Recommend me your retractable leads

[Lolatt]

Button release for strong dogs who pull.

Any recommendations?

None, particularly for a string dog that pulls!

*strong

None! A retractable lead is useful for small light dogs but a strong dog will simply snap the lead.

It’s also nigh on impossible to regain control of a strong dog once the lead is extended.

The Flexi XL tape leads are pretty strong.

Absolutely none. Can't stand them for any dog, but they are very dangerous for larger dogs. My MIL and FIL have both been pulled over by their malamute on a retractable with collar despite us begging them not to use one.... MIL broke her ankle the last time. We sent them a Halti double ended lead and a Ruffwear harness - her
pulling has apparently completely stopped.

I use long lines (15m+) for our escapee Romanian to have a run around without me panicking about her being too far away. The rest of the time she's on her Halti lead and harness.

Not for a big dog. I don't like them at all unless you have a teeny tiny dog they're pretty dangerous

Het a halti training lead. They are pretty long. They have lots of clips so you can change the length. We have 2 sometimes joines together for extra length. You have a lot more control.

They have limited uses IMHO, and can be bloody dangerous.

Do want extending leads because of recall issues? In which case you have my sympathy as I have prey-driven dogs who will recall past football games but lose their minds if a hare gets up.

If the dogs pull, it is well worth putting some time into training them. It can be tedious, but it can also provide the chance to develop a really close bond with them and get them to focus on you. It also sets you up for working on the recall (what I'm doing with my reprobates at the moment.)

I absolutely love my Fkexi XL. For the longest time I didn't get one because posters on here said they were awful but mine has been a godsend for giving my girl a bit more freedom in the park while we continue to work on her recall (she isn't ready to be off lead yet while there are too many distractions around). My girl is medium/large sized and pulls just a bit but not too bad. I've never had any problem with the flexi but got their strongest one just in case.

As a dog hater, please choose a colour that will stand out against the grass and tarmac, or whatever other surfaces you will be using it on.
I walked away from the dog, and tripped over the flat, grey, line lying close to the ground at ankle height. Not what I was expecting!

The flexi XL I have is flourescent yellow and therefore very visible.

Thanks all, it’s for a pup who’s pretty strong and once she sees any food recall goes out of the window. Recall has regressed!

How do you make sure your dog has enough exercise when they’re always on a lead.

I’ve resorted to very early morning walks and late evening when there’s no temptation around the recall is amazing.

please choose a colour that will stand out against the grass and tarmac, or whatever other surfaces you will be using it on.

Agree. Thin grey extendable leads are often invisible.

i use a 5 or 10metre lunge lead, got both ....works brilliantly for us

Can you take her to a dog field and practice recall there.

And to join the choir, no, do not get one. For a big strong dig, they really aren't the best.

I’ll look into the lunge leads and the longer training leads too.

Recall has always been great when we’re on our own with just other dogs but recently other dogs and people doing exercise or jogging have become a problem

I hate retractable leads with a vengeance after a stupid woman in the park let her uncontrollable greyhound run around me twice - I was felled because I couldn’t move and cracked my wrist.
I use a 10 metre longline with my 7 month old puppy and she gets plenty of exercise chasing balls and running around on it - bright orange too for good visibility.

None, they are so dangerous

Flexi lead. Really long lines and really really strong

So many injuries from the I leads both owners and their dogs.
No as yet has mentioned devolving injuries where the flexi lead wraps round a finger is pulled and then removes all the skin - a not uncommon occurrence with them.

Flexi giant XL... it’s basically a short longline but retractable, so very visible, easier than a longline to get them back and no more likely to cause injuries than a longline.

But if you’ve just got a minor recall thing going on, you’d probably be better with an actual longline - because with a puller they do get used to the tension...and they can’t really run about the same as with a trailing longline either.

None sorry our puppy managed to snap his after only very lightly chewing on it at only 12 weeks old! Luckily we were on our street and he just ran home or I don’t know what we’d have done.

My friend had a degloving injury from a retactable lead...
Mine went in the bin the same day. Hideous.
Get a standard long line.. you soon learn to loop them and gather them easily. Retractables are dangerous. They can fail, and if you drop them the solid part rockets towards the dog which scares them.
I have a 'short' long line that I use for most walks and a 15m long line for country walks where I suspect there may be deer or similar...my girl has a high prey drive.
Retractables encourage pulling. Don't get one.. work on loose lead walking!

Those of you recommending long lines...do you let them trail or do you hold on to them? If you hold on to them then surely they have the same problems as flexi leads (hand injuries, wrapping round people, etc.). If you let them trail then doesn't the dog run off, don't they get wrapped around things and don't they get absolutely filthy with no good way to clean them?