off the lead

[Rogue & Maya]

a couple of weeks ago we let rogue off her lead in an enclosed childrens play park. I had to use a couple of treats to get her to come to me and sit but she did.so i dont if i should

keep her in the play park until i feel shes more ready.does anyone have any advice please.

[Lil Miss Bump]

imo i would NEVER let my husky off lead unless it was in a fully enclosed dog park. It isn't worth the risk.

[husky princess]

please remember you have a young pup and soon her prey drive will kick in....treats are no match for a bunny, domestic cat or alike. many huskys turn 'deaf' when there is a better deal to chase even if that means a busy road.

Few huskys can be trusted off lead. remember your liable for your dogs actions, even if she causes a car accident cos she's ran out in the road. off lead huskys are a common reason why so many are in welfare.

Not only that with all the problems i have with terriers i wouldnt want my dog attacked by one...they all seem so damn viscious.

Long lead is much safer

[Rogue & Maya]

we dont have any dog parks by us.the park is fully enclosed that was why we took her there.

[valkyries]

i'm the same mine are never off the lead unless in a secure area xxxxx not worth the risk xxxx

[husky princess]

what do you mean by fully enclosed? 6ft fencing (min) all the way round with absolutly no holes for escaping?

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

never ever - i know a woman who let hers off for years - ALWAYS came back then boom one day they were gone - she only got one back

not worth the risk IMO

[Arooroomom]

Huskies are meant to run and run and run. They are notorious for taking off and never to be heard from again. Please, don't begin practicing off-lead with your Husky unless it's a secure enclosed area. If you are looking to build a good recall, you can play hide-and-seek with the dog as well as train on a long line when you want to be away from a park.

[Sparks]

would only let mine off in an enclosed area, just dont want to risk it.

[Rogue & Maya]

to be honest i was worried when we let her off the lead anyway in case she got out .now that the snows been we havent taken her again and i dont think i will again.

[Sid_Wolf]

Kira is very good in the dog park, but let her off without those fences and she knows she is free.

I would NEVER let her off, she's managed to get loose 3 times (i tell these stories a lot but they affected me a lot)

1st time, I actually let her off, like yours she had proven to be very good offlead once, and decided to give it another go, we were in a large feild with a fence on one side and a river on the other, safe enough you'd think... She was off like a rocket (about 16 weeks old) and managed to squeeze through a hole in the fence and got up onto the train tracks. My OH got her down about 2 minutes before a train came

2nd time, she slipped her harness in town, and ran down the busiest road in our town, she was headed for a very busy roundabout. Luckily she stopped to say hi to a guide dog and I could grab her, if that dog hadnt have been there she would have gone straight into the roundabout

3rd time her collar broke in a park and she took off, headed towards a busy main road (about 30seconds run for her), again she stopped to see a dog, and the owner grabbed her while we ran.

we have been VERY VERY lucky, but this is the dog who is fantasic in the dog park, will come when called and often the best behaved dog in there. THEY KNOW WHEN THEY'RE FREE!

Please please please dont even consider it, or the next post you make is likely to be in rainbow bridge

[husky princess]

i defo feel its worth doing recall work but to use in an emergency (when they've got off lead in error etc). the bonus i have found is storm is used to being no more than 6ft from us when out the few times he got off (chewed through harness, ran round and trigger hook released etc) he didnt run off as he didnt realise he was able to. if he was used to being off lead he probably would have ran. on one of the occations we were near a busy road so i felt so relieved when he just stood there !

i have a dog walking bag which contains a squeeky ball (he considers this as high value), a whistle, treats etc so in an emergency i have a few things to use to encourage him to return to me but i wouldnt rely on it - NEVER

i know have a pup and will practice recall with him but he will remain on a lead

[husky princess]

just ask zhinababy about loosing a young pup (altho hers wasnt off lead)

[snssewell]

