I've used a flexi when my dog wasn't trained, then I called a trainer. My dog was on lead when I didn't trust him. Or I went to dog parks. Or used long leads. The secret is never to trust a dog too much, even if trained.
I wouldn't use a flexi lead, the devils implement as far as I am concerned . Charlie was on a long training line for 3 years until he had a recall. Trainers don't even get me started, out of 3 "gundog trainers" not one of them was worth the vast amounts of money and simply didn't know what to do with him and they were harsh so NOT for me, all they would say is he will never be off lead. Hmm .. they got that wrong We did better on our own as complete novices with Pippa's Total Recall, a whistle, shed loads of roast chicken and the great advice from this forum I agree never trust any dog trained or untrained
[ I think the OP was referring to the time before a reliable recall had been trained @SwampDonkey There are lots of ways to ensure we have our dogs under control, they are not all ideal but some work better for others in certain situations. I guess it really depends on a number of factors, the level of distractions, and how these affect our dogs. The dogs state of mind, nervous, excited laid back..etc..and of course any health problems such as injury recovery, and recovery from operations. The environment itself, wildlife, likelihood of meeting lots of dogs, people, children and the odd cyclist. I was dead against the flexi-lead, hated them! Until I watched my OH using one. A nice wide yellow tape, attached to a back fastening harness on Casper. They both looked comfortable and relaxed. Casper is doing so well, hardly lunges and barks, BUT not quite trustworthy enough to guarantee he won't over react. So for Casper, the flexilead works really well. He acts like he is off lead, and is rewarded in exactly the same way. My dad takes Benson hiking, and prefers to use the flexi lead. He was worried that he may not use the right cues, so is happier just plodding along with Benson at his side, letting him stop and sniff when he wants too. I still think though, there are probably more scenarios where I wouldn't be happy using a flexilead, busy pavement, with Bramble in a squirrel infested park ....with lots of children running around, and with an over excited dog...nope, no way..better to leave the dog at home, or go somewhere else!
Yep my father in law was hospitalised recently by a flexi leaded dog with a owner who wasn't controlling it adequately. He was ko'd as the lead pushed him into a wall and it caused him to have tachycardia. It was a very frightening experience for us all. He only went shopping and nearly died. his head injury was horrible too. He is 86 so is frail now.thankfully he has recovered well.
Goodness that's so awful, I'm pleased he made a good recovery. Really makes me think about the responsibility of dog ownership. Enough to make me wonder if there should be a compulsory test or something before people can have a dog !
Yes this is just like us. My dad uses it with Riley (no one else walks Obi!) and there have been times in Rileys life when it's been most useful.
I got put off flexi leads when Stanley bit through his in one chomp. And it was an expensive one! After that I never really trusted them!
I can't operate them due to my hand problems I don't like them anyway too noisy and sharp and what gets me is that fact that a lot of people don't check the weight of dog to strength of lead.loads of 19kg dogs on 10kg lines. i ve seen teeny little puppy flexible leads on big half grown bouncy huskies.Also you see dogs with head collars with them onBasically humans are in charge watch out.
Where did I say that? I said, don't let your dog off-leash if you don't control him. There are many ways to control a dog. I didn't even say if I let my dog off-leash. Well, I do, but only under certain circumstances. He is an older dog now, he has issues with his spine and hips, and I don't want other young, mostly big dogs, running full speed towards him and jumping on him, no matter how friendly and playful they are. I've made a huge effort to get him walking and active again, and I don't want to risk injuries, especially because someone let his dog run and jump around public parks. With that said, the only place where you are allowed to walk your dog off-leash (at least in my country) are dog parks and public parks but only during certain hours. So, if a dog runs to my dog and I tell the owner to get his dog (I don't really need to explain to everyone why, do I?) the least I expect is that the same dog doesn't come rushing back again. If the OP was at a public park, not a dog park, then she had no right to say that the woman shouldn't walk her dog where people let their dogs off-leash (unless the law in your country allows off-leash dogs in public parks). On the other hand, even if the law allows off-leash dogs, as I stated in my previous post, everyone should respect the fact that some dogs and owners don't want to be bothered for various reasons. It is not an easy thing to train the dog, but there are many things you can do to prevent him from bothering others. And if you made a mistake, you should at least apologize because you have no right to accuse anyone who walks their dog on a leash, no matter how "stupid" you think their reasons are. Tell them "I'm sorry" "It won't happen again" and get your dog and walk away. And next time, take precautions so that it indeed, doesn't happen again. The long lead is a great idea.
