How far away do you let your dog go when off lead?

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Just that really. I know it’ll be different in different situations but if you were walking through a quiet wood with no livestock, how far would you let your dog go?

Our dog is 10 months old, he used to stay within 10 feet of us-just sniffing the sides of the track ahead. He’ll now disappear into the forest, we keep walking and he’ll suddenly pop out ahead of us. He keeps his eye on us but I can’t always see him. It’s different in a park (I don’t actually let him off in parks at the moment) but this is in a forest that’s very quiet, often just 1 or 2 other dog walkers.

I have a beagle.

How far I let him wander depends on where we are. At the beach at 6am? Quite far as there's nowhere he can really run off to and there's rarely anyone else there. Up the woods I'm a bit more careful and keep him in sight because otherwise he could catch a scent and vanish and I'd never know where he'd gone!

Generally between 20-50m away though, but it depends on how busy the area is, if there are other dogs, the weather and whether I have to be back for a certain time or not

Collie owner here, he constantly watches us but often is 2-300m away. He understands hand signals as well as voice commands and ignores everything around him - concentrates on his ball! They are far from typical dogs though so unless your dog is completely trained I wouldn't advise. (He's ok around animals too though I do put him on a lead as it's a legal requirement, he particularly likes watching chickens)

I usually keep mine in sight in woodland but on open ground I will let them range, especially the younger one who has good recall and will come away from eg deer. The important thing is situational awareness: knowing your dog and being alert to what is going on, the walkers with a small child approaching on the other side of the valley, the fact that the cows might be out in the next field, that you're approaching the back of the playing fields and you have a dog who is a chronic ball-thief.

If it’s around ours she’s allowed off. It’s open fields here and it’s fine. There’s no livestock here either.

However, if we go to the woods then she’s on lead at all times as she’s squirrel obsessed and would chase. There’s also a lot of deer and rabbits and she would literally jump off a cliff if she saw anything

Always in sight but depending on terrain that can be different distances.

They have excellent recall but for many reasons I always like to know where they are.

I also keep mine in sight in woodland, and don't go into the woods at all when pheasants etc are nesting.
I let them range quite far ahead when I am in an open space, like the riverbank. They are whistle trained, with excellent recall, but even so, I am alert for trouble and try to anticipate... they ignore cyclists for example but get too interested in other dogs, so I get them on the lead to pass by. There aren't any livestock about on this walk, either.

We have a needy spaniel so I just let her roam. She has excellent recall and is never out of control. Sometimes I turn and walk in the opposite direction when she’s not looking and I hear this thundering of paws behind me as she races to catch up and stop me escaping without her. I always carry a pocketful of biscuits. That probably helps

A good habit is to hide whenever your dog is distracted. It will learn very quickly to keep checking where you are and to track you if you are out of site. Bear in mind that in the spring and early summer there are lots of young animals so either avoid woods or keep calling your dog back.

Sorry sight not site!

Mine have never tended to go further than about 50m or so, and check-in with me every minute by running back to me then back off again.

Mostly their choice - though obviously the result of plenty of reinforcement (happy talking and praise) each time they do.

Plus, a tendency for me to take an unknown path or head off into the woodland or start jogging etc means they watch pretty closely to see what I'll do next.

Mine can be 100 yards away. He’s absolutely no company on a walk. We live very rurally, open fields, no livestock and he’s not a chaser so it’s not a problem. His recall is really good.

He’s only a pain in the arse when he’s on the lead and we have to pass another dog. I have to constantly growl ‘Leave it! Leave it!’ at him just to vaguely keep his attention on me. Nine times out of ten he’ll still leap at the other dog just as we pass it and nearly have me over. He’s an absolute sod with other dogs, totally obsessed.