Five Reasons to Keep Your Dog on a Leash

When you're out and about, you may see other dog owners with off-leash dogs. Sometimes, they keep in pace with their owners, heeling with great obedience. Other times, they run back and forth, unruly, causing chaos wherever they roam. You may be wondering what is best for your dog, whether you should keep them on or off the leash. Here are some reasons that you'll want to consider keeping your best friend on-leash and living their best life.

1. Your dog stays safe: Without your guidance, your dog is liable to get hurt by environmental factors that are all around. For example, what if they run into the road and get hit by a car? Or run off and get stolen by another person? They may even run directly into the territory of another animal and face getting attacked. Your dog's safety is paramount. Look out for them by keeping them leashed. 

2. Others stay safe: Regardless of how much you trust your own dog, you never know when they might act unpredictably when coming face-to-face with strangers or other animals. Even the sweetest of dogs might become provoked or feel threatened. This puts the safety of others at risk. Plus, if your dog exacts an attack that labels them "dangerous," this creates a whole world of problems for you and your pup. Prevent these problems by keeping them on the leash. 

3. In most places, it's the law: Dog leash laws are serious business. These laws were put into place to keep dogs and the public at large all safe. If your dog is off-leash, even near your own property, you may be violating local leash laws. This could incur a hefty fine. You might even find that your dog could get taken away! Prevent legal infractions by obeying local leash laws. 

4. In case of emergency: When something goes wrong, you will want to keep your dog accounted for. All sorts of disasters around you can prompt your dog to run away in fear. When every second counts, you want to make sure to keep them close to you. This can happen by keeping them on a leash. Disaster rarely strikes with a warning. Instead of dealing with losing your dog in the midst of everything else going wrong, choose to keep them secure on a leash. 

5. It's the responsible thing to do: No matter what happens, an on-leash dog is generally a lot safer, happier, and well controlled than one left to roam freely. Keeping your dog on its leash signals to the world that you are a responsible, caring dog owner. 

At the end of the day, choose to keep your day safely managed for their sake, your own, and others. You will be happier that you did!

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This article was written by K. Howard for Top Gun Dog Training.