Flexi Leads

[Busderpuddle]

I know that the Flexi lead leashes have a bad reputation, but I am not clear why ?

Can someone share with me why they are not safe ? I see a lot of people using them for walks.

 

[Time4ANap]

There is virtually no control of the dog with them. The dog controls you.

 

They are also too easy to get tangled in, trip over, or even break apart when used. A leash or leash/harness should allow you to have full control of your dog at all times, and these are just a big tether allowing the dog to run in a big circle with little to no control.

[Remolacha]

They can be useful for small dogs (imo they are not strong enough for larger dogs) but most people don't use them properly. Only let your dog run ahead on the extended leash in an open area where you can Be Sure there are no other loose dogs, etc. The big thing is, pay attention to your dog! Not saying *you* would do any of this, but most of the problems with flexi leads are people letting their dogs run out at the end of the leash and not paying attention to what the dog is doing, or watching what is going on around them. You have almost no control of the dog when the leash is fully extended, or the ability to react to an attack from a loose dog.

 

I assume you are thinking of using it with your new little pumpkin, not Ruby

[Cricket57]

As Remolacha said, I assume you are thinking of using it with your new pup. Most greyhound adoption groups do not recommend them for greys. Greys can get up to speed so quickly & it's too easy to cause harm to their neck when they, quite literally, reach the end of their rope. They also do not provide a secure grip (IMHO). If the dog were to be spooked & rips the end out of your hands, the dog is now running and being "chased" by a flopping, flailing noisy piece of plastic. A very dangerous situation for any dog. Personally, I can't stand them. Wish they would be outlawed. Most people I've encountered with them are not paying attention to their dog. Again, like Remolacha said, not saying "you" would do any of this.

 

Cricket

[Houndtime]

Google it and view all the photos of injuries to owners and dogs. Then you won't have to ask the question. a lot of events have banned their use at the event.

[rascalsmom]

My DH's former boss was walking his Ridgeback on a flexi lead. It pulled him into a pole. He endured YEARS of dental work to undo the damage....the person, not the dog.

 

Plus, I think especially with a puppy, you'd want them trained to walk right next to you rather than 'leading'. Of course I've never had a puppy so what would I know?

[palmettobug]

If you want the best leash you'll ever buy, I highly recommend a leather one. Used one professionally and Johnny is the second dog with this one.

[macoduck]

Wear jeans so your leg doesn't get sliced open.

[3greytjoys]

A friend's Boston Terrier was on a Flexi-lead when her human mistakenly dropped it. The terrifying noise of the Flexi's plastic case bouncing behind her scared her into a busy 4-lane road. It was a miracle she wasn't hit by a car. After searching for many hours, she was finally found strangled from the long corded Flexi-lead being caught and entangled in bushes.

 

Our Greyhounds have been attacked (repeatedly) by dogs whose owners accidentally lost grip and dropped their dogs' Flexi-lead.

 

Some owners can't reel-in their dogs fast enough, so their dog approaches others and starts a fight.

 

Cyclists have crashed while riding directly into Flexi-leads when the human and dog appeared too far separated from each other, or dogs were out of cyclists' sight completely. Flexi-leads have caused serious entanglement injuries with the cyclist, dog and their human. Skateborders are also at risk.

 

As mentioned in posts above, Flexi's are definitely not for retired racing Greyhounds, who can propel into full racing speed in 3-5 strides. Too many broken neck, spinal, and internal injury deaths in Greyhounds from Flexi-leads, not to mention injured humans from the Flexi's cord snapping back towards the humans and other dogs.

 

Thanks for asking this important question.

[Fostr_Mom]

A long time ago, before I knew better, I used a flexi-lead for my min-pin. One day I dropped the handle. It was unlocked and was reeling in as it bounced along behind my scared **htless dog, who was running at full speed to get away from the "monster" chasing her. Fortunately she didn't run into the road and I finally caught up with her. I tossed the dang thing away and got a real leash for her. I have never used one of those things again. I wish they could be banned.

[Busderpuddle]

OH WOW, glad I asked. I remember reading about them on here, people having issues with other dogs being on them, so wanted to check. Jesse has a harness and a 5' leash right now, as we are practicing her wearing it around the backyard. I was thinking about the flexi lead for places like the beach, etc...., but clearly they are not safe.

I would never use one with Ruby as she can pull too hard.

Thank you all

[NeylasMom]

Just use a plain long line (nylon leash, you can easily find them in 15, 20, 30 foot lengths) attached to a harness in those settings. You can also have them custom made at Palomine.com.

[smurfette]

The problem is not the flexi. It is the people who do not use it properly. I would never recommend it on a grey - please don't get me wrong but it can be a good source to let your (small) dog roam a little in the right environment, alone in the woods for example - and always with a strap to your hand.

[macoduck]

I know you aren't planning to use it with your greyhound, but I'll add one more story.

 

An adopter had a dog walker in every day. She used adopter's flexi leash. The greyhound spooked when an Osprey plane/helicopter flew low overhead.

 

Took us 4 days in 100 degree temps to find her. All that remained of the flexi leash was a 10" piece of the cord.

 

In an instant, even an experienced dog walker wasn't prepared for that one moment...

[fastpointydoge]

Another story to the list! I was walking my adult mixed breed dog in our yard on a flexi leash. I was a young teenager and she was middle aged and weighed just under 50lbs. She saw a dog on the other side of the street and lunged for it. I didn't think and grabbed the cord as she was running and shredded my hand. Still have a scar from how deep it cut into one of my fingers.

