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Hey, don’t hate. Whatever it takes to keep Lil TVDinner out of traffic.
My mom used to do that to my brother, c. 1965 (only I’m pretty sure it was a leash around the neck). He was one of those 2-year-olds who would take off running if she so much as looked at her watch. After diving into traffic enough times to rescue him, she said (in her own self-reported words) “all right, enough of this shit.”
I’m pretty sure I saw that exact mom and kid yesterday afternoon on Beacon Hill, unless lots of kids have that same combo backpack tail/leash these days.
The good news is that they’ll be used to it for when they try to get a job. Hooray for teaching subservience!
I used to judge people who leashed their children. Then I met a woman with a child who had autism who, for some reason, was obsessed with the color yellow. He’d see those double yellow lines in the middle of the road and he’d be headed into traffic so fast you couldn’t stop him. He also couldn’t tolerate the physical contact of hand-holding. Now, when I see kids on a leash I remember that I have no idea what the story is.
Seems to be a white thing
A pinch collar on the neck works much better! With proper jerking, it is a very effective teaching tool!
Walkies!
Yup. When the little one wants to dash away, and you’re in a place where a dash is dangerous, then a little safety line is a good thing.
never understood why people get so bothered by these. always seemed to be a solution for that period after they learn to walk but before they learn self-control.
These have been around for a while. When I was that age (late 1950s), mom kept one on me when she went shopping with me in tow. Otherwise it was a sure bet I’d wander off and get lost and then she’d be frantically running around the store trying to find me. I was…a curious little boy.
The device was a shoulder harness with a strap attached. It wasn’t uncomfortable, just very very irritating on my end since there was so much out there to see and I couldn’t just walk over to it. I absolutely hated it. Now I’m an adult myself and I completely sympathize. A little human child’s awakening curiosity has amazing powers to frighten adults.
You don’t understand…the tail is wagging the dog.
Most children control their parents minds!
I’m guessing you haven’t had a very active toddler. Some kids’ ability to run fast far outstrips their common sense or ability to follow directions… Sometimes for a year or more. Also, try holding your hand up in the air for 15 mins to 1hr while walking–that’s how it feels to have your hand held during a long walk, trip to the mall, layover at the airport etc. King of tingly and unpleasant huh? My kids are past that stage now but I’d have chosen the judgment of strangers over losing my little guys any day!
Beacon Hill?
I went to the arboretum with the family the other day and for the life of me could not get my 18 month old to walk in the same direction as my wife and I. So I clipped the dog leash to his belt loop and away we went. Once he got the point we were on a family walk, I took it off.
I thought the whole thing was kind of funny. But I would never leash the kid in public. That’s just embarrassing for everyone.
I had a velcro wrist version (iirc it was rainbow coloured). Even though it was easy to take off it was mostly used for keeping me close and within reach of my parents in crowds.
Leashed? Most of them should be caged.
HaHa! First time I’ve ever agreed with Charles maybe? I see those things in public and I am horrified, but a part of me is always there to remind the rest of my mind… Some children SHOULD be leashed. And you would be happier if many more children were on leashes.
@5 I’m with you – I used to think this was such a terrible thing. As I’ve gotten older, though, I’ve mellowed out on it. Mainly because I’m sick of super-judgy people who assume they know the best way to parent other people’s children. It’s something you see way too much of in our little liberal enclave. If I see a kid on a leash, it ain’t my fucking business, simple as that.
@17 FTW
These should be mandatory.
I think it’s stupid and lazy, but that is the parent’s right, at least it doesn’t hurt the kids physically, they have plenty of time to work out the psychological damage.
I forgive my parents both for smacking me around a little as a child, I would NEVER forgive them if they had leashed me. I guess i understand in autistic situations, but humans have lived and prospered just fine for thousands of years without leashing their offspring. It just looks so demeaning.
Prior to being a parent, I worked in corporate America – talk about a mismatch. At the time “team building” was all the rage.
If in a crowded, busy place like an airport I will use these leashes with my young twins. However, I just tie their leashes together. They can escape from me, but not each other. Just doing my part to foster team building.
I’ve heard there’s no loyalty amongst thieves. It would appear the same is true for young twins trying to escape from Daddy. They can apparently never agree upon which direction to run.
@23 – “Apron strings” and “leading strings” have been around for centuries. The V&A Museum in London has some dating to early Elizabethan times (along with a very ornate turned-wood walking frame for toddlers that dates to the same period), and other European museums have examples as well, generally in the costume or textile collection. The difficulty of finding examples earlier is the same as all costume-related preservation — textiles tend to wear into rags with use and age — but it’s certain from mentions in literature that the Elizabethans were not the inventors of the idea.