The Flexi-fail

Today I passed a woman out with a beautiful Springer Spaniel.  The dog was weaving around her, stopping to sniff where he chose, and then running to catch up -- to a full 6 feet in front of her.  He bounded about as he please and overall looked to be having a smashing time.  When he noticed us he rushed forward, nearly taking the woman's arm off along the way.  When he reached the end of the small retractable cord attached to his collar, not only was the woman nearly jerked off her feet, but the dog was obviously choked as well.  This was their fun walk...

I will never suggest a flexi-leash (or retractable leash) to anyone under any circumstance.  It gives a false sense of control.  I have many times been told "but I want my dog to feel free and enjoy her walk."  Let me tell you, your dog will find no joy in their walk when they have been hit by a car because they "felt free" enough to rush off the sidewalk and get hit because the locking mechanism gave out.  Gruesome, I know, but it happens more often than you want to admit.

Then of course, your dog gets to "feel free" enough to run circles around you, and then dart after a squirrel, leaving you with something like this:

And that's mild.  I've heard of lost fingers -- and worse, lost dogs.  Though we don't want to believe it, not all dogs are dog friendly!  Your dog rushing up to them mouth agape and eyes wide with excitement is actually really bad manners in the dog world.  And, while you are shouting "don't worry, he's friendly!" you are probably not hearing the owner of the other dog yelling "She isn't!" And while it is easy to say "well why are you out with an unfriendly dog!?" think about how you why that dog deserves to not get the needed exercise, due to other dogs not being properly trained or controlled.

So unless your dog is ALREADY trained on a proper BOMBPROOF recall, heel, and is respectful of the space of others, leave the flexi in the store.