Retractable leads

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PerdixPerdix

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What are your opinions on these. Im not a big fan, i understand they are helpful, but if you want to let your dog have a run on the lead buy a long line instead, its much more visable and durable. i have had retractable leads malfunction on me before, which did lead to my dog running across a road to another dog and thank god there were no cars coming! i have also seen a dog get hit by a car whilst on a retractable lead, and heard of many more. im definitely not a fan now though when i got a bit of a shock driving last night.

I was coming down a main road, fairly slowly because the tarmac was frozen over and it was dark. A lady walked out in front of me, and hurried herself across the road, and lo and behold behind her was a little yorkie on a retractable lead. She has already crossed the road and was walking up the pavement before the dog had reached the middle white lines! i was like :O and beeped so she would at least pay attention, she hadnt looked back to check that the dog was with her or anything.

Beeping made her jump and she tugged the dog over and glared at me!

cant believe the idiocy of some people in this weather.
 
They have their place. Mostly in the bin:p:D

I know they can be useful in some circumstances, but I get so sick of seeing people let their dogs wander along the roads with the lead at full extension!
 
I hate them but I DO use one on my male for walking in the dark (wouldn't be able to know where the long line was) and for toilet breaks on long journeys.
The only reason being is because I have some sort of voice control - he will wait, sit and down at a distance if I ask him to.
I have ZERO control (lump of plastic only able to be held in one hand, thin nylon to grab with the other hand) compared to a normal leather lead.

I also nearly ran over a JRT which ran in front of my car on one a few months ago, owner didn't even notice.

Also, they do not solve pulling, they encourage it.
 
CaveCanem said:
Also, they do not solve pulling, they encourage it.
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arg, why d people think they help. the *ahem geniuses at PetsAtHome were advising a woman to get one for her GSD as he pulled and i forced myself to butt in and say either get a Halti which in my experience transform a dog in seconds, or a halter so at least you arent putting stress on his neck. she went on to buy both and left the retractable on the peg and i was so relieved. GSDs are strong, i cant see a thin string holding one if he reallay wants to take off, you know what i mean!
 
I think they should be banned anywhere near roads!!! People around me all use them walking down main roads with their dogs running everywhere.

I have one and the only time it is used is if we are walking through fields with livestock. Harley doesn't go near the livestock, so it means he still gets to do his own thing rather than walk to heel, but he is still under strict control just in case.
 
newtothis said:
arg, why d people think they help. the *ahem geniuses at PetsAtHome were advising a woman to get one for her GSD as he pulled and i forced myself to butt in and say either get a Halti which in my experience transform a dog in seconds, or a halter so at least you arent putting stress on his neck. she went on to buy both and left the retractable on the peg and i was so relieved. GSDs are strong, i cant see a thin string holding one if he reallay wants to take off, you know what i mean!
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And it's telling the dog 'the more you pull, the more line you get (because I can't be assed to haul you back, and I couldn't if I wanted to because in this contraption, you are stronger than me)'
I don't have a huge issue with putting stress on my dog's neck, he's a big fella, he can take it.
If it's OK for him to put stress on my arms and act the maggot, it's OK for me to give him some back!!!!
 
I had one for Henry when I first had him, as he couldn't go off lead. Took him to the beach and was walking along the back of the beach, which had a steep slope (almost a cliff) with lots of gorse on it. He sees a bunny or something. He flies off up the cliff through the gorse before I can apply the brake. He gets tangled up. I ended up scaling the cliff, through the gorse, to coax him back down to me, to unhook him from the lead, then slither back down holding his collar with one hand and retracting the damn lead with the other...

We never used it again!
 
B has pulled it out of my hand on several occassions when I haven't been concentrating. That has never, ever happened with any other type of lead I have used.
With the wrong dog in the wrong situation, I shudder to think what might happen!
 
