It is not demeaning to a small child who does not know any better. Adults tend to transfer their own fears, predujices and sensibilities on this subject and though I admit it looks funny to see a child on a leash, I get it.
I was terrified to go out alone with my 1-2 year old for fear of her bolting. If I wouldn't have gotten the nasty looks & comments I would have preferred a leash to her safety.
In addition, lets keep in mind that this debate may be about "typical" children but not sensitive to parents who have children with mental disabilities such as severe
autism. My Sister has a 13 year old who has the mental capacity of a small toddler and she is very fast and will run off. She does not know that cars will hurt her. As these kids get stronger and older and the parents over 40 get older and slower, this poses a great safety risk. Currently my Sister refuses to take her daughter out in public for fear of her safety and also the way others react to her.
Maybe this so called " dog leash" will curb some of those fears?

I can understand the issue of child leases but they can also cause safety issues just as a dog leash might. I don't know how may times I got tangled up with a dog leash (with dogs) or the dogs got snagged on something. What happens if a child lease gets caught on something and the child is stuck, maybe a foot into the street and you are distracted by the leash. I think the medical community over the years has been against the child leashes. I am over forty and I can still keep up with my children. Get off the couch and off the cell phone and get out with your children.

As a father of 2 boys, 2yrs and 4yrs old, I can say I have only used a leash one time with my older boy(he was 3). He is very wild, and for a short time he would run away. The one time we used a leash was when we went to a baseball game at Target field. It helped a lot, but after the game we took it off of him because he had calmed down.
I do not think they need to be used very often at all, I have taught my boys to stay close by us by letting them get 'lost' in a big store, all the while watching them from behind something. After they are scared a bit, I would go over to them and get down to their level and have a talk about what happened and also about strangers.
We don't have a problem anymore, even at big places like the MOA or MN Zoo.

Each family is different and if the parent has mobility problems, I can see the need for these for a time in their childs development when children are pushing every limit to see how much they can get away with.
Use it as a tempory thing, and don't worry about what other people think, don't use it unless you have to and let them get 'lost' once in a while when they are pushing it. It may take 5 minutes before they even notice your gone, but when they do they will get scared and they won't like it. Approch them and tell them how scared you were and that you thought a stranger had taken them out of the store, follow up with how happy you are that you found them. You may have to use your leash less often. Good luck!

I remember cringing the first time I saw a child on a "leash." That said, I've learned through firsthand experience that It is important to remember and consider that things are not always what they appear.

One of our sons has a chromosome abnormality and autism and is profoundly mentally disabled. He also has leg and foot problems that make it difficult for him to maintain balance and control of his body. We use a device with him called ConnectorRX that has a noticeable impact on helping him regulate himself by being physically connected to another person (which is also particularly significant in that he has zero safety consciousness and minimal verbal communication ability). This device also enables our son, and our family as a whole, to do and enjoy things that we wouldn't otherwise be able to do given his mental, behavioral and physical challenges.

I think it is totally up to parental descression and others should not judge the situation. Little ones are fast to dart off in a crowd and their little arms are short and it is hard to have them reach up for constant hand holding in a public crowded area. I would way rather see a child on a safety tether at like the fair than see the panicked parent whose child has gotten distracted and disappeared in a large crowd of people or heaven forbid gotten snatched. Safety first. I am glad we are past that age group now, but I would never judge a parent who is there and chooses that option to try to keep their child safe.

Oddly enough, another reader just wrote a blog post about why she feels so much saner when her kids are "buckled up somewhere safe."(She's a funny writer, too, but that's besides the point) http://southwestminneapolis.patch.com/blog_posts/buckle-up-for-moms-sanity

We used a safety harness on our toddler when we travel (thru the airport) because 4 hands isn't enough nowadays. And now that we're getting an addition I believe it'll be even more useful. But in everyday situations, e.g., parking lots, walks, etc., it's handholding and why it's needed. "Leashes" are additonal helping tools, not the sole long-term solution.

