hi all, i own an akita pup, 11 month old and 30kg, i wanted to buy one of those extendable leads for walking her but she pulls alot and also if she was able to build up pace im afraid of her running and the lead snapping or breaking the plastic handle. ive seen one in pets at home suitable for a 50kg dog, but is that a dog that doesnt pull? just wouldnt want to buy the lead its £36 and her breaking it and me having to chase her lol

How about training her to walk nicely on a normal lead?  Those extendable leads have caused many problems.......... :(

I kinda agree with WestCoast. I do use extendable leads sometimes, BUT I didn't start using one with my younger dog until I was certain I had a really, really good emergency stop and recall trained into him. If your worried your dog may run full pelt and not stop when told I wouldn't use an extendable as there is the risk of the lead breaking or your dog hurting her neck badly as she comes to a sudden stop at speed.

I almost broke my wrist using an extendable lead I won't recommend one, I'm afraid.

I have heard of dogs breaking their necks when on one of these things. They should come with a health warning.

When I have to use a long lead I use a 20 or 25 foot long one. Depending on which one I find in the house at the time ;-) I keep putting them down and forgetting where :-D

ive tried training her, never used abusive methods, always positive reinforcement as i know akitas dont do well with harsh methods. ive tried always keeping the lead slack as keeping it tight starts her to pull, ive tried using treats, ive tried stopping when she pulls but nothing works. i also would never let her off the lead as akitas have very high prey drives and i know she would only come back after exploring all the park by herself so this is the reason behind maybe getting the extendable lead. in pets at home when i was looking at one of the leads a staff member came over and his exact words were "the way they pull i wouldnt recommend it". ive bought her a no pull harness and i must sa she isnt pulling as much but she still is and shes very strong.

Then you need the help of a good trainer.  A powerful dog needs to under control when walking in public.

I would agree with other posters extendable leads have caused a lot of problems however so have cars, bicycles etc and with all these things the operator is the main problem.
They have their place but are only a tool, like a good trainer-which (IMHO) is where you might want to start.

hth,
Jeff.

I use a giant breed one on my rottie and it gives him lots of freedom but also means I have control as he can be quite independent and acts like his ears are painted on when there is something more interesting on the go.  I am also well aware of public perceptions of the breed and feel that in parks, people with dogs and children are more reassured when they see me with my dogs on the lead.

The giant one is 8m long and for dogs up to 75kg I think so would do your dog fine.  Plenty people have broken their wrists, leads have snapped and dogs got onto the road when people have used non-extending leads so as another poster has said - it is a tool.

my dog is always under my control in public!!

thanks cheekychow, i know how you feel. i would only use the extendable lead in a park close to me were there isnt many dog walkers, its just to give her a bit of freedom because i know most dog walkers would be frightened of a big akita sniffing at their dog even though shes a big softie

I use an extendable lead on a terrier cross who will follow a scent and be oblivious to everything else. An extendable lead should only be used with a harness due to the problems others have mentioned. I sometimes use a long line on hia harness instead but am still mastering the art of reeling it back in swiftly so the other dogs don't run into it - have been taken off my feet before when a 33kg GR didn't see it and ran full pelt into it - luckily none of us were injured but boy did it hurt. I prefer the tape extendables rather than the cord ones as they tend to burn your hands less if you forget and make the silly mistake of grabbing the lead :-)

If you do use an extendable lead it should only be used in open spaces. I nearly ran over a small Yorkshire Terrier that was being walked along a local road. Something frightened the dog and it took off into the road and I still don't know how I managed to avoid it in my car - extremely dangerous and a definite no no in my book.

I hate extendable leads ..I think they are dangerous.

I would recommend a training extendable lead .

http://www.pet-supply-store.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=Flexi_Giant_XL_Extending_Dog_Lead_Granite_8M_514650 This is the one I use. 

These threads often turn into a long line v's flexi debate and for what its worth I have never managed to successfully use a long line without getting in a tangle and I certainly wouldn't be able to walk both dogs together and use a long line. 

For me the flexi lead means I can walk both dogs together and I have even managed the previously inconceivable - I can walk both dogs on flexis without it looking like I am playing double dutch skipping!  the dogs have quickly got the hang of the commands 'other way' 'that way' and 'lift your leg' to ensure that there are no tangles and we all toodle along nicely.  I defy anyone using long lines to do that! ;)

thanks for all the replies. if i buy 1 its only for use in the park were theres plenty of room. i always use my shorter lead walking her to and from the park. shes very well socialised with other dogs aswell as i was constantly takin her to dog parks from 8 weeks of age, not walking her just carrying her to let her take in the sights and sounds.

I get on much better and stay cleaner with flexi's than long lines, but hubby can't get on with them at all and prefers the lines.

I too can use two flexi's with dogs trained to be good on them (stop before the end, and not wrap around trees).

yea cheekychow thats the 1 i seen in pets at home. i bought a training lead the other day and opened it, it was like 25 feet of nylon tape lol when i reeled her in i had this massive bundle of cord, its now safely at the bottom of my cupboard never to be seen again lol

barbara what dog is that in the wee pic with you? i cant really see it but it looks like a norwegian elkhound, am i right? they have the same nordic coat as the akita

>> I too can use two flexi's with dogs trained to be good on them (stop before the end, and not wrap around trees).

Hmm, I thought I had a unique skill there.  Outsmarted by those pesky elkhounds!

Yes that is my Lexi when she was a puppy, she is now 6 1/2 and a grandmother, and also hopefully a Mum to be for the last time.

