Retractable Leads

[DannyOD]

Are retractable leads frowned upon? I am considering registering my dog as a PAT dog and in the list of requirements it says the dog must use a fixed lead. My dog uses a retractable one and doesn’t get on with a fixed one as she shows off and refuses to walk. Are retractable ones not a good idea?

[fessmess]

My dog uses both and I can only guess it's because a dog is more under control on a fixed lead.

[totallyliterally]

The against thoughts for retractable are that your dog doesn't learn that on a lead they stay close and off lead they need to have recall.

They get to go a distance then are grabbed back.

But I think for people who only do road type walking they offer the dog some slight more freedom.

Also lots of people have been injured with them as they tend to be almost wire like

[Oops4]

I use them as I don't let my dogs off lead so gives them a bit more freedom on more off road walks. Round the town/school run etc we use short fixed leads and they walk to heal. They have learnt the difference and don behave differently on the different leads

[idontlikealdi]

Same as oops. Mine knows which one he's in and behaves accordingly. Took a while to get him to stop pulling like an idiot on the short one though.

[DannyOD]

Perhaps I should persevere with the fixed lead then. I switched to retractable as I rarely let her off as she is so small other dogs sometimes confuse her for a toy!! However, she loves it so much she shows off on her fixed one.

[Wolfiefan]

A retractable or extending lead should never be used around traffic. They can break or the locking mechanism can fail.
They should also only be used with a harness. Not a collar.
They are also a hazard to other dogs and pedestrians.

[Elphame]

Having nearly had a nasty accident walking a friend's dog on one I won't use one for my own dog. He's either on a short fixed lead and learning to walk nicely with me or he's off lead and running free.

[84CharingCrossRoad]

Bumbledog saw a muntjac deer once when we were on a walk and managed to get his retractable lead jammed in a barbed wire fence....I had to wait for another dog walker to release him. He promptly shot forward and I ripped my arm open on the barbed wire.....
I am ultra careful when he is on it now!!!

[usainbolt]

Retractable leads are extremely dangerous.

1. The lead is hard to see and animals and people can get caught up in them . They cause horrendous injuries.
   

Images here if you want to see them.

1. They often fail to retract or the mechanism breaks allowing the dog to run on a long line when it is not safe eg by roads.
   

1. The jerk of a retractable lead can cause neck pain on the dog that is wearing the lead - although I would never attach a lead to a collar for that reason at all only a harness.
   

A long line attached to a harness is a much better option than a retractable lead.

[84CharingCrossRoad]

Oh and have just remembered about twenty odd years ago in thick snow and ice DH was driving us up a steep hill in Halifax. A dog on a retractable lead which hadn't been locked ran out between two parked cars. The owner looked very shocked. How DH didn't a) hit the dog and b) not slide into any parked cars I will never know!!!

[Oops4]

Like anything, they are only a hazard if used incorrectly. A dog without 100% recall is more of a hazard to itself and potentially others than one on an extendable lead being used correctly. It's a case of looking at why you might need it and using it properly

[TheHodgeoftheHedge]

I use a combination and prefer ones with tapes rather than a thin chord as I've seen the damage they can do when grabbed or accidentally wrapped around something (like the back of your legs).
I'm the same as Oops4 - retractable is great if the dog needs to be on lead but can have a bit more freedom. But teaching a dog to walk on a standard fixed lead is a key skill for any dog and essential for safety on streets etc and understandable for a PAT dog.

[Cocobananas]

I use fixed lead loose leadwalking every day at the beginning and end of walks.Completely Off lead in safe areas, a mix of offlead and retractable lead walking in other areas. She knows the difference and doesn’t seem bothered as long as she gets a variety of walks. When she has been to agility or had a day out, then the retractable lead is a godsend to give her freedom but not allow her to go wild through over tiredness the day after.

[missyB1]

Having witnessed an horrific accident where a dog on a retractable lead was hit by a car I would never use one.

[jellyshoeswithdiamonds]

I use a Flexi and a fixed lead.

Flexis are safe if handlers use common sense. Mind you the amount I see with collars rather than harnesses is shocking.

I use the fixed lead out shopping with him, he knows this means to stay close and it isn't a normal walk. If mine were a PAT dog I'd instinctively use the fixed lead just cos he knows a different behaviour is required, plus I'd be worried about him wiping someone out with the flexi lead.

[missbattenburg]

I use a flexi sometimes and agree that with common sense and a knowledge of the pitfalls, they are fine.

Mine is a thick tape rather than a string so it's no thinner, harder to see or grab than a normal lead. It's also MUCH easier to untangle if it gets wrapped around bushes.