I hate the damn things but they do prove useful in certain situations - as CC has pointed out it's neck-breakingly daft to use a long line in the dark. :p

The only one I will trust is the giant one which is rated to 70kg and is all tape, no thin nylon line. Even then she has managed to pull it out of my hand on one occasion and they are generally rubbish when passing other people and dogs, a great big unwieldy lump of plastic with nothing to grab hold of. I take it off when we hit tarmac again and pop a slip lead on instead.

A few months ago I got a thin nylon one wrapped several times around my legs by an enthusiastic labrador (no apology!) and just yesterday I saw a tiny old lady nearly be pulled over by her toy dog on one, it was going for Dax and she hadn't the strength to reel it in.

As soon as the ground dries up I will breathe a sigh of relief and use the long line again...
 
We have lots of sweet old ladies around here walking there sweet little poddles Yorkies and fluffy rats (sorry little dog lovers) on these stupid leads.

What drives me mad is both me girls are on fairly short chain leads and both walk to heel pretty well now when near roads etc.

So imagine this walking alone the street minding my own business when around the corner comes a yappy little dog on a long lead I try to walk pass with the girls while this thing on a lead snarls yaps. Then old lady wanders around corner grabs her poor little doggy and shouts at me saying I need to control my dogs as they nearly attacked her rat. Humm at the time Suki is trying to hide behind me away from the big scary dog and silk tail going ten to the dozen bum in air tongue hanging out with the Duh look on her face. I try to explain to sweet old lady that it was her dog that was growling at my girls answer "don't be stupid my little poppy poohs doesn't attack dogs she was just defending herself"
 
I hate the sodding things :p They're dangerous near roads and I'm pretty sick of people being half a mile away at the other end of one, with no control, while their dog bounces up and proceeds to wrap me and my dog in thin nylon string. I'd rather be accosted by an off-lead dog than one at the end of a retractable to be honest :o
 
I hate them my friend got wrapped up in one by an irish setter when she was ten and then it took off after something and she still has the scars. (she was in shorts)
I use a short lead next to the road and long line anywhere else whether wet or dark (but luckily have a history of horses who run in while lunging so good at bringing it in quickly without it getting too minging. Even though apparently I look like a sailor!)
It is very important to me to be able to haul in Pip if she sees a bird or another dog to stop her running over which I can do with a long line and the rest of the time no tension so she can practise coming back.
Saw a staffy and a ...husky dog??? (not good on breed recognision) on running leads today :eek:
 
I have had one shoot out of my hand.. my nans not mine! and thought feck! thats bad.

agree about a long line in the dark, but i wouldnt walk them in the dark without a powerful torch.
 
See, really I am not a fan of these leads but i did buy one for our old dog last year for particular reasons:- he is pretty deaf (he's always had 'selective' hearing) and on walks where he doesn't maybe know the area it is easier to get him back to you as opposed to having to run after him as he toddles off! But the plus side being he more or less feels he's not on a lead and can do his own thing (he does not do pooing on a normal lead generally). He also can bea bit grumpy with other dogs (although you never know which dogs he'll take objection to) and, being that he cant hear you calling him back the extendable lead works well. He also doesn't get as tense passing other dogs when on the lead to the same extent he would on a normal lead - I think we were inadvertently sending tension vibes down the lead - with the extendable lead this doesn't seem to happen.

I have been guilty of dropping it on occasion I will admit and my dog does give me that "you fecking idiot" look!! Lol

Our dog has never pulled and does not shoot off after anything. I would never use one of these leads on anything that did. Our other dog (GSD x) is walked with just a normal dog lead although to be fair she's better off a lead than on.
 
Just to buck the trend....I love mine :p

Neither of mine pull and Quila's recall is so good she spends more time off the lead than on it but Jack is a git for scavenging but plants on my lunge line. He walks to heel (well as slowly as he can get away with at heel) without the lock on, goes away from me when told, dawdles back when called ;) and I can stop the little git eating everything in site! He NEVER goes on one near a road just in case and he's at heel when anyone's around so no one gets tangled.
 
see I am another fan of these retractable lines as my bitch is not 100% about recall or should we say can be selective. But the most important word is "retractable", so when walking near the road, or near other dogs, then the lines are retracted. Walking around a crowded event like say Burgley then I use a normal short lead and save the long lines for when there is no one else around.

