Leashes for kids??? Is it wrong??

[huggiebear23]

Hi,

My family and I will be leaving for Disney on June 25th. I have not been to Disney since I was 13. I am 29 now, anyway. I have a 2 1/2 year old princess and a 1 year old princess . My 2 year old princess, is on the walking by herself kick and will not let me hold her hand. I was contemplating getting the leash thingy for her. But I am not a fan of it, but on the other hand it will help me out with her instead of fighting with her.

Do you Disney Veterans out there every see any parents using those leashes? Any advice.

 

[twinklesstars]

I'm thinking about getting one for my DD when we go in Sept. I'd rather get a few looks from strangers than risk losing my DD. With all the crowds, it is so easy to get seperated. They have "leashes" at Wamart (I think) that are like a back pack that has a stuffed animal on the back. I've heard that it's best to get the ones that go oner the chest area than the wrist ones because sometimes the child's arm can get pulled and injured if the leash is pulled back quickly (in an emergency).

 

[java]

I have 4 children (the 2 youngest 3,1) and I have never used one of them. However I can understand you wanting to. They have really made them more"user friendly" from what I have seen.Like a backpack with a cord that you can wear on your wrist. (or the wrist to wrist kind...) so it doesn't look so much like a leash. Hey if it makes you feel like you can have a better handle on your child then go for it. My kids stay with us because they don't want to get left behind Good luck and the only comments I have ever heard towards people using them have been positive ones.

 

[mask_w03]

They have the backpack animal ones that are great. We use it while out in public crowded places with DD1 all the time. She doesn't mind it since her little friend is a dog and we found them at target. You can take the tail (which is the parent leash part) off and your little one can just use it as a back pack when they get older and have no need for the leash. We are taking it for Dis cuz we want to make sure we don't lose her and she is into running at this point. Better safe than sorry and a lot of girls on here have posted that they see many of these at the parks!

 

[Brier Rose]

Well, I'm sure you're going to get a lot of opinions on this, some of them not so nice.

I for one though did use one on occasion with both of my children when they were going through that phase!

They did not want to hold my hand, and honestly I didn't see any reason to make them! Both of them had little sweaty, slippery hands!

I always had the wrist one, and just attached it to the back belt loop on their pants/shorts. You have to be really careful about not letting too much slack though, as you don't want to trip anyone!

I just always held them as close as I would if we were holding hands.

I only used it maybe 5 or 6 times, including once at DW, and even though I always got funny looks I never let it bother me.

It worked for us!

 

[liznboys]

I really don't care if others use them, I don't think they are "wrong". I think some parents certainly don't use them properly though!

When we were in WDW we dealt with an annoying leashed child... We were in line to meet Mickey. The people behind us had one child, about 2 yrs old, on his leash. Well, the mom was holding the leash and just let him move around everywhere he could reach with the leash extended all the way out. He kept walking in front of us, under the ropes, and then while we were taking our turn he was in our way, getting into the pictures... A couple times she would reel him back to her, but then she'd let the leash go and he'd get as far from her as he could again-in our way. How rude!! And frankly, they only had the one child. Her husband was just standing there the whole time. Did they really need that leash, or did they really need to just control their toddler better and be less lazy?? I didn't know their whole situation, so who knows... But there ya go.

I'm not saying everyone who uses them is lazy or lacks parental skills. I think the leashes are probably a great thing for some families who know the proper way to use them. We don't use them, just not our style.

 

[WAHMto5]

I was also one who never believed in them, UNTIL my first trip to Disney with little ones!! I have never used one, but I think they would come in handy, especially for little ones who like to roam. There are SO many people there that it would be easy for a child to walk off in a second. As long as they are used properly, I don't see any problem with using them. It is much better to be safe then sorry!!

 

[mjstaceyuofm]

Don't like 'em at all. But quite honestly... it's not my call as I won't be the one watching your kids.

I've experience WDW with my two kids (now 8 and 5) on many occasions and never had need for the leash thingies... My suggestion would be to see how it goes and make the determination when you get down there. It is easy to lose sight of your kids in the crowds at WDW. If you feel it's necessary, then use them. You have to do whatever is going to make your and your families vacation experience the best it can be.

My real beef comes with people who use those leash thingies in lieu of good parenting and common sense. I've seen people completely check out of the "Parenting" column once they have the leash things on their kids. Don't be that person.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

This topic has come up before. Let's just say it can get interesting.

I used harnesses on my twins when they were toddlers. They were runners and thought it great fun to run in different directions. I ignored the occasional whispering and dirty looks.

 

[nuttylawprofessor]

My mom was taking care of my very active toddler last week while I attended a conference. They went to an aquarium that didn't allow strollers. While the little one stayed with her most of the time, he eventually decided that he was too big to hold hands or to hold grandma's bag. He wanted to run. My mom removed one of the straps from the stroller and clipped it to a belt loop on his pants to keep him from getting away. He started pulling grandma, like dogs sometimes do on a leash. When my mom said to DS, "Now come on, you're acting like a puppy," he promptly got down on all fours and began barking. Wish I could've seen it.



