Lukas and the Long Lead
Guess what? Yup, you guessed it. Lukas is working with me on a new chapter of our ongoing lesson plan. This time, we’re venturing deeper into TRUST.
When we adopted Lukas almost five years ago, we lived in Alaska. There, the majority of the dogs you’ll see out on the trail are off leash. It’s glorious - outside of running into moose - and something I took for granted, once I learned to trust Lukas being off leash. (That was a whole other chapter of the TRUST lesson!)
Now, we live in the lower peninsula of Michigan (aka The Mitten) where there are leash laws. And deer. Lots and lots of deer. To kick-in my anxiety, the places where we walk Lukas among the deer are surrounded by heavily trafficked roads so taking off after our white-tailed friends is not the same as chasing a moose. In the latter situation, he would go far but not so far that we couldn’t hear the goat bell we had on his collar. Here, he can’t go far because of the roads and that’s the issue. He could easily scare a deer into traffic thereby hurting the deer, an unsuspecting driver and/or himself.
So, we’re walking on leash.
For a dog who needs to run, (we just learned his dominant breed is greyhound!) leashes are cramping our collective style. My husband prefers a retractable leash but I’m not a fan. Being a former sled dog, Lukas pulls hard. A retractable easily gets jammed when fully extended and it is a pain to unjam it constantly when we’re walking. So, for me, Lukas suggested the type of leash I had for our previous dogs, India and Bono - a 30’ lead - would work better for our mid-day walks.
After a bit of research, I found a beautiful orange long lead and we hit the trails. Immediately, our walks were more enjoyable. I could feel my shoulders drop and my gait lengthen. He grabbed a stick - something he does when he has space on the trail - and played around with it - running ahead and then running back. Walks felt grounding again.
After a few days of our new set-up, the trails turned icy and my fear of being pulled off my feet increased so I shortened the lead between us so I could navigate some hills. But when we reached a flatter part of the trail, I let the lead out - as seen in the picture - and he walked to the length of it, slowed so it was taunt but he wasn’t pulling me. As he turned back to look at me I heard him say, “Now do you see where we’re going with this long lead? When you give me a little space, you can TRUST that I won’t go too far from you. TRUST strengthens the bond between us- not control.”
Bam! I could feel how right he was. And since that moment, when we take our daily stroll, I’m recognizing, with Lukas’ help, when I start to control and what happens when I relax. That’s the work of Soul Level Animal Communication® for me - learning from Lukas’ behavior something about my own that I am ready to change. And how, in working with him, I can become aware of it so I can grow past the fear and TRUST.
The 30’ lead - just enough to give space to Lukas and help me trust at the same time.