A dog trainer has urged people to keep their distance if they see pets out walking with a certain colour lead, as they can be ‘unpredictable’.
As part of this, he cautioned people to steer clear of dogs being walked on yellow leads in public spaces – whether you’re strolling with or without your own dog.
In a video, he stated: “If you see a dog with a yellow lead, this normally signifies they’re nervous. Please do not let your dog approach them. Allowing your dog to dash over to them does them no good. Simply recalling your dog will make a huge difference.”
Elaborating on this, Sarah of My Anxious Dog revealed how her pet, Bella, began to show improvements in all areas after she started outfitting her in yellow.
She went onto establish her own business selling various dog accessories in yellow in an effort to assist owners in better managing their anxious pets when in public.
On her website, she commented: “The more people understand that a dog wearing yellow needs space, the less stressful life becomes for anxious dogs and their humans.
“A dog might be donning yellow for a number of reasons. They could be reactive, fearful, elderly, recuperating from an accident, illness or surgery. The last thing they need is to be approached or pounced on by other dogs wanting to play.”
Along with other animal enthusiasts, Adam and Sarah have been independently striving to raise awareness about ‘dogs in yellow’, while recognising that some owners may use different colours to signify their dog’s anxieties or other behaviours.
One user commented: “Didn’t know about this. Are there any other colours we should know about?”
Another user stated: “Thank you for posting this, more people need to know. I have so much trouble walking my rescue around Canvey, feel like I am getting no where.”
A third user said: “I have a yellow lead that says nervous down it and people never listen it’s so disrespectful especially when my dog barks and the other owner has a go.”
Yet another user added: “We have a red one for no dogs along with a matching harness and it says it across it but people still let their dogs come up to him.”
One more user said: “I have used a yellow and red neither of worked and every time I ask someone to call their dog back and they don’t! For safety we are muzzle training.”