Near busy roads I would never trust the locking mechanism and so have my thumb actively pressing the button, the tape then feed into my other hand which grips it like a lead so my hand is the first restraint the dog/lead has and the handle is just a back up.

Near other, quiet roads I would still always have my thumb on the button rather than trust the lock.

Only used with a harness and clipped to the back d-ring.

In open spaces, I keep an eye on how much lead the dog has used so that I can recall her before she hits the end of it at full pelt.

To me, this give me as much safety as with a fixed lead but gives the dog a lot more freedom in the countryside (she is a Jack with not-brilliant recall and a high drive to chase anything that moves).

Most professional organisations would require a fixed lead because people don't always think of the dangers of using a flexi and negate them. In training circumstances a fixed lead is often easier to handle as you don't have the big plastic handle that pretty much takes up a whole hand and doesn't leave it free to do anything else. A fixed lead may allow this if the dog is not pulling and is under control.

[Hazza000]

Once saw very nasty accident in park two teenagers on bikes whizzing down the hill path retractable lead like a tripwire saw one boy go flying off his bike very very nasty

[honeyroar]

I like them , I use both. We live in the country, very quiet roads, but when traffic does come it's single track lanes with stone walls, so I don't want the dogs too far ahead to not get back in time, plus one dog is a bit reactive if we meet other dogs and the other is allergic to grass, so I can keep an eye on where they are.

When retractive leads become dangerous is when the dog owner is not paying attention and leaves the dog at the end of the line. I can't say I've ever had problems with them, despite having sometimes badly behaved dogs! If Im in busy areas they stay on short leads. I usually carry the bigger dog's short lead in my pocket anyway.

[Spudlet]

Several years ago, out walking in the woods, we met a large dog at a junction between two paths - we were basically walking across the cross roads, iyswim, and this dog cane bounding out of the woods along the path to our left. It was on a flexi lead, attached to a halti ()!and was desperate to play with our dog (who was off lead), and in the enduring chaos the flexi lead whipped across my ankle - it was summer so I was in shorts. I had a mark there for years. The owners had no bloody control at all and were just being towed around - they didn’t even apologise as I limped off bleeding! And how they hadn’t broken that poor dogs neck is beyond me. Thank goodness it was friendly.

I prefer a long line for recall training / backup - I really haven’t much liked flexis since then. They bloody hurt if they wrap around you and they teach the dog that pulling on the lead works, IMO.

[Mol1628]

We use both. Downside of the flexi is I have to be very aware of where other dogs are because she likes to chase. But it gives her so much more freedom and exercise than her normal short lead. I only use it in open spaces away from roads and when I don’t have my children with me so I can fully concentrate.

[MaitlandGirl]

I hate Flexi leads - saw a little Yorkie get run over a few years ago when she bolted into traffic and the locking mechanism failed, it was horrific.

I walk mine on fixed leads and use a lunge rein in more open areas or when they’re swimming in the sea.

[bluebells1]

I have a Flexi lead for my dog that I only use when we go to the woods between september and march when they are not allowed off lead. For every other walk it is a fixed lead. I can not trust the mechanism of a flexi lead.

[FairfaxAikman]

I would like to see them banned.

They can cause loads of injuries to dogs and humans from the cord, can cause injury to Dogs necks if they bolt to the end and jerk back, they can jam, you have no way to pull in the lead when needed and they don't help with recall (better with a lunge line).

The Akita that attacked my (walking to heel) lab was on an extending lead - pulled it right out of the reel.
Owner was under the impression that because his dog was on lead it was under control (a fallacy that bugs me) but mine was "out of control" because she was off lead - despite her shoulder being six inches from my leg.
Everyone in my dog sports club (and other clubs) found the idea of my girl being out of control hilarious - she's well known for being one of the calmest dogs in the ring!

[noitsnotteatimeyet]

Last summer we were walking down a narrow path and a beagle on a retractable lead was coming the other way - my dog was off lead but walking close. The beagle bounded up to my dog and wanted to play, my dog doesn’t like dogs in his face so came round the other side of me - the beagle wouldn’t take no for an answer and followed my dog round, wrapping the lead around my legs. The (numpty) owner chose that moment to try to get her dog back and pulled the cord tight around my legs - it was bloody painful and if I hadn’t been wearing jeans would have broken the skin - as it was, I had a fetching bruise for days. The other owner didn’t apologise and had the nerve to tell me that my well-behaved and under control dog should have been on the lead (in an off-lead area)

[Ropsleybunny]

I don’t like them at all. A dog should learn to walk nicely beside you, or be able to run free in an appropriate setting.