Freaked While On Leash

[Guest Gestu60]

We've had Rose our 5 year old greyhound for 3 weeks now and everything is going great. However, we've had several incidences of her getting her leash wrapped around her leg. She totally freaks. She yelps and bucks until she calms down enough to untangle her. My wife was even nipped at while trying to untangle her.Rose is so gentle its really surprising. Anyone else have any experience with this?

[macoduck]

What kind of leash? Regular or a flexi-lead? Keep her right beside you so she can't zig zag.

[Guest Gestu60]

Its a regular leash.

[FluffyDuff]

Frostie will freeze if the leash gets between his legs. Then once I had him on a 12 leash tied to a tree while we were working in the yard. He was fine until he went to walk off and the leash got caught between his legs he totally freaking and helped but he wasn't hurt.

[seeh2o]

Yes, but in the car going 70mph on a transition ramp from one freeway to another. I couldn't stop, was alone in the car with Carl. Screaming, flailing, more screaming, thrashing. He bruised himself up a bit, I was able to reach in the back and unclip it after I got on the other freeway. He almost got us both killed. I never left his leash on in the car again. He really really hated things to squeeze or get tangled in his feet our legs. If the leash got between his feet on a walk he would come to a screeching halt until I gently picked up his leg and moved the leash. Some of them are just very quirky.

Edited October 23, 2014 by seeh2o

[Time4ANap]

When walking a greyhound I keep the "death grip" on the leash handle. Just by habit now, i take up any slack in the leash instead of letting it hang. I only release it when it's okay for Rocket to explore further, sniff or go off the sidewalk. As soon as he;s done, I take the slack back.

 

Your leash should be a maximum of 6 feet, but there are many here who prefer a 4 or 5 foot leash for control. You might try a shorter leash if it continues to be a problem.

[KickReturn]

This is unfortunate. I am sorry you had this experience. But several times? In 3 weeks? Maybe rethink your approach. Look up basic leash technique - there is lots of good info. Your girl really needs to get off to a good start and it is important for her to trust the leash and the person on the other end. A leash should only be associated with good things.

 

If the leash should somehow get really tangled, reach over and very calmly take hold of Rose's collar and drop the leash. When she is relaxed just unthread the leash from her legs. Finish with a tummy rub and some treats.

Edited October 23, 2014 by KickReturn

[OwnedBySummer]

I'm not clear on how this is happening. I also don't allow slack to hang and I use a 4' leash, generally. I use a 6' leash when we're camping and I want her to be able to explore into the edges (without me having to follow her in) but even still, I keep it held up out of the way.

 

I have the loop around my right wrist and run it through my left hand, down to the dog at my left knee. This lets my left hand pull it back/pay it out, as necessary.

[Guest jetska]

If the leash should somehow get really tangled, reach over and very calmly take hold of Rose's collar and drop the leash. When she is relaxed just unthread the leash from her legs. Finish with a tummy rub and some treats.

 

This! I think they freak if the leash gets tight around them more .... if you grab the collar and allow the leash to go slack it should calm her down and make it easier to untangle. Also, if she needs it, practice grabbing her collar and giving treats at home, some hounds are not used to wearing collars or being grabbed by them and that can freak them out as well

[3greytjoys]

Congratulations on your new girl, Rose.

 

Below is a detailed snippet from a previous safety thread that elaborates about leash walking.

3Greytjoys quote, Feb. 2013:

 

"Leash

- Physically healthy/steady adult humans can place hand through leash handle loop on to wrist, then wrap leash around wrist and hand a few times. Important: Hold excess leash with the opposite hand as primary control of hound. The wrapped hand/wrist is secondary control.

Always stay alert while walking any dog, especially Greyhounds. Your sighthound might see something to chase before you see it. Humans have far less control of any dog if leash (or arm) is fully extended. (Good for human's elbow to be in a naturally bent position, close to human's body.) Safest walking position for dogs is next to human's thigh (not far in front, crisscrossing). Heeling with dog's shoulder next to human's left thigh is standard walking position in U.S. (Helps keep dogs away from cars since U.S. laws require pedestrians walk against traffic vs. same direction.)

- Slip knot can be tied in a leash handle loop so the loop won't fall off the wrist, helpful when picking up dog business too. (Again, for physically healthy humans who stay alert.)

- Please NEVER use retractable leads. Very dangerous with Greyhounds (and other dogs). If hound gets spooked by an unexpected noise and handle gets dropped, hard plastic handle noise chases after dog - panicked dogs often run into traffic, dangerously trip themselves at high speed, and/or get caught on objects possibly breaking dog's neck, legs, etc. Cyclists have been seriously injured by not seeing a dog near it's person, then riding directly into a retractable lead.

- Carabiner can be added as an extra safety clip (leash to collar) if needed for a questionable leash latch. IMO, circular claw-like "Trigger Snaps" are much safer than standard leash snaps.

- A knot can be tied at halfway point on leash (or where an extra hand-gripping point is needed)." End quote.

