New Animal Control.Org

Mislead by the Lead, or Unleashing a New Way of Thinking

A dog leash is a good way to remind a well-behaved dog of what he is supposed to do, but it is an extremely poor means of restraining an out-of-control dog determined to follow his own agenda. A powerfully built dog, or most any dog that takes you by surprise, can break loose or work up enough slack on the leash to get in range to trip or bite someone walking nearby, attack another dog, or get into other mischief. It happens every day. Millions of Americans can tell you from first hand experience that a dog on the lead is not necessarily a dog under control, and they have the scars to prove it. If you doubt the potential for an on-lead disaster, remember that one of the dogs that killed Diane Whipple was, at the time, being walked with the lead attached.

So the real issue is not whether a given dog is on the lead, but whether the dog is under control. If he's under verbal control, then he is under control whether or not he's on the lead, and if he is not under control, then he's not under control, period, whether or not a leash happens to be attached to him at the moment.

This page is part of the New System section of New Animal Control.Org