Hi everyone,
I’ve got a question about slip leads. I’m thinking of getting one for my girl; I currently walk her in a Julius-K9 harness, but when she decides to pull, even though she’s only small, she’s surprisingly strong! I’ve read recently that those harnesses aren’t actually that good for their shoulders. I’ll admit I just followed the trend at the time; it’s good quality and sturdy, but maybe not the most comfortable long-term.
She walks much better on a collar, but she manages to slip out of it easily. The issue is that her neck is as wide as her head, so if she pulls backwards, the collar just comes right off. It’s happened a few times now—talk about a heart attack when you’re in the middle of town!
So, I was wondering if a slip lead would suit her build? Also, is there a risk of her choking herself with one?
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But yeah, I’d really like to get your take on it, I trust your judgement
Just to give you some context, I should clarify this is for walking in town.
I’ve got nothing against long lines—I have one myself—but the way they're used and the environments they're meant for aren't really for just walking around town. In that context, I’d actually prefer the dog to stay within that specific radius.
It’s mostly just total confusion for the dog, really. With a slip lead, there’s no logic behind it; the dog doesn’t learn a thing. They don’t know their boundaries around their owner, and they never know when they’re going to feel that jolt around their neck... Every time I see a little dog on a retractable lead, I feel so sorry for them. People use them like a proper yo-yo! One minute the dog can run free, the next it locks at two metres, then at five feet, and so on... and the dogs are just there like guinea pigs on the end of it, flailing about in every direction. It just makes no sense at all.
Completely agree with that, the dog just doesn't get it!!
Mind you, I know some people who don’t use a retractable lead but have one that’s several metres long; they let the lead out and then wrap it back around their hand – basically the same thing as a flexi-lead!! And then they've got the cheek to tell you that retractable leads are rubbish, and when you ask, "well, what are you doing with that long line then?", they just say, "Oh, but it’s different" 😒 😔
Same here! I nearly ran over a little Yorkie while reversing my car because he was on the end of a bit of string and the owner was a good five metres behind! I gave him a proper earful! Every time I see those "boxes" with their bit of string, I just want to take a pair of scissors to them. It’s absolutely ridiculous!
It’s basically just total confusion for the dog, really. With a slip lead, there’s no logic behind it—the dog doesn’t learn anything. They don’t know what their boundaries are around their owner, and they never know when they’re going to feel that jolt around their neck...
Every time I see a little dog on an extendable lead, I feel so sorry for them. People use them like a literal yo-yo! One minute the dog can run freely, the next it clicks and stops at six feet, then five feet, and so on. The dogs are just there at the end like little guinea pigs, flailing all over the place; it just makes no sense at all.
Hi there!
Paracord is brilliant. For anyone who's into crafting, you can just buy the cord and make them yourself—provided you’re handy and have the time, of course!
Otherwise, yeah, forget about retractable leads. Someone gave me one once and I only used it the one time; I just don’t trust those things. Eventually, they stop retracting properly, just like hoover cords, and you have zero control. Plus, as the dog moves forward and the lead extends, I feel like they get used to having that constant slight tension on their collar, which really isn't great at all.
