Extendable Leads

[~Annie~]

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Like most on here if my dogs are off lead and I see someone headed our way with their dog on a lead I call mine back to me. This afternoon we were a full field away from a chap with a lab that was first one side of him and then another but always at some distance so that I assumed that it was off lead and left mine off. Finn saw this dog in the distance and ran off to investigate, as he does, and as the chap with the lab made no move to call his lab back to him I let Finn go ... only to see him fall foul of the labs very long nylon extendable lead :rant: Luckily there's no real harm done but speeding whippet meeting fine nylon cord ... it could have been very nasty ... when the mans arm was lifted by the labs movement towards Finn as he got close and I realised the dog was on an extendable my heart seemed almost to stop ... I hate the things more than ever now!

Annie

 

[ingsay2000]

I agree, especially the thin washing line type, they're potentially lethal. My friends wee dog had one caught round his neck and the big dog pulled free from its owner and dragged the little fellow quite a distance by his neck. I tried to grab the line and ended up with rope burns.

The wider tape type aren't as bad but I always make owners aware of the dangers of using them around other dogs....especially whizzy whippies!

 

[AnnSa]

Horrible things, you've got no control over your

dog with one of those on and if other people

don't reel theirs in a lot of damage can be done

to your dog :angry:

 

Im glad Finn was ok

 

[Garry Comber]

Must admit I’m scared of them to when I come across them over the park. :sweating:

But they are brilliant when you are camping and your dog wants a wee in the night, you can shove them out the door and reel them in when thy have been, it beats getting dressed and finding your shoes in the middle of the night.

Having said this I would not use them normally and I agree they can be very dangerous and I steer clear of them-don’t blame you at all for having a rant.

 

[k4tie-d]

they are a nightmare, my neighbour uses one for her mums little westie, (as they dont let her off the lead)

i am constantly on edge cause they all wizz round each other, and if its not the whippys tripping or getting tangeled, its the kids or us,

my neighbough is always running round people trying to stop them being tangled up in it.

it drives me nuts, and doesnt help the dog, as she is constanly pulling, as she thinks she can just wonder as far as she wants. and so much so that the locking system in it is loose so sometimes if she give it a good enough yank it lets out the lead :angry:

i even gave here one of my girls harness and lead set that i had when they were wee pups, it was like new and cost me about £25, i have yet to see her use it :rant: :rant:

really think they should be banned. theres no real need for them, if you are out and about walking the streets they shouldnt be on a long lead they ahould be close to you to keep them away from cars and such, if you are somwhere where they can be out that far then they surly can be let off. and if they are the type of dog who cant be trusted of the lead, i wouldnt have thought a flexi lead would be the best idea :angry:

 

[Janimal]

Hate them too.. :rant: have to admit I did have one years ago..and threw the darned thing in the bin...leathal things.

We have a woman in the village with a boxer cross and she insists on greeting us with the darned dog on about 10 foot of lead..

I usually change direction when I see her coming...one day I swear that dog will tangle her up itself... :- my boys go crackers

wanting to play and we end up in a knot...they are so frustrating.

maybe ok for training purposes ...on your own...one to one in a field somewhere...but not for dog walking.. :clown:

 

[tinabow]

hate the things with a vengeance

there dangerous should be banned

 

[Noise]

I don't like them either, though Popsy has one that I use ocassionally on evening walks when the streets in my area are deserted. Eskil had an accident yesterday, tripped over my friend's flexi - on the pavement as well, thankfully not a scratch (and all because her dog kept jumping up on every single bench/people's laps next to the canal :angry: )

 

[~Annie~]

Finn was going pretty much all out when he hit it but somehow managed a hop and a skip that ended in a somersault that meant it's just grazed his leg, if he'd got caught in it going that fast it would have cut really deep. I feel now like I can never safely assume another dog is off lead ... just because I can't see the lead doesn't mean it isn't there. The chap was very apologetic, said his lab was on the darn thing because it's recall was non existant ... which makes me wonder if extendables are often used as a substitute for training.

