Although there are many who do it, we do not advise having your dog off lead in a non-secure area. I just go back from the creek with Odin, while we were there, I had him on a 30-foot lead. He had the same amount of freedom he would of lead, but I had the peace of mind that comes with positive control. In this application it was not because I thought he would run off, but because if God forbid, he was stung by a bee, or bit by snake, or otherwise suffered a medical emergency (he is an almost 8-year-old Bulldogge and we deal with the Texas heat) while swimming I would immediately be able to retrieve him.
Being a long-time gear guy and enjoying that part of all my hobbies, handling Odin is no different. When we are in public, I handle him on an Immediate Correction Lead with a Traffic Lead attached. Most of the time I go hands free by using a carabiner to attach the traffic lead to my pocket. We like to hike and when we do, I also like to be hands free and give him more room on the lead to navigate climbs and decents without putting tension on either end of the lead. For this reason, I had Rick who manufactures all of our leads make me what we call the MCS Hiking Lead. It is 30 inches long, has a clip on one end and metal ring on the other. You can either attached a carbineer to the metal ring and then attach it to your pocket or belt but like to do something different.
For several years I have been a fan of the gear produced by Condor Outdoors. There are lots of “dog walking belts” out there. Most that I have seen are crap. Instead, I use Condor’s Slim Battle Belt. It’s well made, heavy duty, padded and can accept all sorts of pouches using the MOLLE system. I added this gear hanger to it and just put the ring on the end of the Hiking Lead right on it.
The Hiking Lead like all our other leads is handsewn using mountain climbing rope and heavy-duty marine shrink tubing to protect the stitching where the metal hardware is attached. All MCS products have a lifetime warranty against manufacturing defect. We cover pretty much everything except chewing. All of our products can be ordered from Rick at MCSDTGEAR@gmail.com. The Hiking lead is a great addition to the Immediate Correction & Traffic Lead combo and allow you to stay pawsitively connected to your best friend anywhere your adventures take you.