To be fair I think I can walk all five of mien more easily than I could two Akita's LOL.

The biggest risk is to you possibly breaking something if sh lurched, but for a dog that walks nicely on one after training they can be useful.

As I walk all of mien together, a lot of it road walking, I use head collars (on normal leads, not extenders).  I didn't until the last year or so because the two youngest are only 18 months apart in age and we now go into the country a lot I find the extra power steering has made walking a pleasure.

Don't use an extendable lead until your dog has been taught to walk nicely on a normal loose lead. Extendable leads only teach dogs to pull, which might be tolerable with a toy poodle but with a big strong dog will cause both you and the dog serious injury.

I use a flexi with one of my dogs who has the potential to be a livestock chaser.

When he first came to us as a rescue I concentrated on getting a good walk to heel with no pulling.  Once we'd achieved that I used the flexi to teach acceptable boundaries ie distance from me.  I found that over time my boy developed an awareness of range beyond which he wouldn't wander.  He's now older, wiser, and a smidgen slower but he still checks back once he's reached the 'end of the line', even when he hasn't got his lead on!!

There is a knack to using a flexi but I find it much easier than a long line.

One thing it did highlight for me though was that I swing my arm when walking - the dog stayed tucked in by my side but the lead was moving in and out with my arm.  I only really noticed it when we got a new pup that I walk on a standard lead.  Now I have one still arm and one swinging one.  I must look rather odd!

We have a Boxer pup who is 9 months old,she is a bit of a chaser of horses that come up on the downs our trainer came out and suggested a Long Line out of Pets at Home they do 2 different lenghts,the Boxer is walked nicely in a lead and collar to the downs then she has the Long Line attached to a harness please do not put one on a collar as if they snag it any where it will cause injury to their neck and i would also advise you where gloves as sometimes when you need to get them back to you these leads can hurt your hands.I would deffinately not walk a pulling dog a Flexi we had one break on us the rachet in side went luckily we were on the downs not the pavement.

If you do opt for an extending lead, you could try a "wacky-walker x-tension" (it can be used with your normal leads as well). It takes out that sudden jolt when they hit the end of the lead and certainly saves your shoulder. I use the "wacky-walker 4 ft" lead with Hattie, who no matter what I've tried, still insists on pulling and lunging.

http://www.collarways.co.uk/pages/xtension-for-use-with-normal-leads/4942

> i wanted to buy one of those extendable leads for walking her but she pulls alot and also if she was able to build up pace im afraid of her running and the lead snapping or breaking the plastic handle

I can't get on with extendable leads atall, they feel too clumbersome in my hand and I worry if the dog was to lunge I would not be able to keep a firm grasp on the bulky plastic handle.

I use a long-line for my Mastiff but I only ever have that attatched to a harness, not a collar, for fear of whiplash injuries (and I'm glad of that as he whizzed past to me chase his Yorkie play-mate and ignored my stop command I had to jump on the long-line, luckily I didn't get my feet pulled from under me, he came to a dramatic stop, but if that long-line had been attatched to his collar it would not have been evry nice for his neck/throat atall).

He is walked on a normal lead for pavement walking and when we are in open spaces he gets to go out on his long-line, but he was not given the freedom of a long-line under distraction before learning how to walk on a lead without pulling under distraction, then he progressed to having more & more length of his long-line. The only difference is he can run & play on the long-line so there is more chance of him being too distracted to obey commnads (ie, when playing with a dog), so I feel much happier having the long-line clipped to his chest harness :)

>Don't use an extendable lead until your dog has been taught to walk nicely on a normal loose lead. Extendable leads only teach dogs to pull, which might be tolerable with a toy poodle but with a big strong dog will cause both you and the dog serious injury.

I would agree strongly with this.  I do use an extendable lead on my Rottie X (50kg), and occasionally for my Newfie, BUT they are both trained to walk nicely on a normal lead.  Both my OH and I find that the extendable lead - particualrly the large sized one that we need - don't allow you the same control as a normal lead and I wouldn't feel  confident at all if I had a dog that might lunge at another or who was inclined to pull.

As Jeff said, they are a useful tool, but I couldn't recommend them at all for controlling a dog, particularly a large breed, that pulls on lead. 

When my dog is on the extendable lead it is attached to his harness and by the very nature of how these leads work there has to be tension on the lead. I only attach the extendable lead to his harness so when he is on a normal lead which is attached to his collar he is expected to walk properly and not pull and he seems to be, albeit very slowly, getting the hang of this .

My Akita also stays on lead unless in a completely secure area e.g. a tennis court.  When road walking I have worked really hard with her and she walks on a normal collar and lead.  I do use a halti if I am also walking my adult male rottie because together they are stronger than me and I just think this is common sense.

Loki (my Akita) knows the difference between road walking and her free time when in fields etc.  In the field she wears a well fitted padded harness (one that is used for canix) and a long lunge rein.  She still has regular training up the field for example walking to heel and stopping on command but this is also her playtime where she runs through water, undergrowth and I follow!

I would never use a long lead attached to a collar when there is a chance the dog may get jolted and cause damage to the neck.

> I do use a halti if I am also walking my adult male rottie because together they are stronger than me and I just think this is common sense.

Snap! I use a Halti aswell as a normal collar & lead, depsite Buster being fantastic on a lead, it's good to know that you have control there 'just in case' :)

i always walk madison with a non pull padded harness

i used 1 once for a female gsd (when she was in season) took her over the fields and she spotted her doggy friens, she nearly pulled my arm out of its socket, never again would i use 1