[JohnF]

I would only use one of those away from the public and if the dog had an injured leg and needed to hop a bit in order to get along better.

 

Both me and Peggy have got tangled by dogs on loose extending leads (they snatch from the person's hand in a trice because the grip isn't ever secure enough), Peggy ran into one in the park because it couldn't be seen. I've seen a run-away dog racing down the road with the 20ft lead clattering behind him and scaring him crazy. Oh, and there's a burn mark on my wellington boots (industrial ones too) from one of those tangling loose dogs.

 

Absolutely not something for a novice owner to have.

[palmettobug]

Just use a plain long line (nylon leash, you can easily find them in 15, 20, 30 foot lengths) attached to a harness in those settings. You can also have them custom made at Palomine.com.

 

Used one of those a couple of times with my K9--got a nice cut on my hand when she took off and I grabbed the lead. OUCH!

[NeylasMom]

 

Used one of those a couple of times with my K9--got a nice cut on my hand when she took off and I grabbed the lead. OUCH!

Nothing like what you'd get if you grabbed the flexi lead as fastpointydoge mentioned above.

 

If you're using it properly that shouldn't happen anyway. I gather it up in "folds" in one hand and use the other to let it out and gather it back in as the dog moves away or comes back. It's helpful to practice without the dog (just attach the clip to something dog height). In other words, the length of the leash is never out just dragging on the ground. So if the dog is closer to you, you essentially have them on a short leash with a hand already on it so it would be no different than if the dog were on a normal 6' lead and tried to take off. It's also a good idea not to give a dog more freedom before you have some voice control. I look at the long line as a step in training toward being off leash.

[racindog]

Harness/collar/regular lead GOOD;

Flexi-lead BAD.

[palmettobug]

That happened years ago at K9 school, instructor had some bright idea about us chasing after the dog and snatching up the leash or some horsepucky. Used a leather leash the rest of the time, long leads aren't very safe in an inspectional environment.

[NeylasMom]

That happened years ago at K9 school, instructor had some bright idea about us chasing after the dog and snatching up the leash or some horsepucky. Used a leather leash the rest of the time, long leads aren't very safe in an inspectional environment.

Ah, gotcha. Yeah, leather leads are really ideal.

[cleptogrey]

i really hate hate felxi-leads but i must confess, when my welsh terrier was around 10 or 11 i purchased a ribbon style flexi for our walks on horse trails.we rarely ran into other dogs/people and willie was the demo dog in obedience classes, he was a perfect gentleman most of the time. i was tired of bundling up the long line. so, i clipped it on him and relaxed the stop .....HE HEELED AT MY SIDE!!!! it never extended beyond 3 or 4 feet. it was a joke to say the least, it lived in my car's glove box as an emergency leash and i eventually gave it to my daughter.

 

 

great prices on ALL COTTON WEB LEASHES(washes well, don't burn hands, lasts until your dog eats it!), leather leashes, etc http://www.max200.com/cp5200/scripts/prodList.asp?idCategory=53

Edited August 25, 2017 by cleptogrey

[winnie]

Just use a plain long line (nylon leash, you can easily find them in 15, 20, 30 foot lengths) attached to a harness in those settings. You can also have them custom made at Palomine.com.

Or, buy a lunge line from a horse supply store.

[Zoomdoggie]

i really hate hate felxi-leads but i must confess, when my welsh terrier was around 10 or 11 i purchased a ribbon style flexi for our walks on horse trails.we rarely ran into other dogs/people and willie was the demo dog in obedience classes, he was a perfect gentleman most of the time. i was tired of bundling up the long line. so, i clipped it on him and relaxed the stop .....HE HEELED AT MY SIDE!!!! it never extended beyond 3 or 4 feet. it was a joke to say the least, it lived in my car's glove box as an emergency leash and i eventually gave it to my daughter.

 

 

great prices on ALL COTTON WEB LEASHES(washes well, don't burn hands, lasts until your dog eats it!), leather leashes, etc http://www.max200.com/cp5200/scripts/prodList.asp?idCategory=53

Interesting! My present greyhound and my last one do the same thing whenever I've tried to walk them with a flexi. I guess they just have become to know that 3-4 feet us where they're supposed to be.

I will occasionally put my grey on a flexi when we're just hanging out in the yard. Both my greys learned how to do mini figure-8 zoomies right in front of me, in about a 10 foot area.

[Neighsayer]

i really hate hate felxi-leads but i must confess, when my welsh terrier was around 10 or 11 i purchased a ribbon style flexi for our walks on horse trails.we rarely ran into other dogs/people and willie was the demo dog in obedience classes, he was a perfect gentleman most of the time. i was tired of bundling up the long line. so, i clipped it on him and relaxed the stop .....HE HEELED AT MY SIDE!!!! it never extended beyond 3 or 4 feet. it was a joke to say the least, it lived in my car's glove box as an emergency leash and i eventually gave it to my daughter.

 

 

great prices on ALL COTTON WEB LEASHES(washes well, don't burn hands, lasts until your dog eats it!), leather leashes, etc http://www.max200.com/cp5200/scripts/prodList.asp?idCategory=53

My first greyhound ate an entire six foot leather leash! He did leave the snap!