I have heard mixed reviews on the long stretchy leads, however we use one at start of walk until get to part where can let toodles off and where we are getting him to heal when we have it short, when he can go long he is just pulling on it and I am now starting to get a bad twinge in my back. Would it be best to just keep him at heel until I let him off o is there an effective way to get him to realise when he is pulling at end to slow down.

I have tried the stop walking until he comes back to my side, which he does do but when we start walking again he runs to end of lead again, any tips or advice would be appreciated.

That's the thing with those flexi leads - the dogs have to pull to get the lead to roll out from the case, so it actually teaches the unwanted pulling behaviour. I hate the damn things - they're not safe anyway for a pulling dog, you'd be much better off with a standard, fixed lenght leather or nylon lead, and keeping him on that until he can get let off

__________________

''Dogs are like chocolates, you can never have just one!''

I would ditch the extendable lead and just get a normal one to prevent any confusion. If you get a training lead, you can adjust it to several different lengths to suit your needs but Toodles won't learn that pulling gains extra lead length.

__________________

Oh yes, I never actually thought that it would be teaching him to pull to get further, quite obvious when you think about it.

I always just think that if we can't let him off, he still gets that chance to venture out that little bit further to sniff around.

We do have another rope type lead that is quite long maybe I should jus use that.

I have one of these - adjusts to different lengths: Training Lead «

I also have a leather training lead that I had made to my specifications - lots of places manufacture bespoke items if you can't quite find what you are after.

__________________

The difficulty with flexi leads is how do you explain them to a dog? When it's short and locked you must stay by my side, when it's unlocked you can go further away, but not too far, and only as long as you don't pull on it, but do pull on it to make it go further.

I have no doubt it could be done, but it wouldn't be easy and there are far better tools available. I have to say that I detest flexi leads full stop, I think they are extremely dangerous for dog and owner. All too often I see dogs walking along the pavement at the full reach of the lead when it would take a split second for them to make a dash for the cat on the other side of the road despite whatever traffic was coming. The worst thing for me though is when I see them attached to collars, if the dog decides to run at anything more than a trot and then suddenly hits the end of that lead it is potentially going to do some serious damage to their neck, it is not going to do the person holding the other end much good either. I have seen toy breeds flip a somersault at the end of the lead and god knows what that does to them, I even saw a springer the other day with one attached to a head collar!

__________________
Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people look bright until you hear them speak

yeah !!!!you are humorous !

I have flexi leads but my dogs are a bit older ...10 years old..

I have trained them to walk at heel until we reach the park then they are allowed the freedom to sniff and toilet at the extended length..They are calm not running or tugging..

If people or other dogs approch I call them back to heel until the person/dog has passed..
I have three dogs who must be on lead at all times in my local area three normal rope leads would get too tangled so the flexi offers me the best solution.


Any tool is only as good as the operator..

I do use a flexi lead, but like anything they need to be used in the right circumstances. I think they can be useful when you want to give your dog a little bit of freedom but when a longline would be impractical.

Like someone else mentioned, it's difficult for a dog to understand that sometimes they can pull and run around, and other times they can only go so far before the lead stops.

I use mine when going on walks in new places when I don't feel comfortable letting her off lead, but when we aren't going to bump into lots of people and dogs (and get tangled). I don't use it near roads because I just don't feel safe.

Having said that, Kenzie's 6kg and not a puller anyway. If I had a big dog or one that pulled I definitely wouldn't use a flexi.

Oh and I only use the ones with the wide tape. I got a nasty 'burn' from a cord one that got wrapped around my ankle when another dog was playing with mine once.

__________________

Wow - U must have hands like a gorilla,

how can U hold 3 Flexi-reels? i wear a size-8 glove or size-9 rings, which is not a small hand for a woman,
but i find the hard-case of a Flexi is a pain in the butt to keep a good grip on; it's very humid here, & the heat
makes one's hands sweat, plus of course rain wets the case & handle, & even if it's cool & dry, if i'm wearing gloves,
the bulk of the glove makes my grip that much less secure.

i see folks drop Flexi-reels or dogs yank them out of the handler's grasp all the time; if the dog is the least bit
timid or sensitive to noise, the clatter of a pursuing Flexi skating after them is a great inducement to more speed -
a bolting dog chased by a banging, bouncing Flexi is a sad sight, & the poor dog is mindless in their panic.

__________________
terry pride, APDT-Aus, apdt#1827, CVA, TDF
*wolves R wolves, dogs R dogs, + primates R us.*
tmp, sept-2007