The Dog Training Leash

How long should a dog training leash be?

The type of dog training you are going to do can affect the length of leash you want to use. Some style of training may require a shorter or longer leash. In these articles I will primarily talk about what I use in my training practice. You can read about my style of dog training here.

Training leash for, leash and collar dog obedience training

The standard obedience training leash is six feet long and one half to five eighths inches wide. There are exceptions to this. The exceptions usually involve the length of the leash. Dog training leashes for shorter people, children, and very tall people should match the individual’s height. In general the leash should be as long or slightly longer that the person is tall.

It’s also desirable that the leash fits comfortable in the handler’s hands. This means that the handler can comfortably hold four folds of the leash without undo effort.

What materiel is best for a dog training leash?

The leather training leash
The material a leash is made of is important too. I recommend either using a leather leash or a cotton leash for training. Leather leashes are the traditional dog training leash and can be either chrome or oil tanned. I personally like the oil tanned leashes. A new leather leash is often quite stiff and requires some use to break in the leather. But once the leather leash is broken in they are very comfortable to use. For ease of handling and overall performance the leather leash is the best dog training leash you can get.

Cotton training leash
While the leather leash is probably the best for dog training the cotton leash has some advantages too. One of the big advantages to many animal loving people is that the cotton leash is not made from and animal. This makes it ideal for those who are vegetarians. I now use a cotton leash much more often as my primary dog training leash and it started when for several years I was a vegetarian.

Another advantage to a cotton training leash is that they are inexpensive. This makes the cotton leash a handy backup leash. Cotton leashes are cheap enough so you can buy several. Keep your extra leashes in handy location for emergencies. I usually suggest having one in the car and one by each door in the house.

Nylon leashes
The nylon leash does not make a very good dog training leash, but it does have its uses. The main draw back to the nylon leash is in the nature of the material itself. Nylon is a slippery material to handle. This means it is hard to handle properly while trying to learn new training techniques and at the same time managing an unruly dog. Also nylon leashes are very hard on the flesh and skin of most people’s hands. It’s easy to get rope burn types of abrasions when using a nylon leash.

On the positive side nylon leashes make good emergency slip leads. They can also be useful as a dragline for the dog to wear around the house. Make sure to only allow the dog to wear a leash when you are supervising the dog or the leash may get caught on something and choke the dog to death.

Training leash snaps
The last point I want to make is about the device that fastens the training leash to the training collar or harness. This is an important part of a dog training leash that is often overlooked. The all important snap can also be of assistance for teaching some training exercises. The best snaps are made from brass or marine grade hardware. If you are interested in buying leash take a look at the leather leash we found for you through one of our affiliate connections.

The weak points of a leash are the areas where two points meet. This includes the stitching or braiding of the handle and snap as well as the snap itself. I have worked with many leashes that break at the snap. For my own training leash I prefer a traditional bolt snap. However for some dog handlers I recommend getting a well made claps that is difficult to operate accidently. When people are fumbling around the snap it’s easy to accidently let a dog off the leash.

I hope this help answers some of your questions about dog training leashes