And if another dog comes racing upto us, then mine are pulled in and made to sit down.
 
Why do people not use long lines in the dark? I think the answers are either you can't see what the lead is going through or round or people are worried about other people walking into it or don't want to trip over it themselves.
I generally keep it above the ground, recall before she gets to the treeline. Recall if someones coming but pip usually hides behind me before I can see them (no one really walks at night round here to.) And my dog has a jingly collar so we can hear where she is so its unusual she can wrap us up.
If there is another reason please tell me incase I've been too dim to realise.
 
I can understand how they may be useful when in responsible hands, but i do get fed up of all the idiots that use them and let dogs wander at full stretch in inappropriate places like streets or busy parks where they can get tangled up with others or trip running dogs that can't see the black string.

I've never used one myself as there generally not recommended for greyhounds. My friend uses a flexi lead and i didn't like the plastic handles they seem like they require you to grip constantly compared with a standard lead when i held her dogs for her.
 
Also, my friend was telling me (i know, talking about this outside of the forum..saddo!) that her mums dog hurt its neck really badly when the stop button failed to stop the lead and the dog reached the end and was catapulted backwards :O she didnt know wether it displaced a ligament or and actual bone, but it had to go to physio and developed a front limp because of it.
 
Santas New Little Helper said:
arg, why d people think they help. the *ahem geniuses at PetsAtHome were advising a woman to get one for her GSD as he pulled and i forced myself to butt in and say either get a Halti which in my experience transform a dog in seconds, or a halter so at least you arent putting stress on his neck. she went on to buy both and left the retractable on the peg and i was so relieved. GSDs are strong, i cant see a thin string holding one if he reallay wants to take off, you know what i mean!
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Or gentle leader, they are good, my hubby used it once or twice on our springer, but she wasn't that bad anyway, she's fine now.

I use an extendable lead, I use one that is tape all the way down, we had one with that stupid thinner tape near the clip end and it snapped, luckily the cat ran up a tree !
 
I hate them with a passion!! Especially when you see people on full extension by the road and the dog crosses waaay before the owner!!

That said, I have one for Millie from when she buggered her cruciate ligament and for when I walk her with Mouse as other wise poor Mouse will get eaten! :p But she's always kept short until we're away from roads.

I read in the Metro the other month there was an article about a lad about 8 who cycled into a rope flexi, he got a horrendous rope burn around his neck. He'd not seen it and the dog walker obviously wasn't paying attention
 
I have to admit I have one -BUT only use it when I am out running on the roads with Bruce - he keeps to heel brilliantly, so use the retractable lead without the 'brake' on just in case he stops for a pee - I have enough time to stop without yanking him! I don't quite trust him to go off lead on the roads.
 
Husband hates them with a vengeance, I am not a lover of them (never understand why little dog people have the tiny ones as well)! BUT I have to admit that I do use (without telling him) one when going across the fields and tracks with the lurchers (normal leads on to get there though). Terriers ok off the lead but lurchers no way unless in paddock - never let them run on them and use voice to stop but just lets them trot ahead a sniff abit! My tip when using one - use a normal lead through the handle and make a handle at clip end and put around wrist for safety just incase they give you a big tug as they are easy to loose the grip of. (sorry was ment to be a quick post)!!!
 
The only time the dogs are on leads are when they`re working (lamping) they dont have leads for walking as we have no use for them, we never go near roads whilst walking its either up one of the mountains or down the beach, our dogs are not vicious not one has a nasty bone in their body and they dont bother other dogs.

Retractable leads are a pain in the butt and it always seems to be the older people with annoying little yappy (pointless) dogs who use them!
 
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