Seriously, do whatever makes you feel safe, and a hearty "whatever" to the critics.

 

[Passions71203]

Hi,

My family and I will be leaving for Disney on June 25th. I have not been to Disney since I was 13. I am 29 now, anyway. I have a 2 1/2 year old princess and a 1 year old princess . My 2 year old princess, is on the walking by herself kick and will not let me hold her hand. I was contemplating getting the leash thingy for her. But I am not a fan of it, but on the other hand it will help me out with her instead of fighting with her.

Do you Disney Veterans out there every see any parents using those leashes? Any advice.

We will also be at WDW around the same time as you (we arrive on the 25th) and we are using a harness for our DD who will be 2. She is a runner and I would rather get bad looks and nasty comments than lose my dd. But that is my 2 cents

 

[fakereadhed]

It is wrong to let kids fly free in the face of danger.

I have a ds2 that is nothing like my other two. He is fast and can dart out into traffic, water, you name it, faster than I can keep up with him. I would hold his hand if I could catch it. I may have not needed a leash with the other ones, but I can't let him go in a crowd without being in a stroller. For Disney/the zoo/etc. I will be purchasing a harness for his own good. If someone doesn't like it, feel free to spend your vacation chasing him down and fishing him out of the lake and wiping the tire tracks off his forehead.

 

[tmt martins]

I for one think they are dangerous in crowds for both the toddlers and the people around them that might not see them in a crowded area.

I seen to many people get tripped or the poor toddler get flung in the air by a running teen ,someone not watching out , electric scooters,the toddlers just able to strech that line the full 4 or 5 feet from their parents.

I not telling anyone to or not to use them they are a tool to use in their proper place .I'm just not sure if the crowds of June are it.

If you use one keep them in close to you.

 

[tublady]

On our last trp DD was just over 2, we used a harness, we did not seem to get any looks or whispers, any we noticed at least...She is a very active child, very fast and loved to run...I felt it was better to be safe than sorry. One thing we did was to put trading pins on the harness, most she picked, she loved the extra attention she got from CM's. One at the AK thought she was the youngest pin trader she had seen and gave her a pin from her lanyard and would not take one in trade. DD thought she was big stuff, struted around with her harness on all of the time. Even when we were not going to use it she made us put it one her without the "leash" part...It was kind of cute....I think I'll kind of miss it this time, she'll be 5 on our next trip.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

I really don't care if others use them, I don't think they are "wrong". I think some parents certainly don't use them properly though!

Thank you!!!!! On our last trip there was a Dad with his son walking around the resort with it on. The father and child were putting their feet in the water at the pool (Poly zero entry) and the Dad was walking him around like a dog! For gosh sakes! It was just the father and the son and he was even picking him up if he slipped with the leash! It was ridiculous! This child was over the age of 2 and the Dad was barely interacting with him except to pull him up by the leash! It made me feel so bad for the kid. That being said- I have 3 little ones and I have a wrist to wrist leash but have never had to use it. We tried it once for about 2 minutes and it didn't work for us. I think that you have to use what you think is going to work for you. If it will keep your kids safe then go for it!

 

[huggiebear23]

Thanks for all the comments. I think I might get it and bring it with me and see how it goes. I really don't want to but she is getting so independent now that I am really trying to let her experience things and be a big girl but she is only 2. So that really cant go that far.

I do appreciate the comments. I also think that the leash is not an excuse to slack off in the parenting issue.

THANKS AGAIN!!!

 

[MamaLema]

People might give you dirty looks. These same people would also give you dirty looks if you have a runaway toddler. You just can't win

Do whatever you want and don't let anyone make you feel bad about it

Just my opinion, but this is just about the last thing I would notice at WDW. I'm having too much fun to notice who's toddler has a leash or eating too much junk, etc.

 

[munchkin bunchkin]

If it makes your trip less stressful and you feel more secure -go for it! I see nothing wrong with it at all,at least you'll know your kids are safe! If others don't like it they don't have to look !

 

[amarberry]

On our last two trips, I was more aware (since I have a child who is "harness aged") of people using harnesses and I thought that they were quite prevelent. My DD is not much of a runner and usually sticks pretty close to us, but we bought one of the puppy dog harnesses before our last trip just in case. I don't think that we used it while at WDW, but she loves playing with it at home and wears it around the house. She enjoys having the puppy looking over her shoulder.

I'm planning to bring the harness for our next trip because even if your child normally sticks close to you at home, who knows how they will react to WDW.

 

[jeepgirl30]

I'd rather deal with a few dirty looks than search for a missing child anyday.

I have a harness and used it a few times with DD. She actually would ask me to use it when we'd go into a busy store so I would not get lost. I would strap it on my purse so she had more flexibilty and more flax. After a couple times I'd just use the harness but not actually latch her to me. Just having the harness on reminder her to stay close by.

My son is 3 and I need to find that thing again!

I did have a couple people make nasty comments but I also had a woman come up and tell me how smart it was to use. It takes a blink of an eye for a child to bolt. If you have any reservations use it, you can always take it off.

Good luck!