Long post warning!!!!! Stream of consciousness phone typing, beware! BUT still serious question. I apologize in advance for long windedness and digression and repetition, but not going back to edit. Throwing out a question for general discussion. Is it better for me to walk my dogs on leashes that are visible to people but completely and entirely ineffective at holding the dogs back if they decide to go somewhere, just for the cosmetic effect of a visible thread between the dogs and myself, just to make certain people feel better when they see me and my dogs? I stress that that the leashes do no good whatsoever in holding the dogs, not one bit, not at all. If the dogs want to go, they can and will. This is even the case if I use a prong collar. Or is it better for me to walk my dogs with complete control over their behavior, but with no visible physical link attaching them to me? I am serious about the question. Some people advocate for physical leashes at all costs, at all times times. The presence of a visual thing is important to them, (even if it is useless). I want to know what people think about this. I dont want to feel like a public nuisance, I dont want to scare people or upset them. I am by nature a kind and considerate person for the the most part. I know myself that people are better off with my dogs under control. But if you see dogs off leash how upsetting is it to you if they are leaving you alone? One more thing I want to say is that the places I take my dogs are places where at least least eighty percent (probably more) of the people we encounter know the dogs already and know that they are friendly. Almost all the people we know and see on these daily jaunts like dogs, and like these specific dogs. Of the strangers and new people we meet, almost all of them have a positive attitude about the dogs and have a pleasant experience with them. So the cosmetic, physical leashes that dont work would be for the psychological benefit of the very few people we encounter who have an issue with dogs, I guess. The cursing lady who got so upset about my dogs yesterday was one of those. But there have been others. I honestly am having a problem with the issue. Oh, and just to stress a point, my dogs are not vicious. They are big, though, at least two of them are. Sorry for being so long winded. I am not happy about what happened yesterday. Honestly, I dont like upsetting strangers, even unhinged ones. OK, one last thing, and I will be done. Why I feel a need to have the dogs off leash. I have very bad arthritis in my knees and hips, making walking slow, difficult and painful. I am very slow. So the dogs have trouble adjusting to my slow pace (so do humans who walk with me) This is a bad thing, because the dogs pull on their leashes constantly. They exert a lot of force. It hurts. A lot. It is painful to walk them on physical leashes. If they do see something they want to go after, I can not hold them back with a physical leash either. I have been bruised and scraped up badly from being pulled over and knocked down while attempting to hold them back. My husband has too. His phone was broken a while ago from the impact of being pulled down and dragged while holding on for dear life to the physical dog leashes. (I will also mention that I can not do photography while holding on to physical leashes, and since photography is my job it is something of a problem, and that when I go to all sorts of outdoor remote places it feels safe to have dogs along, but I digress) ......... BUT a voice command that gets reinforced by an electronic tone, followed by a small electric zap if the command is not obeyed? Works like magic each time. It is foolproof. So if you are a stranger and you come across some big dogs, do you want the appearance of control when no control exists with a physical leash, or do you want actual control? You cant have both. I I cannot hold them back by the leashes and use the electric collars at the same time. One or the other, you choose.
Posted on: Wed, 24 Sep 2014 19:46:06 +0000
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