To leash your children or not in the parks

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Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
Premium Member
teddybearprek said:
In my case I have a 6 year old autistic son. Unlike a lot of children with autism that shy away from social situations, my son is overly social. For example, he will interact and talk with all people at all times. Walking in a mall he will go up to a stranger take their hand and walk off with them very happily. That being said I am planning on using a leash during our upcoming trip to Disney. For us it is a safety issue, yes I tend to get a lot of angry looks from people, but my son absolutely does not understand and can not grasp the concept of strangers and he will run off in an instant if anything catches his attention, which at Disney World is everything ;). So I will happily take the annoyed looks from others knowing that my son is with me and safe, and just to hopefully put some minds at ease, my son is very happy to wear the leash it does not embarrass him at all. Then again it is a part of everyday life for us whenever we are in public.
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Other peoples disgust concerns me about as much as the dust under my couch.
 
MaryJaneP

MaryJaneP

Well-Known Member
ASJHLJ said:
I think the kid should have freedom, but you don't want to lose them. Thus, the key is to reduce the maximum velocity the child can obtain. That is why I am marketing kid sized ankle shackles -
Stainless-Steel-Ankle-Shackles-02.jpg


I'll eventually have whimsical designs and characters for each ankle.
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Hide an RFID in there and Disney will buy the idea off you.
 
docdebbi

docdebbi

Well-Known Member
my daughter had to use a "Mickey backpack" when taking her first son into amusement parks and museums, etc. At the age of 2 he could wiggle his hand out of her hand, be down the street and almost jumping into the shark tank faster than she could run to keep up with him. And streets? don't even go there.
you cannot guarantee that the child who normally would stop when you tell him to, will do so when he is SO excited in a park. and there are indeed many dangers in a park for a two year old.
and don't tell me that you can "train" (as someone here used the word), a two year old perfectly. you can work on it, but it's not a guarantee at that age, they have not reached the age of reason, and it takes awhile for timeouts to really mean something to them. he no longer used it by the age of 3 because he could learn by then that there were consequences to not listening to Mom.
now bear in mind, he was sent for testing at the age of 2, and diagnosed with hyperactivity disorder by the age of 3. let me tell you, an overactive 2 year old is a danger to himself and others. Yet, forcing the kid to hold your hand 24 hours a day is not his idea of fun. he loved wearing his Mickey backpack. it was a big stuffed Mickey with a very long "tail". he didn't even realize he was being controlled, he was just traveling with Mickey. but he was SAFE, and had more freedom that holding her hand.
he next son does not have hyperactivity, he never wore Mickey, but does carry him around the house, like the stuffed animal he is. each child is different, if you see a kid on a "leash", that kid probably is safer with it.

BTW- we laugh whenever we see a kid running wild in the park and a parent chasing him because my daughter- PRIOR to having son number one- always used to see a kid on a leash and say "I can't believe that mother has that kid on a leash", now when she sees the wild kid she says "I can't believe that mother DOESN'T have that kid on a leash". amazing what experience does for your understanding
 
ratherbeinwdw

ratherbeinwdw

Well-Known Member
luv said:
When you have that many kids, you can't worry about what other people think. You must do whatever works for you!

That's a lot of little kids.

I hope you all call her every week, lol. She deserves it!
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She only lives less than a mile from me, so I see her all the time. Only one of the five of us still living doesn't live here, and she only moved last year. One of the twins passed away, but the rest of us are right here to take care of her.
 
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RandomPrincess

RandomPrincess

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I have two little kids my daughter (4) never need to be on a leash she would (and still) happily holds hand and stops when told to. My son (2) HATED holding hands, he is getting better after a year of working on it.

I tell him he has to hold hands and he would yell "no". I grab his hand anyway and he just goes limp. Fine, I'll just carry you. Now comes the kicking and screaming, as I carry him. If I'm just walking across the parking lot fine but a whole day out was a nightmare. We either had to strap him in the stroller or shopping cart (more screaming) or leash him. He just didn't want to hold hands. He would stay next to us most of the time but if something caught is eye he would bolt. So the leash worked best if I was alone with both kids. If it was just my son and I or my husband and with both kids we would do no leash since we each had one kid to keep and eye on.

He has just recently started holding hands without fighting. But I still take the leash for all day trips out just in case.
 
draybook

draybook

Well-Known Member
I can't stand seeing people with these. If you can't watch over your children without using some kind of restraining device, then you shouldn't have had children in the first place.
 
Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
Premium Member
draybook said:
I can't stand seeing people with these. If you can't watch over your children without using some kind of restraining device, then you shouldn't have had children in the first place.
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Do you feel the same way about parents who give cell phones to their kids....they are just electronic leashes.

Honestly, you must be able to stand it if you go out in public, either that or you are posting from solitary confinement.
 
Britt

Britt

Well-Known Member
hakunamatata said:
Do you feel the same way about parents who give cell phones to their kids....they are just electronic leashes.

Honestly, you must be able to stand it if you go out in public, either that or you are posting from solitary confinement.
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Agreed!

Same with strollers. Still a way of controlling your children's environment and limiting their access. Not teaching them much about "staying with us", by harnessing them into a stroller!
 
draybook

draybook

Well-Known Member
hakunamatata said:
Do you feel the same way about parents who give cell phones to their kids....they are just electronic leashes.

Honestly, you must be able to stand it if you go out in public, either that or you are posting from solitary confinement.
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What do you smoke before you post? Comparing cell phones to a tether that can get tangled......

And I think you meant that I must not be able to stand it. And once again, comparing cell phones to a physical tether that can get in the way or tangled is absurd.
 
Hakunamatata

Hakunamatata

Le Meh
Premium Member
draybook said:
What do you smoke before you post? Comparing cell phones to a tether that can get tangled......

And I think you meant that I must not be able to stand it. And once again, comparing cell phones to a physical tether that can get in the way or tangled is absurd.
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I don't smoke. Thanks.

No, you must be able to stand it because you go out in public without doing anything about them. If you could not stand it you either stay at home or you lose all self control.
 
Disneykidder

Disneykidder

Well-Known Member
Luckily, my children stay near me but I am not a big fan of the "child leash". I don't think it is right to leash people but then, if these people have had their children run away from them repeatedly I can see how it can be scary. I'd be terrified if I lost my children anywhere but in a crowded park full of thousands of people...:eek:.
 
RandomPrincess

RandomPrincess

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draybook said:
I can't stand seeing people with these. If you can't watch over your children without using some kind of restraining device, then you shouldn't have had children in the first place.
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Strollers, highchairs, pack and plays, car seats, bouncers, walkers, baby swings, etc are all "restraining devices" used with babies and small children either to keep them safe, entertained or just make things easy for the caregivers.
 
RandomPrincess

RandomPrincess

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Aurora1 said:
You'd be surprised. A strict/rule-enforcing parent will make it work. There were four of us growing up and none of us were angels all the time, but a quick "If you do that one more time we're going back to the hotel" always worked!
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My daughter got that by the time she was 3 but my son just turned 2 and you could say that to him and it would mean nothing to him yet. He's just getting old enough to start understanding small consequences in the moment - you hit you get removed from the group, you throw your toy you lose it. An abstract punishment like "going back to the hotel" (which could have been a fun place to him before) wouldn't help at his age. Let alone when he was just walking at 12 to 18 months.
 
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