To think this was bloody dangerous and some people are just batshit

I've been tripped over by a dog on an extendable lead, on a cliff top. Fairly lucky it didn't send me over the cliff.

Extendable leashes are the devil's invention. DP was brought off his bike by a yappy little dog running across the cycle path whilst the owner was glued to her phone. She hardly noticed, just jerked the leash a bit and carried on yattering.

Extendable leads aren’t great and lots of people don’t know how to use them properly.

i use one for mine but it’s always short and locked in built up areas and then once on the field extended so she can run about a bit and reeled back in when we see another dog. I did try a long lead but the dog is a hyper bouncy idiot and got tangled up in it.

also those extended leads can give you a nasty burn if you get caught up in it, my dd3 has a scar on her leg from getting caught up in one (not mine I hasten to add)

Absolutely right.

They're also annoying with other dogs. I asked a man to move his dog away from mine the other day as mine was becoming agitated. He moved away but his dog didn't as the lead just got longer. So stupid.

She was definitely in the wrong suppose it was an elderly person that fell over, I hate extendable leads too as most people have no idea how to use them safely, and especially in a tube station , I was on a beach recently in the dog zone, this bloke had his little French bull dog on one , he kept it on long extendable whole time, and it was getting in people's way and going up to other dogs , it might as well have not been on a lead for all the control he had and was just laughing, it came up to our dog a few times, it was lucky she'd had her dinner, and more interested in her ball lol 🤣( Edited for a few corrections ))

Arg, that is shocking.
I am not against extendable leads. I use one with my dog. But you need to be aware and have common sense (I like to think I tick both of those boxes). My dog is 14, and we have never had an extendable lead "incident".

Dog-owner basically put a trip wire across a tube platform and tripped up some kids with it, and you, in response to the mother of one of those children, make up some shit about the kids running in order to partially blame them. You’re out of order.

I'd ban the damn things and make it law that dogs should be on a short lead on roads or transport networks.

If your dog needs to be secured while in an open area, use a long line.

Apart from anything else there is no way to get a dog on one back to you in a hurry and that's unsafe

I was in the park with my baby in the pram and a dog on an extendable lead ran in front fast and the lead got tangled in the wheels of the pram and turned it over! Luckily my husband caught the pram and baby was ok. The dog owner was totally oblivious!!

My friend had a little yorkie but when she got older with some health issues my friends grandchild (teen and responsible, ie could be trusted not to muck around etc) used to take it on its walks for her.
she lived in a quiet part of town with not a lot of cars and none driving fast but not rural

one evening in winter so while it wasn’t late it was dark grandchild took dog out for its walk on its extendable lead. She crossed the road to come back home thinking dog was right behind her but it was actually a little further behind and a car saw grandchild cross but who obviously hadn’t seen the lead or the small dog behind the teen and ran the poor little thing over. Being so little it didn’t survive.

grandchild was devastated and felt it was all their fault
friend was devastated
driver was extremely upset obviously and felt guilty even though it was an accident.

none of it would have happened if the lead wasn’t extendable.

i thought though that extendable leads had a button to lock them so they can’t stretch more so they can’t run off etc when not appropriate?

Inconsiderate

Extendable leads are for people who didn't train their dogs.

Was at a busy cliff top recently, where people were peering over the edge to look at seals. Already pretty dangerous, as the cliff overhangs in parts and you can't see where from the top. Some absolutely moronic woman had a lively young lab on an extendable lead that was weaving between people. Really thought someone was going to be pulled over and fall down the cliff face.

Same woman?

Amazing 😅

Extendable leads are dangerous , especially in busy areas .
The owners don’t have full control of the dog and it could end up in the road or someone trip over the lead .
I won’t use one I like a fixed lead attached to the back of my dog’s harness

I hate extendable leads for that reason.
Also, a small dog on busy tube / train platform should be carried.
l have a tiny dog, who walks beautully on the lead and is Very used to public transport, but I always carry him when its busy, it must be super stressful to be caught in a forest of legs.

The world is full of assholes 😒

100% this. They are so dangerous.

I hate extendable leads and don’t have one for my dogs. They’re dangerous for those with poor sight as the cord is so thin. They’re dangerous for the dog as it allows them to get up momentum and I’ve seen them snap. I use a long training lead. It has several d rings to enable the user to lengthen or shorten the lead as required. A friend uses an extendable lead on our walks allowing her dog to run around and in front of us. I hate it.

Awful and idiotic womAn.

I have tried to train my dog but he is a rescue flock guardian breed and inherently he is just not as trainable as your average lab. He knows all the commands but it's in his nature to 'operate independently' so sometimes he decides I do not know best. He is 100% loyal but not 100% obedient. I think it is accepted that some dogs are more difficult to have off lead due to prey drive like many beagles, terriers or greyhounds

I therefore find a long line a really useful tool for country walks so he can have some freedom and I can still have control. I always switch to a short lead in urban places, near roads etc.

It is a fixed thick line that I manually reel in and out. I would not use a retractable lead because he is a big dog and it might snap or fail. Plus if we get tangled with the thick line there is not much chance of injury vs the nylon cheese wire ones. It took both of us a while to get used to using it though and in the early days we used to get tangled but both of us have figured it out now.

The main downside of the kind of long line I use is that it can trail on the ground and get wet and muddy in winter and then your hands and clothes get muddy. I just wear crappy old clothes for dog walking and wash them often but I think people use extendable leads because they are easier to handle and don't get dirty.

I think there probably is a time and a place for extendable leads for small dogs in off road areas but I do wish people would understand the limitations and not use them in places where it is unsafe.

You are definitely not being unreasonable. A few months ago I was driving and a woman was walking a dog on the path with an extendable lead. I don’t know if she made a mistake or the lead was faulty but the lead suddenly extended and the dog ran into the road and I hit it. Fortunately it was a glancing blow rather than under the wheels!