it back and the search continues....

 

[Jack-Russell-Lover]

Wow, thank goodness you were on a quiet road and your dog didn't notice!
That's surprised me actually because I own both types of clasp and I would have thought the first was more secure than the other! I do prefer to use my lead with the second type as easier to do and undo so it's the most used one. I was using a cheap lead until recently and have just bought a new, better quality one because I was worried about the stitching on the handle coming undone like @JoanneF mentioned. I haven't thought about the clasp before!
I will now be more careful to check our gear!

 

[Rhythmpig]

I've had a lead fail on me while out walking,but it wasn't a problem. I just turned the lead around and pulled a loop through the handle and turned it in to a slip lead. It was a solution to a problem until I got home.

 

[arealhuman]

Ended up with one of these a few weeks back - so far, so good!