Use a longer lead – Why your lead too short?
There are many benefits to using a longer lead for both dog and human so why are many leads produced by the big manufacturers too short.
Most are 3 or 4 ft in (1m to 1.2m) length which doesn’t leave much room for your small or average-sized dog and whilst for a large dog, it would seem long, they cannot actually move very far away before the lead goes taut.
Dogs NEED to sniff
Sniffing is critical to a dog, not only does it tell them what is going on in the local area – think of it like reading your local newspaper – but research shows that it actually reduced their heart rate – check out the study here.
The trouble is we generally walk our dogs on a short lead, This means that when they get a whiff of an amazing or interesting smell, they can’t easily reach it. So they pull towards it. Pulling on a tight lead whether attached to a collar or a harness causes a raised heart rate, not to mention frustration and stress for both dog and owner.
Who decided that dogs must walk next to you?
So who make up the rule that dogs should walk to heel next to you? That they should ignore their natural instincts, ignore their senses and march neatly alongside you. To make matters worse, if you want to stop and chat, you do. If you want to check out a notice board or shop window, you do but your dog is not allowed his version of window shopping!
How is that fair?
A couple of weeks ago, Daz and I were in Lynmouth, he was sniffing whatever he was sniffing and I was window shopping, so we were zig-zagging down the lane. If he caught a whiff of something on the opposite side, we went there then I would want to check a shop window out and we went that way. A gentleman laughingly asked who was walking who? I think the answer was both of us as we were taking it in turns.
No more soldier majoring from me
In my pet classes, I no longer teach ‘heel’, ‘about turns’ and ‘straight sits’. I no longer shout out ‘handler and dog normal pace forward’ or ‘turning about, about turn’ or any of the other commands I used to shout. Now you are more likely to hear me remind you to ‘ loosen that lead!’. Instead of a row of people and dogs marching up and down, everyone works on their own in their own space. With me moving between them, helping where needed. Plenty of praise and giggles are the norm now.
Dragged down the road?
I think my daughter was appalled when I mentioned this to her. Her view is that properly executed heelwork is amazing and something to aspire to. To me, that’s ok for people who want to do competitions, but I would rather my customers to get what fits in with their life, and most just want to ensure that their dog is not dragging them down the road.
Maybe leads need to be longer – but not flexi
If you have your dog on a longer lead, at least 2m (6 feet) or longer, it can more easily get his head down and sniff. There is more room to manoeuvre.
The other benefit is that if your dog is in front of you, you can see his whole body.
Is his tail wagging, up, down or totally still?
What about the ears?
Has the body become stiff or fluid and playful?
By having your dog in front of you, you can spot a potentially adverse situation more quickly. Giving you more time to observe, think and react differently and therefore, have a different outcome.
If the lead is loose it is more comfortable for you and your dog. You try walking anywhere with a taut lead attached to your neck or body. How uncomfortable will that be? But many people walk their dogs in that way all the time, especially if attached to a flexi lead. Most people do not even recognise that they have their dog on a tight lead. It is just how they are and there is no further thought about it.
But we know that a tight lead makes us feel more secure and more ‘in control’ of our dog. Sadly, it’s not true, we are kidding ourselves and actually aggravating the situation. Making our dog more uncomfortable and adding to everyone’s stress.
Experiment – using a longer lead
I am going to experiment with a 10ft long lead and see how I get on. I already use a 7m long line so in general, I can cope with a long lead, but I want to see how I get on with something just a bit longer than my normal 2m standard lead.
Painswick Pets has made it for me. www.painswickpets.co.uk
I love their luxury padded airweb products and the colours range available. Painswick Pets not only make standard products, but they will make bespoke items too.
But if I allow my dog to sniff, how will I get them to walk when I need them to?
I would train really short periods of close work between the bouts of sniffing. Make it very rewarding for walking just a few steps. Give the sniffing and the close walk specific commands. I tend to call it ‘walk nicely’ and ‘go sniff’.
But I would also start making the turning away from sniffing rewarding. I already recommend that when training your puppy or adult dog, you reward them every time they look at you or come back close (check-in). So I would do this when they are sniffing on a lead. Your dog will most likely increase the frequency of checking in.
Conclusion – Use a longer lead
I have known for ages that holding dogs on a tight lead causes more problems than it fixes but that it helps people feel more secure. I already often recommend that people switch to a 2m lead rather than a short, shop bought standard lead. It really can make a difference, as long as the human doesn’t just wrap the excess around their wrist.
Whilst I used to teach my dogs to to keep walking and not sniff and used to help my customers teach their dogs to so the same, now I don’t worry and have changed my view of a walk and they can sniff as much as they want.
Now I am going to test whether having an even longer lead makes more of a difference.
I will let you know how I get on
Whatever you do, have fun and enjoy living with your dogs.
Karen from Peaceful Pups.
If you wish to explore working with me directly or remotely via zoom/Skype, please just email me, or text and I will get back to you. Check out my services here