Annie

 

[TTT]

I hate them..........two of my friends use them while walking their largely untrained dogs.......It bugs me when they let their dogs wrap them round your legs when you are trying to walk. I don't think there is any shame in walking a dog on a normal lead - at least then it is under more control. Dam dangerous when their dogs dart out in the road as well!

 

[Esty]

Well I'm going to stick my neck out and disagree. Only a goon would use the extendable lead where a dog could run out into the road. Whe used properly they are very useful.

I walk my dogs along the edge of rivers and canals and being loopy puppies they would get boisterous and push each other in if they were off lead. We walk through woods near roads and I will not let them off lead so close to expressways yet feel they don't have to be stuck by my side if they want to investigate something. Being on a flexi means they don't pull my arms out of their sockets every time they bend to sniff something. Yes, we get tangled very occasionally but that's embarrassing, not dangerous. At least the dogs are safe and we DO pull them in if we are near other people.

Also, I was talking to a lovely man in Daresbury yesterday who we got chatting to when he saw our dogs and told us he had two whippets. He also told me he sadly lost a whippet in a drowning accident a while back, when the dog chased a bit of bread being thrown to the gulls by a member of the public and went straight into the river Mersey. It's a million to one horrid accident. No amount of training would have stopped this, but a flexi lead might. I think it's silly to say they are used instead of training - we all know that whippets' recall is selective and I'd rather be safe than sorry, no matter how well trained my dogs become. It's like everything, if used properly they can be an asset. A door knob could be dangerous if you flung it about but used properly.... you see where I'm going? It's not the leads themselves that are dangerous - it's people using them in a dangerous way.

 

[hely]

the lady round the corner from me has two whippets...which shall we say..lack social skills ...she walks hers on these leads , we bumped into her the other day and her two went for gypsy big time :angry: ...she had no control over them as the damn leads were so long...nearly took gypsys nose off :angry:

 

[Suerose]

Well I'm going to stick my neck out and disagree. Only a goon would use the extendable lead where a dog could run out into the road. Whe used properly they are very useful.
I walk my dogs along the edge of rivers and canals and being loopy puppies they would get boisterous and push each other in if they were off lead. We walk through woods near roads and I will not let them off lead so close to expressways yet feel they don't have to be stuck by my side if they want to investigate something. Being on a flexi means they don't pull my arms out of their sockets every time they bend to sniff something. Yes, we get tangled very occasionally but that's embarrassing, not dangerous. At least the dogs are safe and we DO pull them in if we are near other people.

Also, I was talking to a lovely man in Daresbury yesterday who we got chatting to when he saw our dogs and told us he had two whippets. He also told me he sadly lost a whippet in a drowning accident a while back, when the dog chased a bit of bread being thrown to the gulls by a member of the public and went straight into the river Mersey. It's a million to one horrid accident. No amount of training would have stopped this, but a flexi lead might. I think it's silly to say they are used instead of training - we all know that whippets' recall is selective and I'd rather be safe than sorry, no matter how well trained my dogs become. It's like everything, if used properly they can be an asset. A door knob could be dangerous if you flung it about but used properly.... you see where I'm going? It's not the leads themselves that are dangerous - it's people using them in a dangerous way.

I agree with you Esty, used responsibly extendable leads are very useful, especially when dogs are young. For example, if I am walking Grace through a field of sheep there is no way I could let her off the lead, she is far too likely to chase them, but on a long lead I can gauge her reaction to them much better and correct her reliably. One day I may be confident enough in her obedience to let her off, but I'll never know if I keep her glued to my side with a short lead.

If we are approached by another dog it only takes a moment to shorten the lead so that no-one can get tangled up in it. Perhaps the answer is to have guidance leaflets sold with the leads so that people who can't (or won't) work it out for themselves know how to use them.

