I've found long leads to be very helpful with our boys - we have a national ban on off-leash dogs here during the spring to protect baby wildlife, so off leash hikes are completely off the table then. I stick to smooth, rolled, handle-less long lines for our walks in fields and wooded areas - like this - because they don't snag as easily on brush or roots as braided ones do. And if my dogs do go around a tree or into the brush, I can drop the lead and grab it on the other side of the obstruction to pull it through without a handle getting tangled or caught. If I had bigger dogs, I might go for a flat biothane lead - something like this - for a little better grip. Neither style is immune to snagging or tangling, but you'll have better luck than with anything braided, and they stay cleaner to boot. I do use standard braided or nylon webbing long-lines on occasion for certain kinds of training, but not on walks or hikes where there's a lot to get tangled it.
Handling long-lines like this in a safe and effective way does take practice. My goal is always to have the leash slack, but not dragging on the ground, because that minimizes snagging, stepping on the lead, tangling you or the dog, etc. I don't always succeed, haha, but do know that figuring out how to gather and release the line in a way that works for you and your dog takes practice. I think I started with some of Grisha Stewart's long line skills, from her BAT 2.0 book, but I wouldn't recommend buying the whole book just for that (I love it, but it is specifically about working with reactivity, so not applicable to all dogs). You might be able to find videos or articles free about it, though.
Some people have better success with retractable lines for the above reasons. I personally don't like them as much, but it's an option if you keep some things mind:
First, I'd (personally) only put a dog who already has good leash manners and no issues with meeting other dogs/people on a retractable line - they have more moving parts, and are therefore more prone to breaking, with the locking mechanism being a common point of failure. But sometimes the whole darn leash can come out of the handle. You can see why that'd be a concern with dogs who pull a lot or get worked up (even if it's just excitement) when they encounter wildlife or other walkers/dogs. The bigger and stronger the dog, the more you have to think about that.
Second, I'd only ever recommend tape-style retractables (as opposed to the cord-style). This way, if you do have to grab the lead itself for whatever reason, you're less likely to wind up with nasty rope burns on your hands, and it's less likely to create a nasty tourniquet situation if the line gets wrapped around a finger or dog limb.
Third, retractable handles 'chase' the dog if they get dropped, which many dogs find extremely freaky, so they can be harder to maneuver if the line does get tangled and there's extra worries if the handle gets yanked out of your hand. My biggest problem with retractables for my situation is that I don't feel like I can keep as good a grip on those bulky handles as I can on a long line.
But don't get me wrong, they're way easier to keep out of brush and roots and whatnot. I've even used them with my (small) leash reactive dog in areas where I'm 90% sure we won't meet any other dogs. And I know some people find regular long lines more difficult to manage and higher risk for them because they're more likely to get wrapped up in things and can be more difficult to 'break' a dog with when they take off running. I'm obviously biased because long lines are what works for me, but so long as you use the retractables safely and responsibly (they get an extra bad rap because some people who use them let their dogs wander up to strange dogs, people, into busy roads, etc.), they're a totally legit option.
Handling long-lines like this in a safe and effective way does take practice. My goal is always to have the leash slack, but not dragging on the ground, because that minimizes snagging, stepping on the lead, tangling you or the dog, etc. I don't always succeed, haha, but do know that figuring out how to gather and release the line in a way that works for you and your dog takes practice. I think I started with some of Grisha Stewart's long line skills, from her BAT 2.0 book, but I wouldn't recommend buying the whole book just for that (I love it, but it is specifically about working with reactivity, so not applicable to all dogs). You might be able to find videos or articles free about it, though.
Some people have better success with retractable lines for the above reasons. I personally don't like them as much, but it's an option if you keep some things mind:
First, I'd (personally) only put a dog who already has good leash manners and no issues with meeting other dogs/people on a retractable line - they have more moving parts, and are therefore more prone to breaking, with the locking mechanism being a common point of failure. But sometimes the whole darn leash can come out of the handle. You can see why that'd be a concern with dogs who pull a lot or get worked up (even if it's just excitement) when they encounter wildlife or other walkers/dogs. The bigger and stronger the dog, the more you have to think about that.
Second, I'd only ever recommend tape-style retractables (as opposed to the cord-style). This way, if you do have to grab the lead itself for whatever reason, you're less likely to wind up with nasty rope burns on your hands, and it's less likely to create a nasty tourniquet situation if the line gets wrapped around a finger or dog limb.
Third, retractable handles 'chase' the dog if they get dropped, which many dogs find extremely freaky, so they can be harder to maneuver if the line does get tangled and there's extra worries if the handle gets yanked out of your hand. My biggest problem with retractables for my situation is that I don't feel like I can keep as good a grip on those bulky handles as I can on a long line.
But don't get me wrong, they're way easier to keep out of brush and roots and whatnot. I've even used them with my (small) leash reactive dog in areas where I'm 90% sure we won't meet any other dogs. And I know some people find regular long lines more difficult to manage and higher risk for them because they're more likely to get wrapped up in things and can be more difficult to 'break' a dog with when they take off running. I'm obviously biased because long lines are what works for me, but so long as you use the retractables safely and responsibly (they get an extra bad rap because some people who use them let their dogs wander up to strange dogs, people, into busy roads, etc.), they're a totally legit option.
