The extension crutch

This is the Yap Wrap that Jessie wore in her senior years.  No longer a pulling dog she enjoyed the comfort of this harness.  

Last week I wrote about dog parks being a crutch.  The easy "go to" place where we take our dogs maybe too much.  Today on the way home from the park I saw a woman walking down the street with her dog; he was all the way out at the end of her extension leash in full drag mode.  Of course he wasn't dragging her because when a dog is that far away from you the pull is much less........ahhhhh, the crutch.  This dog was pulling so hard that it was bent over forward and down; I would imagine it was horrible to walk this guy on a regular leash.  "The pulling doesn't bother me if he's on an extension," is what I hear often.  No need to train if you can just throw an extension leash on, right?  Wrong.

Extension leashes are not only dangerous but they also mask problems.  Dogs who are strong pulling dogs are encouraged to pull when using these; because the owner suffers no pressure.  Those who walk strong pulling dogs on them often use them for just this reason.  Walking their dog on a regular leash sucks; it is not enjoyable at all, so on goes the extension.  I really hate extension leashes in general; most people who use them do not have near enough control or common sense to be using them. The only time I ever want to see one is in an open field, with no others around; if and only if the person holding the extension can reel in fast as well.  Does the person know when to start reeling?  Not usually, so I pretty much hate them.

But as far as the extension leash being a crutch; take it off and give a regular leash a try.   Dog pulling?  Hate it?  Then work on walking nicely on leash.  Oh yes it can be a great deal of work; especially if your dog has been sled dogging for many years.  Teach a dog to walk on a loose leash is an effort but well worth it.  There are many harnesses made now that reduce a dog's ability to pull.  The Easy Walk Harness is one of those and my "go to" harness.

When dog's pull and are never offered another option then they just keep pulling.  Training is work, yes but it is work that will make spending time together more enjoyable.  Of course there will always be times when a dog wants to pull.  Fresh out of the gate Elsa has some major ya ya's; but we wait until she gets a grip before we move on.  Walking a dog that is pulling you down the street is not fun for anyone.  Just this morning an older gentleman passed us and asked "dogs taking you for a walk?"  I said "no, actually I am taking them for a walk,"  he smiled and continued on.

A crutch, the dog park?

      At the beach and around the corner in Connecticut.  It was a very chilly day for the beach.   Elsa was about 5 1/2 months old here.

The dog park can become a crutch.  It is a place where you can socialize and exercise your dog without exercising yourself.  Most times you can get a great deal of exercise for your dog in a short time span.  So you go and you go and you go; day after, day after, day.  Your dog loves to go, they get lots of canine interaction and all is good right?  Maybe not.  The question is, do you also take your dog for leash walks in public areas.  Maybe downtown, a children's soccer game, the park or outdoor Mall?  If not, you should. 

When I was in Connecticut in 2011/2012 I had a young puppy.  Being that we were plunked in a place where I knew no one and didn't know where the great parks were I had opted for the beach.  A great beach that is only open for a very short time of the year for dogs to be off leash.  Being that I could hit the park at off hours; it made visiting the park a great place.  There were never too many dogs at a time and lots of room between each group of people and their dogs.  If you wanted  to interact you could but you didn't have to.  It was a great place and one that gave Elsa a huge boost in her canine socializing.  We visited a lot for the short time that we were in Connecticut an I loved it. 

Of course there were extenuating circumstances that made the park the place for us to be.  I had to bring Luke with us for every outing; as he was dealing with separation anxiety due to the loss of his two life long companions.  So I needed a place where Elsa could run her little butt off and Luke could meander; the beach was the place where it could all happen.  But when we weren't at the beach and leashes were required, it could be difficult containing Elsa.  Her enthusiasm to romp with every dog she met was becoming apparent.  "What do you mean I can't just run with every dog?" Was her clear dilemma. 

Once we were back in California we had work to do with on-leash canine greetings and walk bys.  She had to learn that life is not a dog beach.  I see this quite often; dogs get so use to being free that being leashed and controlled becomes a problem.  Elsa was very young so the dog beach gave us the most important thing that she needed, socializing.  But you also need life lessons, learning to walk nicely on a leash (which she does amazing I might add); seeing other dogs and not interacting with them and walking by all manner of people. 

When a dog is at a dog park and very involved with other dogs and the whole activity of interacting, not much concern is put into anything else. A great dog park or beach with nice friendly dogs can be a great place to socialize; but our dogs need  more, much more.  They need structure, control lessons and introduction to the life around them.  If you miss out on all the other stuff and opt just to hit the park all the time then your dog and you will pay the price. 

The more varied things that you offer your dog to experience in their early years the better.  Hit the street, go to the park, sit outside of restaurants; go to all the places that you might end up going at some point in time.  Teach your dog about revolving doors, automatic doors that open as you approach and shopping carts.  Elsa learned about automatic doors before she was 4 months old and it was very useful when she had to go in and out of many on our travel across country.  Go to a soccer game; this is one place where much can be learned.  The first couple of times that we walked by a soccer game; Elsa almost came unglued by the balls.  Of course, being the ball dog that she is she wanted them all.  With just a couple of visits and some age behind her she was able to walk by a ball field without losing it. 

People carry a lot of stuff at soccer games; they can look menacing to a dog who has never seen someone carrying a giant bag of balls.  Dogs need to learn what to concern themselves with and what can be ignored.  How about a tennis court?  Been by one of those with your ball crazed dog?  I have and it was......lets just say crazy.  So, we did it again and again and again until she learned that all of those tennis balls belonged to someone else. 

Yes the dog park or beach can be great; but they can also become a crutch.  Get out, experience life with your dog.  Take a turn down a street where you've never been.  Go to a new park or beach where leashes are required.   Yes leashes suck but they are a fact of life so you may as well do leashes well if you have to.  So get out and have a great new day with your dog today.