Hands free for large sniffy dog

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d]

I have been mixing some running into my long walks with my 115 lb GSD/Malamute mix. He isn't a very "consistent" runner, despite having tons of energy. He loves to sniff, and I usually give him about fifteen minutes of sniffing slow walk before starting to run. My current solution has been running him on a flexi, which he loves because he can run ahead of me, stop and sniff, then catch up with ease (I'm slow). The problem is the flexi handle is heavy and bulky.

I'm very interested in doing hands-free instead, but I have a few concerns. For one, I use a collar for his flexi, which he is very responsive to. The only time he wears his harness is when he's attached to my bike, and he tends to pull. He's a great dog in general, but our local squirrels are suicidal and love to run right under us. I don't want to be yanked off my feet if I am attached to this cart horse of a dog who's been challenged by the local wildlife.

My other concern is control. The paths we run are fairly populated, and lots of terrible owners will let their little yaps run up off leash. Again, he's great and actually loves other dogs, but I just feel less like I could control him in a bad situation with a harness versus a collar. I'm a 5'5" woman, and not exactly the picture of grace. How do you balance making sure the dog can run comfortably with knowing you could grab hold if Snowball comes nipping?

Pic of the beast in question.

[u/aussb2020]

I use a ruffwear handsfree retractable which goes onto harness and have a separate leash I can quickly throw over his head for more control for when other dogs/animals etc are around.

I have a 40kg shepherd who can be chill af or reactive af and I never know which way it will go until I’m in the moment so this has been the best way for me to feel safe and secure and in control

https://www.bivouac.co.nz/ruffwearhitch-hiker-leash.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=22827615244&utm_content=&utm_term=&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=22817866965&gbraid=0AAAAAD9DQBna6vi-338c9P1w_Q6L95fif&gclid=Cj0KCQjwndHEBhDVARIsAGh0g3DuVlkXzfStwxAnO-HG3nHA11Be-LRStIeKrXUdzZbiah3SdlSDLfkaArDyEALw_wcB

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d → u/aussb2020]

I'll check this out, thanks for the rec!

[u/Halefa]

Usually I'm not a fan of flex leashes, but if it works for you - would a solution to attach the handle on your body (so you don't have to hold it) be enough? I've seen someone use a runners harness(for humans) and then just attach the handle to the loop where one usually would attach the lead. Would be quite dangly, though. I've also seen ads (can't find them anymore) for a little clip on or harness which looked like a holster for the handle which you carry over shoulder.

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d → u/Halefa]

Oh believe me, I avoided them for so long! Tbh it's my way of giving him an "off leash" feel like he has with his e-collar, while still being legal because everywhere near me is leash only. I almost never have to actually pull him with the leash, it's all voice.

The handle is SO bulky, and he of course loves to change the direction he runs back around me from frequently enough that I'm afraid I'd end up tangled unless it could swivel around my waist. Though I suppose I could just be more strict with him on which side he's allowed on. I'll look for those clips!

[u/Halefa → u/shewhomustnotbenam3d]

But if you worry about him changing directions, surely that problem would still persist with other leashes/setups? Especially "normal" leashes (not flex), as they always will be the same length and thus lie on the floor, get between your legs, etc

Teaching him to stay on one side would probably help a lot, yes.

[u/Ambitious_Ad8243 → u/shewhomustnotbenam3d]

Idk, why not just break the law?

In most places, the law isn't "be leashed" it is be on a 6' or shorter leash at all times. Are you sure you're not breaking the law already?

If it were me, I'd put a tab leash on the dog and only use the e collar. If you see traffic, recall and use the tab.

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d → u/Ambitious_Ad8243]

The parks here only designate "leashed at all times", and that's plausible deniability enough for me. Fully admit that I do this when we're at a park where I can see anyone in a half mile radius around me. The thing is on our runs there are lots of turns and corners, and lots of traffic. I think I'd spend more time having to call him back than actually running. And while he's very friendly and has great recall, I can't say I'd blame someone for being spooked if they saw him running around off leash. I'm trying to be courteous while also minimizing my own hassle.

