Respect The Lead Campaign Launch
I am pleased to announce the launch of my Respect The Lead Campaign!
The aim of the campaign is to spread the word about how to let your dog interact with others in a happy and safe way, and help raise awareness that dogs are often kept on a lead for good reason.
Unfortunately, many dog owners do not understand the importance of good lead etiquette and controlling their dog when around others. Remember, whilst your dog may be happy to interact with others this is not the case for everyone. If you see another dog on a lead, then respect that they may need some space.
There are many reasons a dog may being kept on a lead whilst out walking. The dog may be reactive to other animals or people, they could be undergoing training, or be a new rescue dog gaining confidence. Dogs are also kept on leads if they are recovering from surgery, elderly and frail, or still young and learning about the world.
It is important to remember that when a dog is being kept on a lead, being approached by a confident or excited dog can make them feel trapped and cause them to lash out. This can be dangerous for both dogs and owners alike and can result in serious injury.
How to respect the lead
There are a few key points which all dog walkers should keep in mind when they are out and about –
- If you are walking your dog off the lead and you see someone with a dog on a lead nearby, please recall your dog and avoid them rushing over. Then either put your own dog on a lead or re-route to avoid that contact.
- If an owner raises concern and tells you not to let your dog go near, then respect their request. Don’t allow your dog to rush over.
- Remember that even a seemingly friendly dog may lash out if it is approached whilst on a lead.
- If you are walking a dog on a lead and meet another dog on a lead, ask if it is OK for them to acknowledge each other and if it follows ‘the 3-second rule’, they can sniff and introduce themselves but after 3 seconds pull away. Keep the meeting brief.
- If you do not have a reliable recall, then your dog should be kept on a lead.
Taking your dog for a walk should be an enjoyable experience for both owner and dog alike, and by remembering to Respect The Lead we can ensure a safe and happy environment for everyone!
You can follow the campaign and find information to share with your friends on my Facebook page.
Just seen this on Facebook, brilliant idea thank you for doing it .
When we took on our first rescue we carried and handed out leaflets from the Yellow Dog organisation it helped a lot , I think the key is education so many people are unaware of dog behaviour they assume that all dogs like one another.
They know not all people get on so why should dogs .
Thank you again for this , I will keep on sharing it.
Best wishes
Judith.
HI Judith
Thank you very much for supporting my campaign, I am overwhelmed at how well it has been doing and am hoping that it will continue to circulate. Working on the next steps…….
Best Wishes and happy dog walking
Zoe
In the USA, a yellow leash tells other dog parents that this dog is NOT to be approached.
There could be a myriad of reasons why a dog shouldn’t be approached. It’s sick or injured, it’s still in training, it has a fear of other dogs, etc.
In Portia Mercedes Jones’ (You can find her on FB) case , when she was about two years old, we were attacked several times by other people’s dogs. Twice by the same three Jack Russell terriers. Portia now sees ALL dogs as a threat to herself and to me.
Usually, I’ll pick her up and hold her tightly, the same way her Thundershirt™ works. This usually helps calm her down a bit. However….
People, if your dog sends another dog into distress, and it’s parent picks it up, to try and calm their baby, please don’t continue to walk towards the distressed dog, unless there’s no other way to go. It just makes things worse.
Hi Thank you so much for this message and I’m sorry that Portia has had to go through so much. Yes we have a ‘yellow dog’ campaign here too. I just want to make people understand why it’s not great that dogs are allowed to go racing up and like you say they can be kept on the lead for so many different reasons!! I can’t believe its got over to the States, social media always shocks me!! I hope you don’t have to go through anything like you have done again. Kind regards from the UK
Thank you Zoe. This is so helpful. We have a 9 month old lurcher who loves everybody. Took him walking this morning and there were so many other pups off lead that the walk was not so enjoyable. We want Murphy to be sociable but getting him to pay attention and walk nicely when he’s approached by off lead dogs is a nightmare.
Hi Eleanor, Thank you so much for your comment its very much appreciated. Do you currently attend any training classes? You are currently in the adolescent period of development which brings its own challenges for you. If you don’t already, always equip your pockets with high value reward treats when out walking and if you see a potential issue up ahead get your boy to start focusing on you to distract him. Sadly though if they are feeling too anxious/distracted they may not take the food. If I can be of anymore help please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Some really great advice here Zoe and thanks, we have shared on both our business page @That’sPawfect and on personal feed. As a professional dog walker, who does not walk clients dog’s off lead, I face lots of challenges with people who do not respect this and allow their dogs to run up. Some of my 4 legged customers are very nervous and we are working hard to build confidence. In addition, even the best trained dog off lead can be unpredictable but some owners would not consider this at all. Thanks again and will be continuing to share 🙂 x
HI thank you very much for your comment and sharing. I am overwhelmed with the amount of people that have responded in support of the campaign.
Well done Zoe excellent campaign and I love your web page and services and will put a link to my website Leospring Labradors. Well done. Great to see you doing so well.
HI Joy, thank you very much for your positive words. In my 25th year of nursing….still love my job.
Thank you for starting this campaign Zoe .
My rescue dog has fear aggression and I have had dog training with a dog psychologist to learn how to control a potential triggering situation.I hence I only walk him on the lead for the safety of other dogs and my peace of mind .
However in the last few weeks I have had to deal with 2 situations with other dogs approaching my dogs when they were off their leads .
The first occasion my dog eventually broke free and chased one of the ladies dogs this was after I had spent 5 minutes imploring the owner to get her two dogs on their leads ,it turns out she didn’t have leads with her ,fortunately no dogs were hurt .
This morning the lady dog walker we encountered had leads with her but was indignant with me at my slightly raised voice (too early in the morning to shout!)urging her to get her dogs on their leads .Her answer was I am but they don’t always come back !?
Again no dog was hurt and my dog seemed to like her dogs .
I would love my dog to be able to roam on his walks like other dogs but we should never fully trust any dog to act as we would like them to all of the time.
HI Am sorry that you have had issues. I totally agree, the dog has its own mind and can often catch us out !! I’m hoping that the campaign gets people thinking that bit earlier and can act accordingly. Thanks again for your support