I, too, use to pass judgements on people who used a leash on their child, thinking, hold their hand or put them in the stroller! But then, autism turned up in our family (my nephew) and I got to see it from anothers viewpoint and see it for the safety reasons and it is a whole other world having a child with autism and them not understanding the importance of safety or that you can get hurt if you dash out into the street, or get lost. I have learned much more than just that, from my little nephew. He has changed me in a lot of ways that I used to think :) all for the better! He is a big part of my life :)

Before I became a parent I used to cringe at the sight of a child on a leash. Now as a parent of a 2 year old I have a much different view. My child is a "runner", and very fast at that. She also thinks it's funny to run away from mommy. This wouldn't be an issue if I didn't also have a 1 yr old with me too. So it's not that I'm lazy and can't keep up it's a safety issue. I get looks and giggles from people but I would rather take the embarrassment over something happening to my child any day! It's very easy to look at someone when your not in their shoes and say I won't do this or that, but as parents we quickly learn that you never really know what it's like until your in that situation. So next time you see a kiddie leash maybe you'll have some sympathy for those parents and realize maybe they have tried everything else.

A lot of good points I hadn't thought of regarding the reasons for using a leash. For those that have used it, I'm curious what your children think of it. Do they put it on willingly or can it be a challenge?

I have one child so its pretty easy for me to keep him in hand when he was younger, however, if I had more kids and we were someplace like an amusement park, etc... that was crowded sure I wouldn't mind using a leash.

Before I had a child my views on child rearing were so excellent and I knew how everyone else should be raising their kids - of course once I had a child my views suddenly became less clear and I became more pragmatic about dealing with how things really are...

I have a son with ADHD to a major degree. When he was 3-4 yrs old He did not have the help of his meds yet. At that age, he refused to sit in a "Baby Stroller." He also wanted his "big boy" independence. The child leash came in really handy for our outings. He had the choice of holding my hand or the 3 ft space to walk close to me and not go too far. The leash helped us through some very trying times.

In centuries before "leashes" were called Leading Strings. from wikipedia.org

"Leading strings are strings or straps by which to support a child learning to walk. In 17th and 18th century Europe, they were narrow straps of fabric attached to children's clothing which originally functioned as a sort of leash to keep the child from straying too far or falling as they learned to walk.
Leading strings served two functions: reducing bumps and bruises in children who are just learning to walk, and restraining young children who might injure themselves by walking or running into unsafe places. Baby walkers and playpens are now commonly used for this purpose, or a child harness in older children."

I would rather see a child with a leash held by a parent that cares than see them run everywhere with parents that are not even paying attention.

My Mom put a leash on me when I was little. It was such a non-issue that I don't even remember it. IMO there are alot of more important issues which are cringe-worthy.

I used a "leash" will my kids, and I used it happily. My two sons are one year apart, so when they were 1, 2, and three years old it was a matter of necessity (and safety). I only used it at places where I knew we were going to be for quite a while, like the grocery store or Como Zoo, etc. The "leash" went around their wrist, so I honestly don't see why people get all upset about it or cringe. Imagine grocery shopping with a 2 and three year old, no room to put them in the cart. When your grocery shopping, unfortunately you can't keep your eyes on your child at all times. A leash is the only way to make sure they stay near you, without giving them an opportunity to bolt off (which my boys often did at that age). In time, I didn't need the leash anymore, because by using it they learned to always stay near me. What makes ME cringe is parents who have kids that age wandering (or running) around a store. I often wonder why they don't put a leash on their child.

If we must stop using child safety harnesses just because they remind some people of leashes, what's next? Should we stop using seat belts on children because they could remind some people of the restrains used on the criminally insane? In my humble opinion, it is a bit insane to sacrifice a child's safety because of a label (leash).

If you think seeing a child on a leash makes you cringe, I can promise you the idea of my autistic child bolting out into traffic & being killed by a car as I watch helplessly makes me cringe a whole lot more. And furthermore, I refuse to neglect my child's safety because of some stupid social stigma that has become associated with them over the years. They are called child safety harnesses because that's their function, to protect the kids, nothing more or less. Seriously, instead of cringing the next time you see a child in a harness (because, believe me, we get plenty of that) why don't you smile and say hello. There's a good chance that parent making the best choice for the child!