Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think it's sad that you were creeped out by a little child's accidentally taking your hand.
Oh, that's only because I immediately thought I'd be seen as a child snatcher. If his mother hadn't watch him grab my hand, she likely would have assumed the worst. He was a very cute little guy of about 5 or 6.
I just had to chime in and I'll probably get flak for this because I have no kids, but...I would definitely use a harness and/or a leash on a child if I needed to.
I guess I don't understand why people have such a hard time with this, though, and why calling it a leash (which is what it is) is so difficult for them.
Did I walk my dog on a leash? Yes, as a matter of fact, I did. He was trained in Obedience and he knew perfectly well how to heel and sit quietly by my side when I stopped. I could bring him into banks and other public places and know he was going to behave because of his training (and I heard a lot of remarks about the dog behaving better than the kids who were running all over the place, too).
But, and this is a big but, making my dog 'heel' all the time every time we went out was tiring to the dog and an irritant to me because if he misbehaved, I had to follow up. So he wore two collars and when I was just out for a walk, the leash was attached to his leather collar and my dog had 6ft to do as he pretty much pleased. We had some rules. He wasn't allowed to lift his leg on anything, he couldn't drag me down the street, and he couldn't take off after a squirrel running 60mph with me on the other end of the leash. But he could lounge around at his own pace as long as he kept up with me and he didn't have to be paying attention to me every single second.
To me, that's the difference between having your child by the hand and having your child on a leash. It's always a good thing for a child to know when he's expected to behave and what he should and shouldn't do. But darn it anyway, some times it's more about being out with your child and enjoying that time, without the stress for either the child or his mother having to constantly watch for the other in case one gets "lost" from the other. And being able to have some time out with your child to stop and smell the roses together without having to hang on to him like a leech every second is one of the best things about putting a child in a harness and/or on a leash.
I just thought I'd drop that into this discussion.
I see them in airports, amusement parks, and that's about it. I don't know if I've ever seen one just out and about running errands or at the park. That tells me they are the exception not the rule. Like I said we don't have an epidemic of pre-teens who run off because they never learned not to.
Like they look like dog leashes? They don't teach kids to stay close? I've already discounted both of those.
Okay, so I haven't seen any kids on leashes in a very long time where I live. I did see at an amusement park a 7 year old wearing the harness but no leash attached to it (just the straps). The boy was very well behaved and seemed to not have any disability. I wondered why he needed to wear one.
So my question for the leashers out there, what age do you stop using the leash?
Okay, so I haven't seen any kids on leashes in a very long time where I live. I did see at an amusement park a 7 year old wearing the harness but no leash attached to it (just the straps). The boy was very well behaved and seemed to not have any disability. I wondered why he needed to wear one.
So my question for the leashers out there, what age do you stop using the leash?
I used mine a few times at airports, and a parade. I don't think I used it after their 4th birthday.
Okay, so I haven't seen any kids on leashes in a very long time where I live. I did see at an amusement park a 7 year old wearing the harness but no leash attached to it (just the straps). The boy was very well behaved and seemed to not have any disability. I wondered why he needed to wear one.
So my question for the leashers out there, what age do you stop using the leash?
Between 3 and 4 when they can understand better.
Prime age is when they start walking to about 3.
The term terrible twos is for a reason. Anyone who claims they can keep total understood control over a two year old with no temper tantrums is full of it.
Frankly, I didn't use a pacifier with either of my kids. I suppose I could insist on calling it a "plug", claim the moral high ground that *I* could soothe my babies without them while teaching them to self soothe so they weren't dependent on the "plug". But why would I do that? It's a tool in the arsenal of parenting. Kids learn to self soothe eventually, some more readily than others. It doesn't make me a better, more attentive parent or another person less so.
That would be a good analogy if dogs used pacifiers. But they don't. And we called our pacifier a "plug" all the time. But we also stopped using it before the babies could roll over.
Between 3 and 4 when they can understand better.
Prime age is when they start walking to about 3.
The term terrible twos is for a reason. Anyone who claims they can keep total understood control over a two year old with no temper tantrums is full of it.
Agreed. I also want to add that a lot of kids are impulsive when they are little. To an observer, they may look undisciplined. The frazzled parent may be trying everything and be frustrated it's not working. Years later, they may find out the kid has ADHD. At that age, you just don't know. Better to be safe than sorry, and better to be safe than worry about what uninformed strangers think.
The term terrible twos is for a reason. Anyone who claims they can keep total understood control over a two year old with no temper tantrums is full of it.
This makes no sense. The point is to expect them to keep control of themselves. Appeasing to avoid tantrums makes no sense either. Tantrums are teachable moments. The people who are talking about being cautious at an airport or something make sense. But to appease a 2 year old to avoid tantrums is nuts.
This makes no sense. The point is to expect them to keep control of themselves. Appeasing to avoid tantrums makes no sense either. Tantrums are teachable moments. The people who are talking about being cautious at an airport or something make sense. But to appease a 2 year old to avoid tantrums is nuts.
It makes perfect sense. The point is, 2 year olds are uncontrollable.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
But we also stopped using it before the babies could roll over.
