Off leash walks

Watching people every day with their dogs having their walk off leash drove me to write few thoughts about it. 

Asking several of them why they choose to do this, the dominant answer was that they believe their dog doesn’t enjoy the walk on leash because they are not able to run and play. That's true but... 

The vast majority of these dogs have not learned the recall and the most common end of the walk is for the handler to shout the dog's name while he is walking away without any desire to return. The handler is then forced to chase his dog. Because our friends are faster, they get lost somewhere in the park or elsewhere, following odors or other stimuli. 

An important factor, of course, is the place where the above take place. My experience is relatively indicative since I use 6-7 locations to exercise my own dog, but I also visit several parks and neighborhoods during the lessons I deliver. It's different to leave your dog off leash in a park, in a fenced area, on the mountain or in Patision avenue... The risks in each case are different but real. 

First, the legal framework is clear and Article 46 of 4235/2014 Law states on the obligations of the dog's guardian: in order to avoid accidents he is obliged during the walk to keep his dog on leash and be in a short distance from him. 

Now, let's look a few things beyond the law. 

Since our dog is off leash, our supervision is not sufficient. 

The cases of poisoned food, when the handler is unable to protect his dog are common. In addition, without the certainty of the leash, a dog may be exposed to the risk of an accident by car or other means of transport while we are in an urban environment. Moreover, other dogs, aggressive or fearful, on or off leash, are easy to engage in dog fighting with unpleasant consequences. Finally, the loss of our dog. 

On the other side, there are people who are afraid of dogs and by letting our dog run free, we cause them trouble as long as we are in a public area. In addition, young children with the ignorance of danger that describes them, as well as elderly people with all the difficulties of old age, are the most vulnerable if a dog runs freely in the same area. 

There are solution and are plenty to satisfy the most. 

Initially, the use of a Flex leash. There are leashes on the market that adapt and are 3, 5 or even 10 meters long. It is something that provides extra flexibility to our dog. 

If that's not enough for us, then we can make a leash with the desired length. Using a common rope, thick enough that our dog can't cut it, we make our own leash. This type of leashes are most useful for mountain hikes, in large parks and generally for areas outside the city limits. It enables us to have enough time and distance to control our dog in case a stimulus occurs in the environment that our dog will run after. 

If we are in a city, and we do not have access to parks and mountains then we can find a fenced area, such as alleys or abandoned basketball courts, choose appropriate times when they are not used by others and there we can exercise our dog. 

Along with the above, our dog's training in recall is the most important part of our interaction. There is no value if the dog knows the sit, down and stay commands if it doesn't perform the recall. Recall is the behavior we pay the most attention to during training. This starts from the moment we take the dog home and so early as from the age of 2 months. Like all the behaviors we learn to our dog, we have to go through various steps to get to have a solid recall.  It is different to ask our dog to come when we are in the living room and different when the surrounding stimulus are intense (e.g. cats, other dogs etc). 

Depending on the breed and character of our dog, the training of solid recall can last from 2 months up to 1.5 years!  

Some tips for those who make the mistake of leaving their dog off leash and without having previously taught the recall. 

• If you see that when you call him back, he doesn't pay attention to you, then don't start chasing him. Although it's something that comes out naturally, it's very wrong since our dog perceives it as a chasing game. 
• Knowing what our dog wants most, usually food or toy, we always have it with us and use it as bait to attract him. We reveal it and at the same time we step away, so he will come after us. 
• The most important thing of all is that even if you've been chasing your dog for two hours, and he's not coming, when he returns or you're able to catch him eventually, NEVER punish him. This will teach your dog to try harder next time not to get caught to avoid the punishment.