How The Leader Came to Be
Hi... yesterday was a big day. Yesterday, months of work came to light. The moment I hit "publish," I was simultaneously relieved and exhausted. There are many changes and new additions to our product line up, but our biggest news item yesterday was the release of The Leader. The Leader is a multi-functional lead that can be worn around your waist and across the body, and it can be used to split your pack into two groups or used as a traditional leash. It has two points of adjustment, two quality thumb clips and two o-rings. Simple, highly versatile.
Many dog walkers requested that we create a waist leash. I was hesitant at first because there are already waist leashes on the market, and at TinyHorse we strive to be unique. But I couldn't ignore the number of requests coming in, so in June I began thinking and creating prototypes. After five prototypes, with the last two prototypes being tested by fellow dog walkers in Toronto, I arrived at what is available on our website today.
As I was designing this lead, I thought about how the Lead-All leash system requires a unique approach to really appreciate what it can offer you as a dog walker. I considered how I might build that unique approach into the function of the products themselves, to rely less on the dog walker and more on "the physics."
For example, when the lead is worn around your waist, you have an adjustable piece that can attach to your central ring / dog. The end of this piece features a handle, so you can hold the ring higher when the dogs are closer to you. I considered getting rid of this handle, but Jesse, one of the walkers I had testing the product, said "don't you dare, I love how natural it is to grab the handle to hold the ring up!" Ha, ok, ok!
Also, if you use a vehicle to transport your packs, this is an ultimate pick-up and drop-off tool when worn around the waist. You never have to dig around for a spare leash again... it's right there on your body! You can fiddle with house keys and towel off dogs without worrying which hand will hold onto the pooch. Paul from Bow Wow Walkers, another tester for the Leader, suggested the pick-up/drop-off part of the lead be just a bit longer to accommodate the small dogs. Done! I don't walk many small dogs, so I certainly would have overlooked this.
Just one more example for you. When worn across the chest, the short coloured piece (you get to choose from 16 colours!) hangs high. You can adjust the length of the two black pieces to get the lead hanging at about your hip -- the most glorious height! The ring is readily available to adjust the leashes and pull dogs on and off the ring as you see fit. This is an excellent position to use with our adjustable leashes, which now adjust up to 35 inches long.
I love how multi-functional this lead is. You can wear it on your body in several ways, but sometimes, like on a Monday morning when your dogs are insanely excited to be back with their pack and somehow have forgotten all their manners, you don't want them attached to your body at all. You can turn The Leader into a long lead, stay a few feet away from them and pull back on the force of them barrelling towards the park to keep the ring up high.
Dog walking requires constant problem solving, and it's my goal to create tools that offer you a multitude of solutions to choose from.
Here's the new video for The Leader! It was shot at Cherry Beach by my talented friend Faye Blais. Bow Wow Walkers was once again so incredible by letting us use company dogs for the video and Paul, the owner of Bow Wow Walkers, appears at the end.
That's all for now! I will be back soon to talk about more changes to our existing products and the launch of two new ones!
Happy Walking,
Taylor Leedahl