Just to reiterate, elderly or unsteady adults may not wish to wrap the leash around their wrist, but for most adults it helps keep a new Greyhound from escaping from an inadvertently dropped leash. (Children should not be allowed to control a Greyhound's leash during walks.)

Hope some of that helps.

 

[Guest Gestu60]

Thanks for all the great feedback. Sounds like we might be giving her to much slack and shes basically walking right into it.

Gonna try the two handed leash approach keeping control of the extra slack.

[GeorgeofNE]

NO ONE should "wrap the leash around wrist and hand a few times." If you've ever had your dog take off, you'll understand how badly you can hurt your hand doing that.

 

The "proper" (meaning traditional, old school way) way to hold a leash is to put your right hand (I suppose if you let your dog walk on the "wrong" side (your right), you'd use your left hand) all the way thorough the handle, then grasp the leash below the handle; I use a leather leash with a braided section where the handle is formed, so I hold the braid. Those of you who prefer nylon leashes, it would be were the stitching is. If you wish to hold some of the excess in your right hand, you can gather it up and form a few small loops or circles, and hold them with your fingers as your grasping the leash. I myself use my left hand to hold all the excess. I use a 9 foot leash, but it's only a 1/2 inch so I can handle all that excess.

 

Because I have a new dog now, I did switch to a four foot leash temporarily, but he's walking properly now, on my left, basically at heel.

 

I did a goofy YouTube video on it for my co-worker's son who watched George for me for the weekend.

 

I can't tell you how many people I see using the handle of the leash and holding it just with their fingers.

 

It's nearly impossible for a dog to yank the leash out of your hand if you use the above method. Very, very easy for a strong dog to rip the leash out of your hand if you're holding the loop with your fingers.

[Sambuca]

Bu used to do this!! He has since become a pro at fixing it himself. He knows exactly how to untangle himself. As someone without a yard, I like my dog having slack so he can explore. Just pay close attention. If the leash gets under her legs, stop walking and fix it.

[silverfish]

Another vote for putting one hand through the loop and grasping the leash just below the loop with that same hand, then using the other hand to gather loop/s of leash and keep control of the dog - who should be walking on that side, not on the 'hand through the loop' side.

 

This the traditional, old-school way of doing it. I don't care whether my dog is on my right or on my left, but I've always used this method. It means you can pay out/reel in the length without letting go of the hand loop, and easily gather it up again. It also means there's less chance of the dog pulling you off your feet, because the energy is shared between two hands. It's also safer than wrapping the leash around ANY part of you, which IMHO is an accident waiting to happen unless you have a particularly well-behaved or elderly dog.

 

It's even possible to use this same method while walking two dogs, whether you have them on one side of you or on either side. Just needs a little adapting of loops/handles/slack.

 

Jeffie will just keep walking if he gets the leash between his legs. Sid will stop dead and look at me reproachfully until I untangle him (he's a tripod).

 

I do second the advice to hold the collar and (if necessary) drop the leash while you untangle it, if it does get wound round the legs. A soothing voice, belly rubs and a small treat will soon have Rose waiting patiently for you to help her!

[Guest Clawsandpaws]

Dudley does this! We walk with other dogs (puppies) and if the other dogs happen to have their leash cross near his back legs Dudley will scream. I had the vet check him out and do some xrays when I first adopted him, because surely, he must be in serious pain, but no, he's just dramatic. Dudley once got tangled up (I mean, really, the hose made a U shape around his foot) and he screamed and screamed while standing with his foot up and the hose "dangling" off his foot, and when I went to "free" him, he snapped at me, but all was well. I no longer have him out while I do yard work

 

 

So yea, there is probably too much leash slack.

[Mercsmom]

Wow, I didn't know I was walking the "old fashioned way". O.K., maybe I am old fashioned but let's remember where this came from. You walk on the left side of the road so that oncoming cars can see you. You walk your dog on your left side so that he is protected. It's all done for a reason (in the same way Brits drive on the left and brides walk on their father's left, it was all done for a defense reason).

In Obedience class, when the trainer said, "I don't care which side you walk your dog on." I was floored.

Maybe I'm just a dinosaur. (Yes, I still say "whom" when proper, wear a slip under a skirt, and reply "how do you do" when someone says to me "how do you do". See... just a dinosaur [at 53].)

[silverfish]

Wow, I didn't know I was walking the "old fashioned way". O.K., maybe I am old fashioned but let's remember where this came from. You walk on the left side of the road so that oncoming cars can see you. You walk your dog on your left side so that he is protected.

 

It's the opposite here, of course. If there's no pavement (sidewalk), we walk on the right so that oncoming cars can see us, so the dog walks on our right to be safer. I was taught the same with horses; you walk between the animal and the traffic. If we walk on the left, the dog (or horse) goes on the left.

[sobesmom]

Just give less slack, so it can't get wrapped around her legs. Leash loop in one hand, other hand holds the slack.

[Guest jetska]

probably because nowadays most places have sidewalks separating pedestrians from vehicles that it doesn't matter any more which side you walk your dog on. Perhaps it matters if you live somewhere rural but in suburbia here sidewalks are part of the planning laws and motorists aren't expecting you to be walking your dog on a road....