# Paracord: best toy ever



## paradoxlnx (Dec 17, 2014)

Hi,

The first days we had Ditch, he taught me that he loved to play tug-o-war.
He'd give me a toy and started pulling like crazy.
I wanted to give him something to pull on that was strong and wouldn't turn into a lot of loose wires.

I wanted to create a toy that was fairly indestructible.
I was at the time weaving bracelets and a dog leash out of paracord.

Paracord Dog Leash

So I bought a heavy duty paracord roll, 8mm thick.

I wove a dog leash [about 1m20 or 48 inches] in that thick rope and now he is about 10months, he still plays daily with it.

He is very strong and that means... heavy pulling.
The weaving is flexible and acts like sort of a spring and it is a rope so it is easy on the hands [which is nice for my kids and girlfriend].

It barely gets dirty, and if it does, you can trow it in the washer. You can use it in water [pool, lake, bath..] AND it can act as an emergency collar+leash.

I'd strongly advise not to add any kind of connector, not plastic or metal, due to obvious reasons.

I'll ad a picture later today.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

I would not let my dog play tug with its leash, ever. Rather use a tug toy for that purpose. (if I correctly understood your message).


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## Jayfeather (Dec 28, 2014)

I made a paracord toy once, it lasted a very long time until one day my dog got one end loose, chewed it off, and ate it. I melted it back together, and a few minutes later the same thing happened. That was the end of that toy, but it did last a while, so maybe I'll try to make another.


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## Hineni7 (Nov 8, 2014)

I've taught many a dog to carry their leash by tug.. Not a heavy hard game of tug, but still, they never chewed their leashes or played with their leashes that way unless told they could (which was pretty much never, lol) after they learned the lesson... 

Cool step by step in the making of leash... Will have to try it


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## paradoxlnx (Dec 17, 2014)

wolfy dog said:


> I would not let my dog play tug with its leash, ever. Rather use a tug toy for that purpose. (if I correctly understood your message).


No, the [weaving]design was of a leash, the rope should be 3-5mm thick for a leash.

I used 8mm to make a 2.5inch thick toy.


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## paradoxlnx (Dec 17, 2014)

Hineni7 said:


> I've taught many a dog to carry their leash by tug.. Not a heavy hard game of tug, but still, they never chewed their leashes or played with their leashes that way unless told they could (which was pretty much never, lol) after they learned the lesson...
> 
> Cool step by step in the making of leash... Will have to try it


He can carry/hold his leash also.
I think it's a great job for him when he has to wait and I can't hold him for a moment.
Keeps his mind of distractions.


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## Pax8 (Apr 8, 2014)

I think the effectiveness of using the leash as a tug depends on the dog. If the dog doesn't respect rules and boundaries enough to realize when it is a tug and when it is a leash, it probably isn't a good idea. However it's good with other dogs like mine. I have a braided fleece leash for Kaiju exactly for this reason. We play tug with it and he can get ramped playing, but it works for us because we have practiced and conditioned it to be very exact. The second I say "take it" it is a tug and he can go as wild as he wants. But the second I say "all done" he will immediately drop it and it doesn't matter how much I wave it in his face, wiggle it along the ground, it isn't a tug toy in that moment for him. So basically I think it depends on how you condition it.


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## scarfish (Apr 9, 2013)

neat idea but i like flat black leather leashes. in the army we called that string 550 cord and used it alot. mostly in the field not much in garrison. when you braid it, there's nooks and crannies that will fill up with dirt and grime. OK it's washable but it's much more easy to swipe a leather leash with a damp paper towel to clean.


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## scarfish (Apr 9, 2013)

i'm sure everybody has made it to a place you can drop the leash and start closing a gate while the dog takes the opprotunity to squat and poop or pee on the leash. i would rather have poop on a flat leather leash that's easy to clean than braided 550 cord.


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## Pax8 (Apr 8, 2014)

scarfish said:


> i'm sure everybody has made it to a place you can drop the leash and start closing a gate while the dog takes the opprotunity to squat and poop or pee on the leash. i would rather have poop on a flat leather leash that's easy to clean than braided 550 cord.


LOL, yeah I had to toss a leash because of that. He took a pretty soft dump on it and I just never could quite get the smell out of it.


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## paradoxlnx (Dec 17, 2014)

Pax8 said:


> LOL, yeah I had to toss a leash because of that. He took a pretty soft dump on it and I just never could quite get the smell out of it.


That's not sexy. Dirty, but not sexy. 

Anyways I'm using a leather leash and a braided tug toy for that exact reason.


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