Jenny - you still might want to consider getting a leather version of the leash. SO much easier to hold onto, compared to nylon. The one Kelly linked is on my Xmas list

Melissa, I sincerely hope you get this leash for Christmas. It's amazing. In protection work I won't use anything else.

I know, my mouth watered when I looked at that leash! I have these beautiful leather leashes already:

For Jethro: http://leerburg.com/twohandleleash.htm

For Skipper: 6' 1/2" wide

I love these leashes!

 Quote: Kelly Byrd

Melissa, I sincerely hope you get this leash for Christmas. It's amazing. In protection work I won't use anything else.

Thanks! I walk three GSDs at once and it would be so nice to be able to attach my girls to that style leash and use the Leerburg coupler I have. I really want a free hand!

Jenny,

You are doing a great job with Jethro He comes to mind often because we have a big, handsome dog in the neighborhood that could be his twin! These pups sure like to keep us on our toes!

Today I had the perfect example of why this new system is invaluable. That is, besides the fact that Jethro has figured out that he is tethered to me and knows that things are different and there are no loose ends.

I am almost always walking Jethro and Skipper, one is 87 lb, the other is 20 lb. One is 21 months old, the other is 11 years old. One is highly reactive, one is deaf, imperturbable, and likes to follow his nose. A real differential going on, between the dogs.

I'm improving my harness apparatus with each walk, as I modify my design and try different arrangements. I like giving Jethro a little more length to his lead when we are walking because we play training games while we walk. He cannot be off leash at all, outside the yard (or out in the wilderness), so I try to keep things interesting and continue to build his self control. This depends on the time of day, of course, the later in the day it is, the shorter his lead is.

We were out at midday, the three of us. We had just finished Leave It exercises with a couple of crows (to our left) that were in a little close and Jethro had done really well. I turned further to my left to check on Skipper, to make sure his leash hadn't gotten between his legs and boom, Jethro took a flying leap and growl directly to my right. What I hadn't noticed because I was working the crows, was that a little, fluffy dog had been approaching on our right, perpendicular to us on a walking track. I just hadn't seen them on the track. Well, Jethro hit the end of the leash in his prong and I just stood there, hands free, braced for impact. Then I immediately sang out, This Way! and headed fast forward. As soon as the little dog was passed I took advantage of the distraction level and told Jethro to Sit (which he did immediately, still looking longingly at the little dog). Then I said Down and Down he went. Wait. and he Waited. Ahhhh. Thanks buddy. Let's Go! This Way!

Arn't those little triumph's just worth the world? It's awesome to see things work out just like you've been imagining. Congrats Jenny!

Yay! That's the good stuff right there. Good job both of you.

Gotta love those training opportunities when they come up and everything goes the way it should. Sure makes for a great finish to a successful walk. Nice job, Jenny and Jethro!

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or how well we have done all day... I can still get caught off guard and end up sprawled backward on my rear end with a barking, lunging dog at the end of the leash.

I'm not real clear on why you want to tie him to you then Jenny. I think you could get hurt doing this.

It might seem counter-intuitive, Steve, but when I have him attached to my torso by a secure harness, I am LESS likely to get hurt because the force of a lunge is coming onto the harness instead of my hands and arms. When I am securing him by holding the leash in my hands, the force is coming through the leash onto my fingers. I am determined that he is not going to get away from me, so, in those moments of distraction (eg. my distraction - switching hands, reaching for a kleenex, straightening up from giving praise) when I don't have an ideal hand hold on the leash, the force of hanging on for dear life vs Jethro's force at trying to get to something can throw me off balance and injure my hands (or worse).

With this new arrangement, a few new factors are coming into play. I am much more stable taking the force to my torso than my hands and arms. Jethro knows the difference between a tether and a hand grip. He knows the tether will not forgive, whereas he knows that it is possible to break my grip given certain circumstances. Interestingly, he is doing much less lunging now (2 days into the experiment) and more checking on me, especially conscious of my body position and movement, and getting more in synch with moving with me rather than straining after an interesting scent.

I was thinking about this, too, that he is tethered to me is a pleasant experience, he gets treats for voluntarily sidling up to me and walking in a close heel, he gets treats for voluntary sits when I pause to do something. He associates being tethered with pleasant things. Also, I am less wary and worried, because I don't have to fear a moment of lapse in my attention resulting in a dog loose. So I am more relaxed and enjoying his presence more. He is picking up on that and seems more relaxed too (thus, less of the very behaviour that necessitates the tether).

When Jethro is being a nuisance in the house and I want to get things done, I tether him to me and he just has to follow me around: upstairs, downstairs, laundry, vacuuming, sweeping, etc. It doesn't take long before he is grateful to be off the tether and slumps down in a deep sleep. I don't know why I didn't think of transferring that experience to higher distraction situations, ie. outdoors.