toddler reins- any recommendations?

[racingmind]

Can anyone recommend a type of reins for my toddler? He is a large 15mo. Think harness wd be better than wrist thing.

Many thanks.

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MNHQ

There are ones that are a tiny backpack with a "lead" attachment. The backpack has a chest strap to stop them just shrugging it off.

I bought mine from Boots (great, easy to adjust for all sorts of sizes, different coats etc and comfy and good value for money) after trying cheap and expensive:
mothercare (rubbish - reins too short and we were tripping over one another and straps slipped easily so trying to catch falls failed as straps just grew!) and littlelife (sooo hard to adjust took forever to get on and wouldn't go over the head without hurting his ears unless I spent an eternity trying to adjust straps which didn't want to be adjusted - nightmare)

Thanks guys. Snowbeetle they sound absolutely ideal, were they the Boots Baby Padded Harness with Safety Reins? (just googled them and want to make sure same ones as you had).

ermmmmm not sure what they were called to be honest. they were about £8.00. black straps like a backpack but with chest strap too. Sounds about right. There is a little padding in places

I agree. Little life ones are fab and my son loves to wear his dinosaur one. With room for a nappy and a snack x

btw the littlelife one I tried were the plain reins not the backpack version. I did look at that and can't remember why I didn't go for it now. My lo is happy with reins tho so depends on the child. Get them from somewhere with a good return policy in case and then you'll be fine. :)

Little life rucksack ones are good.

You can put a nappy and couple of wipes in them too. Get them used to carrying their own bits .

Are the littlelife ones easily adjustable like snowbeetle reckoned the Boots one are? Cos that lack of faffing about wd be a major plus for me. And do you know which shops sell them?

The littlelife backpack is brilliant, my 20 month old carries her snacks and drinks in hers (no more loose biscuits or raisins in the bottom of my handbag, yeay).

I got ours from Amazon for about £14, it is worth every penny because DD won't wear reins but loves this.

www.amazon.co.uk/Littlelife-Toddler-About-Daysack-Blue/dp/B000RF4K6S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1327873629&sr=8-1

I agree, the little life back pack is great :-). Its soo easy to put on. Just like a back pack with a clip at the front. DD also carries a spare nappy, wipes and a snack so I dont have to take her seperate nappybag out.

We have a backpack one, but when DD turns round on the spot the lead goes round her neck. It was a present, otherwise I'd have preferred the traditional reins type with a long loop, rather than a lead.

Does anyone ow if there is a difference other than how they look between the animal backpacks (ladybug etc) and the red/blue/pink ones?

I'd say the big difference is that with the traditional reins you get one long loop, that attaches sort of under each arm, IYSWIM. The backpack one I have is more like a dog lead (one long piece of webbing with a small wrist loop). I'm not keen, it does feel like a dog lead.

The traditional, loop type reins are good for toddlers that are likely to fall over from time to time. At the beginning DD fell over lots and even now she has been using reins for about 3 months, she still catches her feet on things that wouldn't topple 2 year old.
The loop type means she doesn't hit the pavement because the reins tension and I kind of catch her and she is suspended for a second before she finds her footing again.

Also, with the loop style, you can yank them away from anything they shouldn't be sticking their hands in. eg they are about to stroke the face of a scary looking dog who is snaring in a 'i feel threatened by this mini human' way - you could yank your DC up and away. With a single reign on a back pack you'd just make them fall over.

I really like the look of the backpack types but I'm glad we have these loop reigns until she is a bit older. (she is now 15 months)

Hi, I've just started thinking about getting baby reins for my 15 month old, and like the sound of the boots padded harness...but wondered how long the strap is? I've seen one or two grandparents out with toddlers on reins which didn't really look long enough.

I've heard the LL backpack reins are quite long, but reading above it sounds like they're not so great for directing a younger toddler perhaps, since the strap is just hooked onto the top of the bag. Love the idea though and I think he's love carrying some of his own kit!

Thanks.

We used harness reins when DS was a younger toddler, then asked for the Littlelife backpack as a Christmas gift just before his 2nd birthday. The harness reins were great when he was a wobbly walker as they kept him steady, but he hated wearing them and they felt very short very quickly. The backpack is great and he loves wearing it so it'll have a longer lifespan, but is only really useful for stopping them running away from you rather than giving any support.

Have a look at the ones on the Clippasafe web-site . As others have mentioned, Boots also do some good ones. The rein bit doesn't look as though it's long enough but it actually is. Anything that saves on the bending down (you) and stretching up (DC) has to be a good thing.

Don't go for a single wrist strap one, they are not suitable until the child is older and much more stable.

I don't think the rucksac ones are that great - you have to take them off to put the child in a buggy or carseat, whereas the simpler harnesses can be left on. Ours was a mothercare one, and the long strap was detatchable so DS just had the harness on most of the time when we were out of the house, and I just had to attach the long strap when needed.

The Lindam one has an additional advantage that it has some extra loops that you can use the integrate the harness with the safety straps of your pushchair and/or highchair so that you only have fewer occasions of getting in and out of straps.

We saw a family with twins on a day out ones who had the tommee tippee reins which I thought looked much better than the basic ones we had though.

I'm with estya, we bought clippasafe reins. Traditional style, pretty strong, good colours. DS loves wearing them.

Not sure of the make but we got the little ladybird rucksack reins from eBay (v cheap!) and DD loves them. I think they make her feel all important as she gets to carry her nana's keys when she takes her round the block for a walk. They feel very secure too, although the dog lead bit feels a bit weird to start with.

Another one for clippasafe bought from our local pharmacy for around £6. So easy as no faffing around when we go to and from the pushchair. She wasnt keen on them when we first got them but now she comes with her arms open for us to put them on as she knows its time to go out.

Depends how fussy your little one is - our's is a tyrant so we had to get something she'd approve of!

So Nanna found these Goldbug harnesses (see link below), which come in all sorts of cuddly toy shapes. They do have a very small pocket but don't carry much. My DS has a monkey which she loves, and we get lots of people ask where we got it from as their kids won't use regular ones:

www.amazon.co.uk/goldbug-Baby-Products/s?ie=UTF8&rh=n%3A59624031%2Ck%3AGoldbug&page=1

Hi just been reading some comments on here.
I've been asked to buy some reins for my goddaughter who is just 1yr but pretty steady walker. I've looked at a range of 'back pack' styles (very cute!) and more traditional harness style.
Am i right in thinking the harness ones would prob be better at the moment and 'graduate' to back pack / lead version as she becomes more independent?

would love your views on this - its a LONG time since I had to think about this sort of thing!