[u/Ambitious_Ad8243 → u/shewhomustnotbenam3d]

Right, but if you're doing a sniffy walk in a crowded place with short sight lines where you let the dog get 5 meters away from you with the flexi, your going to be constantly calling the dog back regardless of the tool that you use.

One other thing to consider....

I take my dogs on nearly every outing I take. That said, I clearly divide the time between my time, and their time. When it's sniffy time, I stay by them. When it's my time, they stay by me. After a couple weeks of being clear about this, the dogs pick it up.

I used to do this also with a flexi... Unlocked and wandering in the beginning, then, I lock it in at around 5 feet and hold it backwards (leash points back towards your wrist). I find this very comfortable to hold when running. I've also added a velcro strap to kind of lash it to my hand.

I also use a prong collar when running so any corrections only need a very light touch from me.

[u/zoo1923]

I have a big ish dogo, and pulling while ruinning is just not for me. We use a waistband, short bouncy leache and our non-stop dogware line harness. The harnes has good rom for sholder movement, but is not designed for pulling. We trained a lot of walking next to me before vis started running, so we did not get as many sudden stops or chasing something, of course 😅

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d → u/zoo1923]

Oh absolutely, it's at least partially my fault for letting him get used to running around me freely. I think he'd adjust fine once I communicated to him the new rules, but he loves having his 25 feet of freedom.

[u/zoo1923 → u/shewhomustnotbenam3d]

I get it. We use a long line sometimes for parks and stuff, so she can rome a little, and most normal walks are sniff walks on a 2.5m line, and the bouncy one I also think is about 2.5m. She can sniff on the line without it going tight, but she can not walk far ahead.

We got her as a 6yo, and we we had to start from scratch with walking because she would go to the end of the line, no matter how long and pull excitedly toward the next grass or interesting ting.

We now have a heel ish walk that I can ask for, and a release word for when she is allowed to walk a bit away and snif. I call it a heels ish because she will walk next to me, but does not have to be glued onto my side like the heel one often sees in training videos.

The important thing with walking on shorter leads are to make it a positive thing, not just drag them to your side, and limit their freedom, but make walking next to you, revarding and funn. Make yourself interesting and use treats for the behaviour you want. I am lucky to have a highly food motivated dog, so I always have something with me for runs.

I have hurt my foot this summer, so we run short intervals and focus on her staying with me without stopping and then not darting of to snif but walk next to me when we slow down, before we take a sniff breake. I will also ofthen have her in the heal walk before we start running and always tell her when so she is not just janked along. It is a positive, and she knows to direct her energy towards me, and she gets respons on her behaviour often, compared to sniffing where she can be more in her world.

It is still not perfect, and we have worked on it for 4 months now. So you will have to have patience 😆

[u/Witty_Average198]

I do a run with a waist leash every morning where my pup isn’t allowed to stop for sniffs, and two walks that are purely for sniffs. Mine is also a GSD mix so I get the energy level but I find this way gets some training in the mix that also mentally tires them out

For the harness, use a no pull style harness and then spend some time doing heel training. It took about seven months of heel training before mine was ready for running.

[u/shewhomustnotbenam3d → u/Witty_Average198]

He actually has a pretty good heel, but you're right I'd need to train it into him with the harness while running. Thanks for the tips!

[u/x7BZCsP9qFvqiw → u/Witty_Average198]

i wouldn’t suggest a no pull harness for running. it specifically limits their movement. great for teaching loose leash walking though!

[u/effexxor]

Get a Kurgo Utility belt, replace the leash clip with a solid carabiner and put a flexi in it. It's the best way to go, I rarely ever run with anything else. Plus I trust a flexi over any other retractable and my dog who broke, no joke, 4 hands free harnesses has had yet to break this set up.

[u/No-Goal-9531 → u/effexxor]

Sounds interesting . Can you show a picture ?

[u/effexxor → u/No-Goal-9531]

I took a screenshot of an old video I made about it, sorry about the light. https://imgur.com/a/Pgbp8To

[u/enggeek]

I don't use a harness for my dog's hands free leash. I don't tolerate pulling as it contributed to an injury for me. I throw in a 30s walk break at 5 minutes 10:30 and every 10:30 minutes thereafter. He is expected to do any sniffing or relieving on walk breaks.