Do You Put Your Kid on a Leash?

I saw a kid on a leash for the first time in my life today. It was simultaneously intriguing and disheartening, but it also made me wonder: who else puts their kids on a leash? Is it you? Do you put your kid on a leash? Why? I must know.

No but i have a spray bottle.

Did you not play heavy Rain? That is what will happen if you let them run around freely.

My sister's daughter has Autism.

My sister used a leash, sometimes when my neice was younger, to control her daughter when they went out places. Although it was kind of fruitless in a lot of ways and my neice is getting older so it's not really prevalent anymore.

Anyway, she also has a tag on the leash from a doctor to show it is for medical reasons.

She has been considering getting her a dog helper now that shes older.

It's hard to explain beyond that unless you know what a kid with autism can be like when they go crazy.

I feel like that would do some kind of reverse psychology type thing. Like, by actually having a physical leash, the kid'll get way more frustrated and want to run off and raise hell even more.

Yeah, when you have a 5 year old you'll understand that physical restraints are a bit more effective than verbal commands.

The cops don't tell reckless drunk criminals "hey sit there and don't run off" and most children actually have less respect for authority than the reckless drunk criminals do.

Not yet. Probably never.

This just reminded me of that SNL sketch where Mike Myers plays that hyper-active kid.

I don't have kids of my own, but I do have a little brother that I was old enough to have to help take care of and I know my family would have been kind of appalled at the idea of using a child-leash. I can understand extreme circumstances where your kid has mental issues, or is just completely uncontrollable, but for most children that seems like going overboard.

Well I don't have kids and to answer your question, no I wouldn't.

Jason!....Jason. Jason....Jason!

Like an around-the-neck-leash or a harness leash? The former sounds hazardous and terrible, the latter could, maybe make sense for kids with certain developmental issues.

I don't have kids though.

My parents often threatened to put me on a leash but never actually did. I don't think they would have ever done it, either, they were just looking for a deterrent when I was acting up.

Actually, for me, it was easier to give me a Game Boy and let me sit in a corner near where they were shopping. As long as I stayed in eyesight, I could keep the Game Boy - otherwise, it was hours of standing around looking into space or bugging my parents to leave (which only occasionally worked and ruined any chances of ice cream, fast food, or any other potential treat). And it took my Mom AGES to fucking shop. Shopping was an all-fucking-day affair. I hated it so, so much as a kid.

As for the morality of leashes? Frankly, I think that having a leash around a misbehaving five year old is not a bad idea. I can understand the "it reduces him to an animal and is pretty cruel!" aspect, but remember that we're talking about very young children here that can wander off or break things or hurt themselves. It's a stage in life where, no matter the quality of the parent, some children simply don't listen to orders well. It might be the lesser of two evils in some cases, but should only be used if it's been proven that the kid won't behave at all. And if you can't find a babysitter.

@scrawnto: They're usually attached to a body harness; I accidentally bought one for my 2 y/o thinking it was a cute frog backpack only later to discover that there was a leash hidden inside. She wears the backpack all the time but I couldn't tell you where the leash part is.

I agree it's difficult to keep a kid in check. And if you have more than one, I suspect it becomes exponentially more difficult. But no, I do not and will not put my kid on a leash. If we're somewhere that I need her to stay close, I hold her hand or pop her in a stroller. Mostly, I find if I can keep things interesting for her it isn't a problem. Sometimes she still bolts and I have to chase her, but that's how I get my exercise these days.

@scrawnto: Dont be silly. It's a body harness with a leash clipped on =P

Time for some 90's Nu Metal -

I try to leash other peoples kids. As a result I can no longer go to DZ: Discovery Zone.

When I'm watching my niece and nephew I don't but sometimes I want to. I certainly wouldn't judge a parent who would.

Inside the house? Sure. Outside? No, I'll just carry 'em.

I don't have a kid, but If I did I won't put him/her on a leash. I don't want the kid to develop some weird mental problems.

Why use a leash when a cattle prod is twice as effective and three times the fun?

I was on a leash as a kid. They where right to do so.

I have a little girl, and nope. I always thought those leashes were super dumb.

Edit: I still think they are super dumb.

You and I apparently had very similar childhoods haha.

To answer the OP's question, I don't have children, but if I did, I'd never put them on leashes. I see that occasionally and wanna yell at the parents. I also notice other people kind of looking and shaking their heads or laughing a bit. Somehow my parents got by, and my brother has severe ADHD and symptoms of some other problems. If they and plenty of other parents could do it, there's no reason why all decent parents shouldn't be able to do it.

