[Dailydrool] Retractable leashes

[Elizabeth Lindsey]

The last time I used a retractable leash (back in 1996), *I* got  
hurt. The standard poodle on the other end unexpectedly shot off  
after a squirrel, the stop button on the leash was too stiff for me  
to deploy with any speed at all, the leash reeled out *fast*, and I,  
whose center of gravity was much higher than the dog's, was yanked  
off my feet and dragged down the sidewalk. It took a couple of weeks  
for the scrapes on my knees and the palms of my hands to fully heal,  
and they were sore to the touch for much longer. I will never use one  
of those leashes again. And few things scare me more than the sight  
of a child holding the business end of a retractable leash, even if  
the dog appears to be small and well behaved and the parent believes  
that button is pushed in all the way. It's still a more awkward thing  
to hold onto than a leash with a loop on the end, especially for  
little hands.

I am very, very sorry about Kipper. Our Elsinore and young Charlie  
send heart-soothing drool.

Elizabeth