Lead recommendations & update

[lilliput]

Hi labrador friends, it has been a while since I have posted and I hope everyone is well.
Betty is doing great - coming up for 6 months. Time flies! At 4 months we really turned a corner and she stopped biting us and now we have the most affectionate playful lovely puppy! Even my daughter who was scared of her for the first 2 months absolutely adores her now and frequently holds training sessions with her which is lovely to see.
Is anyone able to recommend a longer lead that is quite tough and strong? My Mum is coming to house sit for us when we go on holiday and she would rather walk Betty on lead. I walk her off lead 95% of the time so this could be interesting and I have a couple of weeks to get her used to being on a longer lead more often... eeekkk. I am thinking tape rather than cord but they all look like they will snap if she takes one bite! Retractable would be best I think. Anyway... please let me know if you have had any good experiences.
@kateincornwall how are you getting on with Reuben? I do think of you often - because Reuben and Betty are similar age and both were little crocs!

 

[Naya]

I’m glad Betty is beconing a loved pet by all of your family.

I have several different leads, depending on where I’m going as to what I use. It has taken a lot of training to get her used to not running to the end of the lead though.
These are really good as longer than normal leads, but having a bungee style middle bit reduces the ‘jerk’ at the end of it;
https://www.amazon.co.uk/EzyDog-Zer...ocphy=1006567&hvtargid=pla-575230961977&psc=1

This extendable lead is good for when I’m doing around the block on grass walks where I want her to have more freedom, but don’t want to let her off lead for different reasons. I know not everyone likes extendable leads, but it suits my needs;
Flexi Neon Reflective Tape Black & Yellow Dog Lead Small 5M

Hope these help!

 

[HAH]

Hi @lilliput , great to hear from you and it sounds like Betty’s doing brilliantly. How lovely your daughter’s bonded with her and does training

I really like the Halti double ended leads like this https://www.amazon.co.uk/Company-An...=1007089&hvtargid=pla-311886926606&psc=1&th=1
If Betty wears a harness with a front clip this makes it a lot easier to handle her, if she’s not used to the lead. But it will need a bit of practice so worth doing a few dry runs with your mum first!

 

[kateincornwall]

Hi and good to hear from you again , some good recommendations given to you ! So pleased that Betty is doing well and is no longer a crocopup ! Reuben stopped biting at about the same time , he sometimes gently mouths but no pressure , more of a babyish thing ! Its so good to read that your little girl is no longer scared of Betty , they will soon have a wonderful bond, bless xx

 

[snowbunny]

Hello, and welcome back! My lot all have the Halti double-ended leads that @HAH mentioned; they're great because you can set them at different lengths, up to 2m. All my leads have been chomped at some point or other, and are a bit frayed looking, but still very very strong.

If your Mum wants her to be able to roam farther afield, a tape extendible is likely your best bet. I don't like using them because I feel like I have zero control with them - you can't effectively reel your dog in or control their direction like you can with a regular lead, not to mention it's far easier for the dog to pull the handle out of your hand - but I agree that they have their place, if your dog isn't likely to lunge or suddenly run off (or is too small for that to be a risk of you letting go of the handle) and you don't want the worry of handling a long line, which your Mum surely won't want to learn to use for the sake of a week or two!

Sorry, I can't recommend a certain brand, but I imagine they're all pretty similar in that none of them would be Labrador-proof if Betty really decided to give it a determined chew. But as long as your Mum keeps an eye on her and distracts her if she starts to do that, I don't see there being a problem. Because of the webbing, it would need more of a chew on the molars than a snap with the front teeth to break through it.

The most important thing will be to load your Mum up with lots of small tasty treats that she can drop to Betty when she's walking nicely alongside her, so that she's happy to be there instead of pulling at the lead.

Good luck!

 

[Xena Dog Princess]

As someone who lives in a predominantly "on-lead" country, I'm a huge fan of retractable leads! We have the Flexi 5m, tape. As Betty's still very young I'd only use one on a harness, not on a normal collar (pulling/lunging damages their throats). Flexi is an expensive brand, but they're actually made in Germany, and are very sturdy. Xena was never a lead chewer so I can't help you there.

 

[Emily]

As someone who lives in a predominantly "on-lead" country, I'm a huge fan of retractable leads! We have the Flexi 5m, tape. As Betty's still very young I'd only use one on a harness, not on a normal collar (pulling/lunging damages their throats). Flexi is an expensive brand, but they're actually made in Germany, and are very sturdy. Xena was never a lead chewer so I can't help you there.

Same here!

The only thing is though, you can't really control them very well with a flexi lead. I was caught out a couple of times in the early days where Ella was out at full length and my only option was to start walking backwards and try to reel her in.

Now, I'm completely fine with it as I don't actually use the lead at all. I just treat her as if she's off lead and manage her with voice cues.

 

[M.F.]

I don’t like long leads at all. When Snowie was a puppy, at training we used a long lead (6m?) and it would get wrapped around his legs, and one time injured his leg—he was very boisterous and I was useless at reeling in and letting out the lead while trying to handle a lurching puppy.

I like the front fastening harness when control
Is needed. Although they do hobble the dog somewhat and aren’t good for a brisk walk.

I loooove the Ezydog bungee lead. The handle is like a waterski handle. It can’t collapse, so no danger to your hand if your dog pulls suddenly (soft handles can squash your hand).

 

[Anne123]

We have a flexible tape lead for Finn which we use only in the woods late at night so that Finn can’t wander off and not to be seen anymore. We uses it too in the woods where he is not allowed to be off lead so that it is possible he has a sniff and a bit of run without bothering us or wildlife. It is long, about 10 meters. You can’t control him with this lead as much as you can with a gundog lead or harness with front fastening. For pulling we uses the front fastening harness! We did have dogs that chew leads, but we have learned them not to do so by telling no and by positiv behavior they got a nice treat.