Leashes Link Dogs and Owners, like it or Not

Pet stores, department stores, and even grocery stores carry an array of items for dog owners, including leashes. You can get something for a reasonable price or you can be very extravagant, although the object of the purchase will likely be the same--control of your dog. If you sign up for training classes, the instructor will probably recommend certain leashes, often a six-foot leather or nylon type, or ban other types, such as metal ones. If you own a dog, leashes are objects with which you soon become very familiar.

Like many pet owners, I have accumulated quite a few leashes, despite owning only one dog at a time. For a while the retractable style leash was a favorite, especially with a dog able to follow the leash line and disentangle himself from a mess of trees and bushes. But the same dog pulled me off my feet once, when I was also carrying an umbrella and looking off in one direction while he spotted a jogger and decided to go investigate, rapidly, in another direction. Since that event and some other unexpected explosions of energy from that dog, I have relegated the extendables to hunting season, when it is not advisable to have a dog off-leash in my woods.

A more recent favorite is a 6-foot nylon braided leash which has a round instead of a flat profile. With it, I sometimes use a nylon cinch collar but also frequently just clip it to my young shepherd's regular collar. If it is a training day, this rather nervous dog might also be wearing a head halter; and, in that case, the leash clips to an "o" ring that is part of the halter make-up. If tracking is on the schedule, the leash clips to the harness which is secured around her front legs and closes at the top of her back. Some folks like a very long leash for tracking, even up to 30 feet, to allow the dog plenty of room to check for traces and scents; while others prefer to keep close to the dog, using either a short leash or doubling up the six-foot variety.

Currently I've been practicing with a hands-free leash, a type which attaches to a belt you wear around your waist. I've even on occasion double-leashed the dog, using the hands-free variety in combination with a regular nylon leash secured to the collar or to a head halter. This may seem like over-kill; but, if you are ever in a situation where it is very important that your dog not slip away from you, the double-leash option works well, is practically fool-proof, once you figure out how to keep yourself and the dog from clown-like entanglement. There is also a type available for bicyclists which keeps the dog at a safe distance from the wheels but also discourages the pet from wandering too far from the rider.

My sister uses a short, six-inch leather leash for light control of her golden during agility lessons. I've found this type is also useful when restraining an eager dog, one waiting impatiently for his turn at nose work, to search for a hidden and usually rather smelly item or treat. Again, such a leash could be easily used in combination with another, longer one.

Some leashes are advertized as working well for dogs that pull. Of course, most dogs will pull sometimes, whether because of a super attractive scent or very interesting object in motion or something suspicious or even innocuous but residing in an unexpected location. Sometimes a harness, which allows for attaching the leash from the front chest area or at the top of the back, discourages pulling, but not always and not with every dog. In fact, leashes really cannot prevent a dog from acting by following normal instincts. Only training and lots of patience can resolve or ameliorate the pulling issue, a practically universal problem for dog lovers.

On the other hand, there may be something out there, in among the attractive displays of patterned and color-coordinated leashes, assorted novelty pet gear and whatever, something that could work perfectly for your special dog, keep him by your side, on an even keel, not pulling, behaving like a most unusual or totally reformed pet. And, look, this retail outlet has even more leashes over there! Good luck!