Should you put a leash on your child when you're out in public? It's a divisive question, as Redditor Decawys learned when they asked the online community: "Kids whose parents used to put them on leashes, how are you doing today?"
"My older brother was abducted..."
My older brother was abducted in a mall when he was a toddler (not for long but long enough). It was a split second, my dad turned around and a lady grabbed him and walked away.
My dad put me on a leash in very busy places. I don't really see the big deal, I got to walk freely and he didn't have to worry about that split second.
To answer your question, I'm doing well!
"I once asked a parent..."
I once asked a parent why he was doing this, his son had severe ADHD.
He told me that he liked better to look like a dumbass with a son on a leash than having a dead son in the middle of the road.
I've never asked this question again and I will never ask it again either.
"I was put in one of those..."
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I was put in one of those harness things because I ran off and caught a pigeon.
I only try to catch them now.
"I didn't use a leash on my kid..."
I didn't use a leash on my kid, but my sister did on her youngest. The kid is bright and sweet, but she has ADHD and can't seem so stay on track for more than a minute. Since she was growing up in a highly congested German city, I'd say the leash may have kept her from being run over and killed. So she's doing ok.
"I had 2 older brothers..."
I'm over 50 but I seem alright.
I had 2 older brothers and one younger by only 18 months. My mom did the best she could. From when I just started to walk we lived in a house with no fence and beyond the yard was the train tracks. I had a harness with a long tether in the middle of my back. My mom would attach the tether to the clothes line and I could run around in our yard and my mom could look out at me from the back windows and do house work and care for my little brother. I was safe but still got to run around in fresh air.
"My mom attached an actual dog chain..."
My mom attached an actual dog chain to my brothers pants when he was about 3 years old. We lived in the country, and he was a runner. He could've been lost in the woods in a matter of minutes. It's funny to think about, my little brother, "chained up" in front of our trailer in the woods, but it gave him freedom to be outside without getting himself lost, or seriously injured or killed. And to answer OP's question, my brother is awesome. Educated, intelligent, productive, enlightened. Truly a stand-up guy with a normal, loving relationship with his mom.
"Just as adventurous..."
Just as adventurous as i used to be..
Little me would literally jump off a mountain to see what is down below.
My parents HAD to put me on a leash if we were going out until i was like 4.
"I was on a leash..."
I was on a leash when I was really little. One time we were out at the mall and I was on my leash and some woman came up to us to shame my parents, saying "How terrible, just like a dog!" So naturally I got down on all fours and started barking at her. Totally shocked her and gave my parents a big laugh.
I'm doing great today (and tbh I needed to be on that leash bc I would just go up to strangers in public and hug them/completely disappear in crowded places - it probably kept me from getting kidnapped lol).
"Fine."
Fine. I really don't understand why people think it's such a big deal. I got to run around feeling all independent like, and mum didn't develop chronic anxiety from my constant attempts to run into traffic. 10/10.
"My dad tried one of those out with me..."
My dad tried one of those out with me while I was learning to ski. It worked great until I went out to its fullest length and another kid skied between us and got clotheslined by it. We didn't use it after that.
"I was a wanderer."
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I was a wanderer. They got the leash/harness after I disappeared in a hardware store and they basically had to call a Code Adam. Turns out I was hiding in the sample kitchen cabinets, but one heart attack was enough for them.
I'm now a (mostly) functional adult who never stepped into traffic or got kidnapped. I would highly recommend it to anyone with a kid who's prone to wandering off.
"When I was 3..."
When I was 3, I walked into the men's bathroom (I'm a girl) at a train station. Apparently there was a serial killer/kidnapper abducting young girls at the time. I was found safe, but absolutely leashed after that. I didn't mind at all though. I remember thinking it was cool that mommy and I were connected with matching Big Bird bracelets (it was a velcro wrist leash).
"When I was a toddler..."
When I was a toddler there was the case of James Bulger, a kid that was abused and murdered by some teens after he wandered off when his mum was paying for something in a shop.
All of us kids regardless of behaviour got put on leashes, all of us were fine.
"Toddlers can't help..."
Just fine because my mom kept my dumb@ss from running into traffic or getting lost.
Toddlers can't help being dumb as f*ck; they haven't learned yet. I have zero issue with my parents walking me like a dog because I wasn't much smarter than one at the time.
"All my life..."
All my life, I have teased my younger sister about "You had to have a leash!!!" It was actually a harness, pink. I am over 50, and I can still clearly remember what it looked like.
About 5 years ago, my mom heard me make a teasing comment and turned around and said, she never wore the harness, only you did. Seriously, you know your sister never liked to walk from babyhood (foot problems). Why would you think she would ever run out in traffic? You were the one I couldn't catch.
I was horrified. Clearly, I was in denial for decades.
I'm fine now. Profoundly embarrassed that I randomly teased my sister for 40 years about it though, when it was actually me wearing it.
