I love long lines. I believe they have so many beneficial uses with dogs. The real magic of long lines comes on walks and daily outings with your dogs. I prefer long lines over flexi leads (except on rainy days) because of the fact that they can be dropped when needed and they do not have a bulky mechanical handle on them that I have to deal with. You do have to practice handling a long line before bringing it out into the wild, especially if it’s longer than 10 feet. This takes a bit of skill, but is so worth it in the end. You also need to be aware of the potential for rope burn if a moving line gets tangled somewhere on you. Biothane lines can help to mitigate this.
I love long lines for relaxed walks, once your dog understands not to drag you down the street and has a decent recall. They allow lots of opportunities for your dog to decompress and do doggy things. Obviously you need a somewhat safe area to do this in, but you can also shorten your long line where needed by roads, other people and other dogs.
I love long lines for working distance recalls. It allows me to create enough space between me and the dog to offer more realistic recall training opportunities. Once I’m fairly confident in the dog, I can drop the line and they can drag it around for more freedom and even more realistic training opportunities.
I love long lines for increasing difficulty with stay training. I can move further away, drop the line, but still have enough to catch the dog if needed when working in outdoor settings.
I can work heeling and release with long lines very easily, with little need for tension on the leash. For example, with lots of turns, I can get my dog focused on me and staying with me. With the addition of food reward or toys reward, we can mark the heeling behaviour that we like, offer food or toy during the heeling, and then we can release them with freedom as a reward afterwards with out them dragging you. This is excellent to practice if you plan on using long lines on a walk, as you will need to call your dog in to heel past distractions at times.
I love long lines for hikes. Long lines keep dogs, people and wildlife safe. Long lines allow freedom on hikes for those dogs who are not yet off leash trained. Long lines give you a break from trying to restrain an excited pup on six feet of leash when you are out in the enticing forest.
These are just a few of the great uses for long lines. I do need to add, however, if you do choose to try using a long line, please be respectful of other peoples space, their children, their dogs and their properties. Reel your dog in where needed or create space to keep both your dog and other people/dogs comfortable, and don’t allow your dog all over peoples properties. Boulevard, of course, is fine, but have common courtesy when around homes in subdivisions.
Happy Training!!
Smart Dogs Canine Training Milton 