 

[Janimal]

This is where good persistent training comes in though...my dogs have been taken into sheep fields every day

round where I live ....the farmers all know us luckily so were aware I was training the dogs..and didnt mind one bit..so lucky I suppose.

Ive let them off from day one being puppies and never used an extendable lead for that....their recall I will admit is maybe not 100 per cent

but Im sure now that they wont chase sheep.

I think that maybe the ext leads do have a purpose if used responsibly....but most people Ive seen with them dont use them properley and

seem to think its a good excuse to let their dogs come right up to you and your dogs ...because they are stood at the end of the 20ft lead...

 

[sue burton]

Please don't all jump on me but I have used flexi leads for about 16 years but having said that never ever for road walking but we had untill 3 weeks ago standard poodles. one of them was totally not safe were sheep were concerned and could smell them from about a mile away.she would take of like arocket we tried every thing with her cow pigs horses never bothered her but sheep she would have killed.so when we were away in the caravan or walking in an area we did not know this was the only way to walk her .we never got tangled with or tripped any one or there dogs up in all that time so they do have there uses :*

 

[fallenangel]

I hate the things with a passion. I have seen many sighthound espicaly with badly damedged necks becoues as they rech the end of the line there flat out and it jankse there necks cousing some nasty injurys. you carnt feel what your dogs doing down the line when your holding a big lump of plastic in your hands that can be pulled out easly and thoues owners with dogs on them that do dog dangeling. ( they see you with your dogs on lead behaving and let there come right up your dogs bums dangling them on the end of them bloody flexy leads. youcarnt let yours say high as they will get tangeld up in the lineyet your dogs have to put up with a cold noise up there jackses. i could go on and on about the bloody things.

In some local twons they ahve now been band on public roads just have to band them for good.

if you want your dogs on a long line get a long traning lead or luge line for a pony you have more controil and can pull them back in like a normal lead and you can feel what your dogs doing aswell there safe all round and more controlabell

 

[~Annie~]

... if you want your dogs on a long line get a long traning lead or luge line for a pony you have more controil and can pull them back in like a normal lead and you can feel what your dogs doing aswell there safe all round and more controlabell

I so agree ... I can think of all sorts of reasons to use a long training lead - many already posted by others - although even they can cause problems for running dogs, but I just don't see the need to attach your dog to something not much thicker than a cheese wire.

Poor Finn, despite the arnica etc. the bruises have come out today and he's a bit sore ... and really cheesed off with me because I've just walked him round the local country park but wouldn't let him off lead.

Annie

 

[k4tie-d]

if you want your dogs on a long line get a long traning lead or luge line for a pony you have more controil and can pull them back in like a normal lead and you can feel what your dogs doing aswell there safe all round and more controlabell

yep, i agree with that too :thumbsup:

although we have never even felt the need to use a longer lead.

if im somwhere where i dont feel it safe to let them off then they dont get off simple.

they are not yanking at me to sniff anything or to go anywhere,

they are quite happy that when they are attached to the lead they stay next to me, which is what i like. :thumbsup:

 

[whippetsrus]

if you want your dogs on a long line get a long traning lead or luge line for a pony you have more controil and can pull them back in like a normal lead and you can feel what your dogs doing aswell there safe all round and more controlabell

Excellent advice. We did this to improve Beau's recall when he came to us at 13 months. Worked a treat. I have only tried a flexi lead once and when I got back from our walk it went in the bin. I have never felt so out of control when walking a dog.

 

[Suerose]

if you want your dogs on a long line get a long traning lead or luge line for a pony you have more controil and can pull them back in like a normal lead and you can feel what your dogs doing aswell there safe all round and more controlabell


Excellent advice. We did this to improve Beau's recall when he came to us at 13 months. Worked a treat. I have only tried a flexi lead once and when I got back from our walk it went in the bin. I have never felt so out of control when walking a dog.

I wonder if perhaps what works for you depends on what you are used to. I bought one of those long training leads for Grace, but we had such a wet summer last year that it would have been soaking the entire time through dragging on the ground and so it never got used.