Retractable Leashes And Dog Training

Retractable leashes have their place.  That place is not during training.  While this leash seems to be very dog-friendly, it is not necessarily human-friendly, and does not provide the control most people need during training.  When your dog responds to you while on a walk, it won’t matter what type of collar or leash you choose.

If you’re intention in having your dog on a leash is to learn to listen, respond, and respect you, then don’t use retractable leashes.  I have heard from more than one person who has fractured their wrist by the handle when getting pulled by their dog (more about this below).

A favorite of mine is when someone approaches with two barking dogs who are pulling on the ever-lengthening thread toward my dogs (or dogs I am training) as they yell over the noise of their dogs’ vocal expression, “they’re friendly!”  My advice is to respond with, “mine aren’t!”  I use it all the time in order to keep them moving along down the road as I work with the dog who was the object of their attention to sit and stay as they pass.

You can also feel free to respond, “please keep walking, we’re in training.”  Most people will respect it even if their dog has no clue what the word “training” means.

There is no way of knowing if once the dogs greet and the leashes get entwined their won’t be an altercation.  It takes time to have a dog realize who is in charge and to listen to respond especially when an overly-anxious, uncontrolled dog is approaching.

This post isn’t so much about the negatives of retractable leashes as it is about the people using them without any sense of understanding the dog’s perspective and who is walking who.  A dog doesn’t need to be heeling all the time. They should be given that freedom to sniff and be a dog; however, you (or they) may be asking for trouble if they are allowed to have full freedom on the leash and they still pull you down the street in an anxious state.

If you use a retractable leash and want to know more about my thinking on their correct usage, please send a note. I am glad to answer your questions!

Here’s an article on retractable leashes from Consumer Reports.  Not intended as a scare tactic, but as information:  Retractable Leashes Pose Problems