Night Time Walks

[Jaime + Oliver]

Hi All,

Fall is upon us and with the time change happening next weekend (!) this will mean walks in the dark.

What are your favorite supplies for keeping yourself & your dog safe during walks in the dark?  Reflectors?  Lights?  Flashlights?

[BG and Gavin]

We use a reflective leash and I have reflective arm bands like this:

I know some members got lighted leashes last year, but I would like to hear how they are working now.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Me too....I've been thinking about the lighted leashes, but just not sure how well they'd work.

[Stella]

I live I a rural area and walk my doodles on an unlit dirt road!! I have two doodles, so I wear a headlamp to save having to carry a flashlight. I wear a jacket with reflective piping on the seams, and both dogs wear a bright orange jacket with reflective piping (we got ours from Ruffwear). When it gets really cold, both dogs wear boots (also from Ruffwear) which have reflective stitching on the fasteners. My ex-mother in law gave us lighted leashes a couple of years ago, I wouldn't use it as a leash because I didn't believe it was strong enough to hold back my 75lb doodle if he saw a deer. But, what I have done a few times is wear the illuminated leash like a sash!!

[Jaime + Oliver]

I've never seen light up leashes before - interesting!  I am curious to hear how effective they really are.  I worry about debris on the ground too, and was thinking of carrying a flashlight to make sure there aren't too many temptations in our path.  But great recommendations on adding reflective gear to the arsenal.

[Stella]

The lighted leashes are pretty bright, the ones I have are like giant glow sticks with a handle and clip attached!! I didn't feel the clip was strong enough to hold by boys. But, when I have 'worn' the leash it has created an interesting blue glow around me!!
As well as helping you see where you are going, the flashlight will help car drivers to see you. You could also buy a construction workers vest to wear over your jacket. I bought the orange jackets to stop hunters from mistaking my doodles for deer (stranger things happen with hunters!!) and by happy accident realized they had reflective piping on.
I figured if I get run over by a car, or a snowmobile in the winter, I can at least say that I was well lit and visible and that it most definitely wasn't my fault!'

[Alex/Mindy/Georgia/Coral]

We got a light up collar and leash at Wal-Mart for $5 each. They both work great and help us see Georgia(who is black) when she's walking beside us off leash(we live out in the country).

[Lori, Quincy & Frankie]

I love the flashlight on my iphone 

[DonMarie and Picco]

I've used the reflective armbands. I tried buying reflective tape to put on Picco's backpack and on my jacket but it didn't stick, just crumbled off. Lighted or reflective leash sounds like a good idea. I afraid of doing anything too weird that it would be a distraction for a driver.

[Stella]

The weirder you look the better, as this will make a driver slow down to see what you are!! I used to horseback ride down a road in the evenings when I lived in England. I wore a reflective vest that flashed, had a friend walking in front with a flashlight, and the horse had reflective leg bands on. A driver seeing four reflective bands moving up and down just above the road from a distance would always slow down because they weren't sure what they were approaching!!

[Heather Martinez]

I attach a red flashing light to Teddy's collar. I have this one and it works great:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00143HZLY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?i...

It's bright enough so I can see where Teddy is when he's running around the park at night.