Leashes

Hudson has a lupine leash that I really like. I love the handle, like the pattern on it and it's fun to look at. But....But....I want a more 'serious' leash (or maybe I just want an excuse to buy more things). I'm thinking black leather or black biothane. Possibly a light tan, but I know the leather will darken with age.

favorite stores? I've book marked quite a few from past leash threads, but just wondering if anything new has popped up recently.

I like the look of the On Lead leashes. I've also had some very nice leashes from J & J Dog supplies (Julian ate my favorite leash from there when he was a puppy) Currently, I have a leather leash I love that I got from a vendor at a dog show. It's black and brass and soft and awesome

As far as leather I really like bold lead designs and Texas Leash... I also love Northern Blackout, but I don't think she makes leads much anymore. Are you wanting a thinner leash or do you prefer wider?

I have to say I really love my Texas leash 3/8" wide leash. It's pretty strong and its been softening really nicely. It's definitely become my go to leash.

I have a thin (I think 3/8") leash from Bold Lead Designs for Keeva and I love it. I am really fussy about leather and how it's crafted. It's beautifully made and the quality of the leather is fantastic. http://boldleaddesigns.com/

For Blossom, I wanted a nice, sturdy leather lead that wouldn't break the bank, because my climbing rope lead was burning my hands while posting her in bitework. I bought this lead http://www.dogsportgear.com/Ultra-Leather-Leash_p_210.html mostly because I was already ordering from the site, and I'm actually really pleased with it. It's nicely made, sturdy, and the leather quality is as good as they promised. I think I only paid around $22 for a 6ft lead, which is a great price.

ETA: I will say I have quite a few items made by On Lead that I have purchased at dog shows. I love the variety of colors and I love that they're cheap but I'm not at all impressed by the quality of the products. I find the leather stiff (of course I condition it) and the snap on one of my On Lead leashes is weak after pretty minimal use. YMMV though, and like I said, I looooove the color selection and the price. Just not what I would consider one of those leather leads you'll have for 10 yrs, etc.

I use any leash I have on had because I'm lazy and yes, srs dog people tease me.

I finally bit and bought a 5/8" 5' biothane from signature k9 and we'll put an O ring on the end so I can clip it easily for trial over my shoulder. Denis has had one for a year now and loves it so I sucked it up and spent the whoopin 12 bucks for it. lol

I mainly try to use izzies paco lead for close walks, public outings. It's always been buttery soft and comfortable.

However I have been known to slap her slip lead from mendota or her custom leather martingale leash most of the time because I'm lazy lol.

I have completely, utterly fallen in love with double ended leashes. They're just so incredibly versatile. I get mine from Karma Collars in the 5/8" width and I think mine are both 8' long (you can order them in any length).

I LOVE my 5ft tan/brass 5/8" leather leash from Ella's Lead. The tan came sooo soft and it's only gotten softer. It's our typical 'every day' leash.

If we're going to be getting really dirty or in water, I had been using my Kong rope leash from Petsmart but it broke 2 weeks ago (slammed it in my car door, oops). I had to use a plain ole' nylon leash at dock diving the other week and felt so odd not having something 'more' LOL. Weird. I need to buy another one. But I really like the Kong stuff.

I also really liked Mendota leash but never got to actually use it since I bought the wrong size for Jackson so sold it but I am going to be ordering another one asap.

It's ok. I use little $5 toy dog leashes with rhinestones on them.

I absolutely love Leerburg's leather leashes. They are super soft and supple and decently priced. I have a 6 foot "puppy leash" and a 6 foot larger one, but I use the thinner diameter puppy leash every day with Pan.

http://leerburg.com/amishleashes.htm

With Solo, my daily leash is a martingale Mendota, which is also awesome and very convenient.

I definitely prefer thinner leashes. My hands are pretty itty bitty, so, there's that. I have a 3/4" Lupine that I really like the width of. My mom got me a leather leash for Christmas that is 1" and just too thick and wide and stiff. I've tried conditioning the thing but it's just...yuck.

Growing up with horses, I don't like crappy leather things. I like nice, supple, strong leathery things.

Love allk-9.com's 1/2" 6' black biothane leads. They are the best, hands down, to any leather or biothane leash I've used before.

I keep meaning to buy "nicer" leather leashes but honestly my JJDog leather leads work great and are all broken in an supple and just the way I like them so I don't.

I also have a 30" Stibbar lead that I use for obe and such which is great too, but it's too short and narrow for most practical applications and I haven't really felt the need to fork over $35-40 for a longer/wider one.

I got the dogs biothane leashes from here: http://www.allk-9.com/leashes-amp-tabs-all-weather-biothane-c-22_24.html

I got 4ft 3/8 width w/o-ring on end for my small dogs and 5ft 3/4" width with o-ring for big dogs. Although the 3/8 held my Dogo with no issue.

I love them. Dogs have ran them thru mud, muck, pond water, lake water, saltwater, dead critters and they just wipe clean. They are soft, flexible and don't hurt my hands.

This is pretty much all I think I will ever use again.

Im thinking I have to buy one of these.

Of all the leashes I have, my absolute favorites are J&J's Service Dog lead, the 6 & 3 feet braided leads from On Lead (gift from a friend) and the 6 & 10 feet ASAT/Biothane ones from AllK-9. Like someone else has already said, the ones from AllK-9 are really soft. My only "issue" is that the 6 ft (5/8 inch wide) one has a heavier snap than I like for daily using with a collar. But for hiking and Nosework, when Caleb is wearing a harness, it's great (the 10 ft one is thinner).

Master's Pride and J&J. J&J leashes break in fast, but until they're broken in I can't say I like them. But once they're broken in... oh man, there's nothing better.

I have braided leather leashes for the Dobergirls, but they're made by one of our local obedience people so I don't have a website for them.

That. I, too, have a SD lead made by J&J (purchased from Guide Dogs for the Blind for like $14) that I adore so much that I got 3 more. Until they break in they are stiff, but once broken in, omg wonderful!

The leather does darken and stretch a bit over time as well.

Here is my 11 year old lead next to one that I've only used a handful of times:

I use bull hide leads from 3Cs I have the black, teal, and purple, and they hold up incredibly well to damage and pulling

Agreed. The leash Julian ate as a puppy was my 1/4", well broken in, had it for years leash. I was so bitter than I didn't buy a new leather leash for years and years. I am really not picky about my leashes as long as it is thin, decent leather, and breaks in well.
My current leash, that I got at a vendor, was very soft when I got it and is breaking in nicely.