To put a dog lead on the baby?

[WhiteTrash]

A friend of mine took her (then) toddler to a festival, he was just walking so had reins on him, and attached to that, a retractable dog lead. It meant he had a little freedom but stayed safe and she could sit with her friends.

We've booked a short camping trip, the baby will most likely be walking by then and Im not sure if all babies do this but our first, once he started walking would literally aim for the horizon and just go. Over and over again. No amount of distraction would prevent it. It lasted 5 or so months and he was a bit easier. Im assuming DS2 will be the same, and we'd love to sit on the beach have picnics etc.

Anyway when my friend told me what she did, I thought it was a genuis idea. But apparently, she said people hurled abuse at her for it so clearly not everyone agrees that its a good idea.

IS it unreasonable? Totally prepared to be flamed. But I figured Id ask her first then have abuse hurled at me on the beach.

no arfing Sue, a playpen is meant to house babies, for a short period of time, a dog lead (there's a clue in the name) is meant for, unbelievably, dogs! Not children, but 4 legged fur covered mutts, likes a chewy stick, excited by fleeting glimpses of cats. They're stupid dangerous leads for dogs, so for a child to be hooked up to one is even more dangerous. As I said earlier, fishing rod if you're going to misuse animal equipment, then at least you can reel them in. :)

I cannot believe people are still saying they might use a retractable lead after having had the danger pointed out to them. Please please no one use this on your child.

FFS!

Missing the point there Wildebeest, a playpen has no particular design features that make it for a baby - it's just a cage.

A dog lead is meant for dogs, just as the leadrope I use for my dog is meant for horses. Re-purposing something isn't automatically wrong.

You say dangerous, I can't see any actual reasons why a dog lead, or a lead rope for that matter, would be anything of the sort - if used sensibly. Anything at all can be dangerous to a child if not used with care. The OP is planning to use the lead to reduce risks, in a sensible way and with supervision. Frothing about the lead being bought in Pets at Home and not Mothercare is largely irrelevant.

Should add, I'm talking about a dog lead/lunge lead or whatever, not the whizzy retractable ones. I get the danger from them.

I used to work in a cat and dog shelter and we were banned from using them because they would break, once the dog was ahead they got tangled in all sorts and tbh mutts on long flimsy leads were annoying. If I saw a child on a dog lead I'd wonder what on earth was happening.

Wow how long are these dog leads if people think you can't even see your child?!?
I think reins are amazing, bought some after a thread in here, a woman telling how she had lost her little boy in a road accident when he pulled free from her hands. I have since not left the house without my toddlers reins.
Why not, whatever you do, SOMEONE is going to moan. If you let your child run, and keep chasing them, someone will say you should keep them under control , If you confine them to a picnic blanket and they scream, someone will say you should let then play... You won't win so do what you think is best!

Have we explored the idea of a fun size mars bar, on a bit of string tied to a stick? Dangled at toddler eye level, it could work...

I'm not missing any point, if it was a sensible re-purposing then it would be fine, my parents gave me a toy as a child that was a dog squeaky pig, but attaching your child to a flimsy dangerous dog lead is ridiculous, if it was a piece of rope of 20 foot it would still be ridiculous. I just thought it was funny, imagining children running around on dog leads, perhaps attach the dog to child reins, or the child to the dog? Then at least when you called for Rover he'd bring back the baby with him.

Maryz don't be ridiculous! It should be a fruitshoot!

yes, all those who say tethering the child to you have you ever actually had a bolter who will just run along a beach regardless of who/ what is in the way. Chasing them isn't any better when you are then trampling on peoples lunch too

I get the point about the retractable dog lead having danger but surely something long is a great idea. Strapping a young child in a pushchair, putting them in a pen doesn't teach them about acceptable limits and boundaries of travelling from you to play. And by long I mean a few meters not 100

To be honest, the friction burn is a very good point and its genuinely put me off. Put my off a retractable one. I think I'll look into what a lunge lead is (Ive never heard of this?) but I'll definitely be using something long.

At the same time as as a dangling Greggs sausage roll, a flag, a balloon and our numbers written across his forehead and lastly cotton wool a life jacket.

A lunge line is usually a flat webbing lead, very long (5m or more I'd guess?). I've used them more on known-bolter dogs than I ever did on horses .

Keep an eye out for when Lidl and Aldi do their horse bits, there's usually one there.

Or a training dog lead - same sort of length as a lunge line, but probably easier to get your mitts on as most pet shops should stock them.

I'm really pleased that you've decided to not use a retractable lead :).

As a pony-mad pre-teen, I used to lunge my brothers. And the dog. Course, we didn't have trampolines in the 80s.

You can get retractable dog leads for latger breeds that are all webbing rather than the horrid whippy string stuff. I think they're about 3/4 or an inch wide. Similar to lunge line, but retractable so easier to use.

Just sayin'

Oh oh WhiteTrash Get a muzzle or a bite bit as well. Then you can enjoy your lunch in peace. or just use the cotton wool to stuff in his mouth

wishes she had thought of all these things when DS was a baby and now knows why she put on weight as he grew up past toddlerdom!

Sue did you make them jump over garden canes too :o?

why is lunge lead ok but my suggestion of fishing rod not?

I used to have to frequently travel 5 hours up the motorways on my own with toddling ds and dog. At service stations when we had a picnic lunch I used to attach them both to a screw in the ground dog stake - ds had a long lead attached to his reins.
No one ever said anything detrimental, quite the opposite and meant we could eat without anyone running off into traffic...