Long-lines are one of the most useful tools in a dog trainer’s arsenal. How can they help and why are they better than the alternatives?
What is a long-line, and what is it for?
Long-lines are nothing particularly special, they’re just extra long leads! They come in various lengths and materials, which all have their pros and cons. I personally like the biothane ones as they are easy to clean and don't get soggy and smelly like the material ones do. 10–15 metres is a good length, although in some cases a 5-metre line may be more appropriate to begin with. Some have the option of a handle on the end, although it can get caught on things when you get to the stage where you leave the long-line trailing rather than holding onto the handle. I usually just tie a knot in mine to stop my hand slipping off the end. It is important that the long-line is always attached to a well-fitting harness and not the dog’s collar. Attaching a long-line to a dog's collar can result in serious neck injury should they, for whatever reason, run to the end of the line.
One of the most important aspects of training is managing the environment so that the dog is unable to practice behaviours we don't want – after all, practice makes perfect! In the case of recall, the unwanted behaviour might be disappearing off into the distance while you frantically call several variations of their name/tell them you’ve got sausages/wave their favourite toy around. This is where the long-line comes in: it allows you to simulate your dog being off the lead, but while still maintaining some control. This way we are setting the dog up for success: they cannot fail because they can’t run away from us, so if they don’t recall straight away we can gently reel them back in.
Why not just use a retractable lead?
Retractable leads have become a rather contentious piece of equipment, and you may have seen posts on social media or articles explaining why they are the absolute worst. There are two major arguments against using a retractable lead. The first is that it affects your loose-lead walking training, as it teaches your dog that they get to move forward on a tight lead (which is necessary in order for the mechanism to function). The second is that they are not safe: the handle is hard to hold onto, the mechanism can fail and the line material is very abrasive and can cause injury if it becomes wrapped around someone’s legs or around another dog.
While I do totally agree with both of these arguments, I think there are certain cases where a retractable lead is perfectly acceptable. However, I would still use a long-line in recall training for a couple of reasons. Firstly, a lot of my recall training involves movement and games, so the risk of entanglement is high. Although you can still get tangled up in a long-line (and I have!), you’re less likely to suffer friction burns and deep cuts as a result. Secondly, as I mentioned above I allow the long-line to trail on the ground as an intermediate step between holding onto it and letting the dog fully off the lead. This wouldn’t be possible with a retractable lead as the handle is too heavy.
How do I know when my dog is ready to be fully off-lead?
Unfortunately there is no simple answer to this, but if you can honestly respond ‘yes’ to the following questions then you’re probably ready to take the plunge:
Does your dog regularly come back and check in with you on walks?
Is your dog engaged with you on walks? Will they play and can they respond to other simple cues?
Have you practiced your recall in a variety of different environments?
Can you reliably recall your dog away from the main distractions you’re likely to encounter such as other dogs, people, wildlife etc.?
Note that I use the word ‘reliably’ here: some people may claim that their dog has a 100%, bomb-proof recall in every conceivable scenario, but I’m not convinced. Even the most highly trained dogs make mistakes sometimes, which is just one of the things they have in common with us humans! For me, if I know my dog will come back as soon as I call them 95% of the time, and the rest of the time they will come back but it might not be straight away, that’s good enough for me.
If your answer to any of these questions was more like ‘err…maybe’, then I can help! If you book onto my Perfectly On-Point Recall package, I will perfectly tailor your training plan to suit your dog by finding out what makes them tick, what their favourite activities are and what stage of training they’re at. And we’ll have some fun while we’re at it!