No leashes, just a shock collar

I just aim a gun at them wherever we go; show them how the world really works.

Disclaimer: I do not have children.

i've found that the really defiant ones sometimes gather the will to chew through your typical nylon leash, so these days i mostly use chains

I don't believe in using a leash on a child.

Yes, but its not my kid.

I think it's probably a good security precaution in very crowded situations. It's not always possible to hold the kid's hand when walking through a mall, amusement park or whatever. Those stretchy leashes that connect the parent and kid by the wrists could keep them from getting snatched.

Or you could just keep them in the basement until they're 18, I guess.

Korn is over 20 years old at this point. Does that mean they're now Old Metal? If so, what does that make Metallica? How about Black Sabbath?

Only other people's kids.

My dog is old now, but when he was young we put him on a leash. And he's better than any fucking stupid kid out there.

Nütral Metal?

I have no kids, but if I did I could see the leash thing being pretty tempting. But, at the same time it seems so weird, yet also makes sense. Kids of a certain age are very prone to just run off. It's extremely similar to a pet in that sense. They don't know/understand the dangers of running off and are easily distracted/tempted by everything new they see.

I have no kids.

Putting kids on a leash is a fucking great idea.

Same here on this. I still hate to go shopping with anyone unless I know they can be quick and have an idea what they're looking for.

As for the leash thing, I can't see myself ever using one and I would definitely do a double take if I ever saw a parent with one. Admittedly I would think that person is strange to myself, but since I don't know what it's like to have a kid I can't really go beyond that.

No, but i'd put other peoples kids on a leash.

Of course. How else am I supposed to get them to the veterinarian?

I always remember this exact scenario and wonder if I had zero attention span as a child or if my parents were just cripplingly slow at shopping. Either way, the experience has shaped me into someone who can buy an entire month's worth of groceries in ~15 minutes.

Considering the role of a leash is to confer a person's dominance over animals, it makes you look like a real fucking asshole to put a kid on a leash.

And yeah, I've seen it before. When I lived in Toronto some woman had her child on a leash. The kid looked absolutely miserable.

No, im contributing to society by NOT having kids.

@oldirtybearon said:

I'm sure you could argue that from an academic standpoint, but that's obviously not why people actually use them on animals in this day and age. People use leashes specifically to keep their animal under control so they don't run off. You can certainly argue the necessity of a "child-leash", but the end goal is to do exactly that with a child. A parent's job is to keep their child under control.

I prefer to use a martingale

@zeik said:

A leash does serve a functional purpose (namely, don't do shit I don't want you to do) but it all falls back into dominance. You're imposing your will on another creature by leashing them. When they (in your eyes) misbehave you correct that behaviour. I probably sound like some anti-pet PETA nut right now, but recognizing the dom/sub nature of a leash doesn't negate its usefulness. On animals. I think it makes people (who leash their children) look like assholes because they're inferring their dominance over another person. While it does have entirely rational justifications (like one other poster mentioned, an autistic child), in me it provokes a gut reaction of "what a prick." It's dehumanizing to reduce a person to an animal by leashing them.

Unless you and that person are totally into it, in which case I don't care. Two consenting adults can do whatever they want.

@oldirtybearon: Honestly, when it comes down to it, when a parent is dealing with a young child they're absolutely asserting dominance over them. A parent/child relationship is not equal and mutual. The parent is the dominant one and the child is the submissive one. The parent tells the child what to do and the child is expected to do it.

Again, I don't necessarily support "child-leashes" (outside of special circumstances), but you're adding a whole bunch of weird values to the situation that don't really make sense.

@zeik said:

I'm really not. The nature of a leash is to impose dominance. It's important to understand that point before I go into "people who leash children look like assholes," otherwise that sounds like an unfounded attack on some poor parent. As far as the relationship between parent and child, yeah, that's obvious. What I take issue with is the visual representation of that relationship by treating said child like an animal by putting a leash on them.

@oldirtybearon: A leash is a tool. Whether it's an animal or a child it's nothing more than that. There's no deeper psychological meaning behind it. Nobody who puts a leash on a dog does it with the intention of imposing dominance over the dog, they simply do it to make sure the dog stays under control. I guarantee it's the same for a child.

The whole "child being treated like an animal" is not an entirely invalid angle, but this whole dominance thing is kind of dumb and you just need to get away from that. That's just not a sensible argument.

Do not say " Go Crazy" That is the worse way to put it.