In the last few months LOTS of Romanian dogs have escaped from adopters when newly arrived in the UK, and at least 10 have been killed in traffic.
None of these dogs have been ours BUT it can happen to anyone. We hope we give the correct information to adopters regarding safety and I thought I’d share some links of good leads, collars and harnesses because there are so many available it’s difficult to know what’s practical and what’s just fashionable.
Also some dogs don’t like harnesses, some don’t like collars, etc. We find this out in foster so we can advise you on what to buy before you collect your dog.
What we recommend is a good quality thick martingale collar with ID tag plus flat lead and slip lead for the first 6 weeks. A harness and flat lead can be used as an alternative for ONE but not alone. The harness must be well fitted or there is no point!
Retractable leads belong in the bin. They are flimsy, unreliable, dangerous and you have no control over your dog.
Whilst our dogs are in foster care they are on 2 leads outside. We require adopters to bring the same when collecting their dog and advise it continues for 6 weeks post adoption. At any time a dog can become spooked and pull 1 lead from your hand as they enter ‘flight’ mode. We cannot possibly encounter every trigger while in foster to tell you what they are so BE PREPARED.
Common triggers include:
•bikes
•prams
•people wearing uniform
•people wearing hats
•large groups of people
•certain breeds/colours/size of dog
By keeping a back up lead on, you can find any anxieties and start to work on them so that no bolt incidents ever occur.