I agree with the others. As much as I would love to let her off lead and run around as much as she liked in an open area.....you can not trust most of them as they will see something that is much more interesting than you are or your treat and they will go for it and they are FAST!!! Zihna had run away at a walking trail when she pulled the leash out of my hand and she was gone in seconds even though I ran after her as fast as I could I lost sight of her so quick that I did not even know where she had ran into the woods. I had treats and she has a good recall at home and at the dog park.....didn't matter there she did not listen. She came back after 9 days.....thanks god!!!! Those were the worst 9 days of my live! They also have tunnel vision when they chase something so they will run onto a busy road not even knowing what hit them when they get hit by a car. I would say get a looooooong lead as many here have for their Husky's and she will be totally happy with it and she will be safe!!! I have a 20ft for Zihna right now as she is still a pup and she loves it. When she gets older I probably get a longer one, but there are not so many open areas here that I know of where she could actually run around on a 100ft but we do have a dog park and I have a yard where she can run around off lead too.

[Andy]

Try to find a local tennis court, this time of year all the nets have been taken down.

Check first that the fence is secure all the way around.

Also after check their pads coz the tarmac can be a bit rough first time out.

This way you can get a good run around, especially if they like chasing balls

Unfortunately most of us don't have a properly enclosed dog park, but an out of season tennis court can be just as good.

[Kells xx]

by all means teach your dog recall.....they all need it and it can save a dogs life

however i wont let mine off lead unless its secure...

i love my dogs too much to see them killed by a car/farmer etc or to have them run away and get lost

[Rogue & Maya]

thanks everyone

[BlueWolf]

We don't have any fenced areas around here , but on some places I can still trust Dana off lead. But she is a very lead back husky that does not feels the need to run as much as Glala does. Last time I went to the beach I let Dana off lead. She ran to all other people and dogs, but keep looking back at us. If she couldn't hear us, she waited for us to catch up. And even when I called her while she was playing with a group of dogs, she came.

Glala is a whole different story, she cannot go off lead, she will immediately run away (but keeps in eyesight).

But I'm still cautious when Dana is off lead. I'm sure she will chase a cat when she sees one running away. I only let here offlead when I know there is enough distraction nearby so the chance of her running away is less likely, just in case. But she usually sticks somewhere around me, waiting to continue their walk.

[husky princess]

I'm sure she will chase a cat....Is that right/fair? Personally I don't think so Im sure the cat & owner wouldn't be especially if the prey drive kicked in & the cat got killed. It does happe

[meeshsalts]

Park tennis courts are great for letting your dog off lead, but best early morning or evening when no staff around. They have high fences and can't be dug under.

We let Shaer and Talon off in there but make sure first if it as two gates that both are shut before letting dog off. Sme parks have enclosed Basket ball court which you can use.

[BlueWolf]

As someone with a cat who once has been attacked by a dog, I agree that letting your dog loose while you have no control over them is just irresponsible. That dog didn't responded to anything the owner did to separate her dog from our cat... Just today I saw her walking her dog offleash again, some people never learn

Dana was once attacked by a cat, and changes to a little afraid dog when the cat stands still of walks towards her. Since than Dana isn't that much in for a chase with cats anymore, but I still won't thrust here completely off lead when I'm near other houses, even tho she keep listening to what I say.

[HeatherHendricks]

I completely agree with most of you about off-leash is a no-no. Our dog has escaped a few times out the gate or out my mother's house front door. She can run so amazingly fast. All 3 times I have caught her within minutes and she thought it was a chase game.... We've invested in a 6ft fence so that when she wants to experience "off-leash" experience, we play chase or tag in the backyard. She is the happiest dog when I stand and cheer her on as she runs circles around the backyard and full-tilt speed. On our walks, she gets frustrated when other off leash dogs don't want to play with her, but that's life.......

I've heard of Siberians taking off for over 16km and eventually coming back (if they are lucky). Now that we have spent $$$$ several thousand on her, the fence, the spaying, her stuff etc.. I wouldn't want to loose it all!!

The most annoying aspect is the other dog owners who say "when will she be off the leash?" To me, many of them are lazy dog walkers and don't call their dog off running ahead at other people and dogs... .... Poor Aura was bitten (attempted through her thick fur) by an off leash Golden retriever puppy that stared her down! My lesson, is to use caution with all dogs off leash and never let her off unless we are in an enclosed yard with no holes in the fence....