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Original poster

I let my puppy off the lead for the first time today.......

17 replies

kid · 09/04/2010 16:16

and I didn't lose him!

I was so worried but DH insisted that we should let him have a good run. So, off we went to the forest, found a deserted spot and let him go. He had the time of his life, didn't know which way to run first.

His recall wasn't so good, but we did get him back a few times and put him on lead when we got near a road, but he was allowed off again so didn't mind.

I look forward to taking him there again, we all had a great time. He did need a bath as soon as we got in (he found all the mud) and is now sound asleep probably for the rest of the afternoon!

OP posts:

TheButterflyEffect · 09/04/2010 16:19

This reply has been deleted

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lou33 · 09/04/2010 16:20

my puppy is about 4months old now, and the first time i let her off was a worry, but it all went fine

she never strays too far, even if other dogs distract her, though i do find a pocket of puppy treats works well in keeping her close

enjoy him, it's lovely watching the fun they have

(what breed do you have?)

Disenchanted5 · 09/04/2010 16:22

I was a wreck the first time I took my spaniel off the lead, shes as fast as a horse so I would never have been able to catch her if she darted, but she was really well behaved!

We had to keep all 3 on lead today as the park was so busy because of the halfterm and sunshine that there were way too many distractions!

Original poster

kid · 09/04/2010 16:27

He is now almost 6 months old. Its not safe to let him off lead near where I live, too many busy roads.

He is a springer x cocker spaniel. He definitely had a wonderful time today, shame he was sick in the car on the way home , even worse that I had to clean it all up!

OP posts:

lou33 · 09/04/2010 17:53

mine is a springer

we are lucky as we live surrounded by lots of national trust land so no roads to dash out onto, but we do put her back on the lead when we are getting close to the edge

i have been fortunate with driving, she has been unphased from it since day one, when we brought her home

springers are bonkers tho, in a good way, but she is very affectionate and sweet natured

there is a cocker in the same road a few months older who is absolutely beautiful, the hair on top of his head looks like a mad wig , and he has the same love me behaviour as my springer

Original poster

kid · 09/04/2010 18:02

My one looks like a springer (liver and white), is quite big too. I was expecting him to be small as he was the runt of the litter. He is very loving, I'm so glad he no longer feels the need to use us as a teething ring though!

He starts puppy training classes soon, God help us as he still bonkers

OP posts:

lou33 · 09/04/2010 18:15

i met another springer owner recently, they said they have had quite a few over the years, and they stay permanently on high speed until about 6months before they die

i'm quite pleased with the progress made with our puppy, (we didnt get her til she was about 10 weeks old, and she is now about 17)

she sleeps in her puppy crate all night, has stopped having accidents in the house , walks close on and off lead, knows sit, the command to go to her bed, stay , not to bite and to leave something alone

not that she will do them for long but at least she is improving

she does like stealing socks and burying them in the gravel in the garden tho, and she ate my lip gloss, i found her with pink paws and chops....

TheButterflyEffect · 09/04/2010 19:58

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midori1999 · 09/04/2010 20:11

I find the younger they are when they are first let off, the better their recall becomes. I always let mine off from their first walk, so 12 weeks old at the latest, but usually from 7/8 weeks.

MeMudmagnet · 09/04/2010 20:32

Yep, I let mine off and immediately run away!
I also hide on walks whenever I get the chance. It really gets them to keep an eye on you if you keep disappearing.

lou33 · 10/04/2010 11:30

i didnt get mine til she was about 10 weeks ld, so by the time her vaccinations kicked in she was 13 weeks old

there is a pic on my profile of her with the pink paws btw

LadyOfTheFlowers · 10/04/2010 11:34

With our pups, we would take them somewhere safe like a field or wood or whatever and let them off straight away. Had them on the lead as little as poss.

Being so little they never seemed to go far as I think they were a little bit overwhelmed but this worked well as we NEVER had a problem with them running away or getting them back.

Once they were adults, I could walk them anywhere off the lead without a problem. They would pass other dogs with no problem and never ran off. I kept them on by roads etc but everywhere else we could trot along with no problems.

lou33 · 10/04/2010 11:41

she ran back on the lead with my bf when he was on his mountain bike the other day

he said she didnt get panicked by the bike or get near the wheels, and kept up with him the whole time

i was but

it was only for the trip back from a walk round the woods (which is about 2 mins) btw, not a proper walk

that had already been done (him and my kids had gone for a walk with the puppy, but he had taken his bike as well)

DaisymooSteiner · 10/04/2010 17:42

I read your advice midori about letting puppies off the lead as early as possible when I first got my puppy. I'm so glad I did. We've been letting him off since he was 10 weeks and have never had any major problem with him coming back (touch wood!), in fact he's much, much better than many older dogs we know! The only slight issue we've had has been when we meet other dogs on a walk, when he tended to follow them to play, but lots of recall practice means he no longer even does that. He gets so much enjoyment from running around off-lead, I can't imagine not being able to.

Great advice.

Original poster

kid · 10/04/2010 22:11

I make my dog sit everytime we reach a road. But I found out the other day that he likes to chase bikes! Luckily he was on the lead and I had a tight hold on it.

He still tries to constantly get near any other dogs we see on our walk, but he is getting quicker at losing interest in them. I am hoping we can reach the point where he shows no interest in them.

I am still scared about letting him off the lead as he is like my baby. He loved it so much though I know we will take him back to the forest again.
Hopefully, he won't throw up in the car anymore though.

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Piffle · 12/04/2010 16:29

I walked mine with the bike from day dot, now they are so bored with bikes they barely notice them.
Agree with letting off from day one, we did not do that with our first and she got worse and worse.
With recall it's bloody hard to practice for real withut actually letting them off, so we had to actually drive miles to secluded spot to do it and through doing this she is now virtually perfect on recall and hardly strays from our side.
So with our younger girl she was off lead from the first! She has immaculate manners and always comes back

Original poster

kid · 12/04/2010 20:11

I have seen some local dogs off lead from quite a young age. They are fine and listen to their owners until its time to go back on the lead.

I think its great to be able to let them off. My dog is far too energetic and bouncy to be trusted around the busy roads, people (who he always jumps up at) and dogs too as he just wants to run off and play with everyone.

Tonight, he was busy trying to go and play with a viscious looking and sounding dog. I kept walking and he was distracted by a petal being blown along the road so ran after that instead.

He is so cute, a pain at times but so cute!

OP posts:

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