"Lights on your Dog!" – really?

Our Community › Forums › General Discussion › "Lights on your Dog!" – really?

  • Creator
    Topic
  • October 6, 2011 at 1:10 pm #910456
    theakston
    Participant

    “Lights on your dog!” that’s what a cyclist screamed at me as he passed me on the W&OD in Arlington yesterday at about 6:30 AM. I was running, as I often do, with my dog before cycling in to work. I always run with a LED head light on and usually will point it in the direction of the dog when I hear a cyclist come up from behind to make sure they see I am not alone. He is always on a short leash and is very good at running at my heels. It never occured to me that a cyclist would think I needed additional dog specific illumination.

    I have tried some of the products out there for dogs and none of them have been very successful – flashing leashes with those expensive disc batteries that last about a week, same with all the flashing collars I have tried.

    Does anyone have any recommendations for what might work?

  • Creator
    Topic
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 16 total)
1 2
  • Author
    Replies
  • October 6, 2011 at 1:18 pm #930784
    Greenbelt
    Participant

    I’ve seen dogs with reflective collars on the trails. That’s enough for me to see them just fine at night. Frankly, if I’m going too fast to not see a well-behaved dog, I’m probably going too fast. I do get annoyed at the dog walkers with long leashes who are talking on their phones on one side of the trail and not minding their dog, which has gone to the other side. I can’t see those leash lines very well.

    October 6, 2011 at 1:29 pm #930787
    jrenaut
    Participant

    You’ll never make everyone happy. Sounds like you go out of your way to be a good trail user. I wouldn’t pay much attention to the crazies.

    October 6, 2011 at 1:32 pm #930788
    Tim Kelley
    Participant

    Two things:

    If I ever start a band, “Lights On Your Dog” is a strong front runner for a potential name.

    You could try something along the style of lights that BikeArlington gives out as a promo item. They look like this.

    October 6, 2011 at 1:34 pm #930789
    dasgeh
    Participant

    I thought trails were closed to all but cyclists with appropriate lights between dusk and dawn.

    October 6, 2011 at 1:37 pm #930792
    CCrew
    Participant

    @dasgeh 8862 wrote:

    I thought trails were closed to all but cyclists with appropriate lights between dusk and dawn.

    Try closed completely between dusk and dawn. At least that’s what the cops keep telling me.

    October 6, 2011 at 2:12 pm #930802
    DaveK
    Participant

    My dog has a collar with blinking LEDs all around and a little LED sphere light that hooks on to the collar near his tags. I got the collar at Disney World (I know, but it was on sale!) although they sell similar products at REI, and the hanging light on his collar looks like this – http://www.ledlightbars.org/led-snowball-keychain.html. I’m going to get him one of these at REI when either of those products breaks – http://www.niteize.com/products/nite-dawg-led-dog-collar

    We don’t run together anymore as he’s getting older but it helps since he’s black and we usually walk in the dark this time of year. Plus everyone loves the big goofy Christmas tree dog.

    October 6, 2011 at 2:28 pm #930804
    Joe Chapline
    Participant

    @Tim Kelley 8860 wrote:

    If I ever start a band, “Lights On Your Dog” is a strong front runner for a potential name.

    Keep the audience waiting after the band is supposed to start, so they’ll chant “Lights On Your Dog! Lights On Your Dog”!

    October 6, 2011 at 2:37 pm #930805
    Dirt
    Participant

    Reflective leashes work very well. I have given away 20 or 30 of them over the last 5 years. I see a dozen or more of them every week. I’ve seen people put a bike flashie on their dog’s collars. They seem okay, but I’ve generally noticed that the reflective leashes are enough.

    October 6, 2011 at 3:35 pm #930809
    baiskeli
    Participant

    I feed my dog radioactive waste. He glows like a firefly.

    October 6, 2011 at 3:39 pm #930810
    americancyclo
    Participant

    I like the idea of ‘lights for everyone’ and I’m not going to exclude animals.

    Do any of the pedestrian / jogging / running groups give out lights the way Bike Arlington does?

    October 6, 2011 at 4:14 pm #930812
    jabberwocky
    Participant

    People certainly overestimate their visibility, it seems (which is why I always ran a very bright light when I commuted on the W&OD). I don’t remember ever seeing a dog at night, but if I was running with one I’d definitely try to get something reflective on him. Dogs (even well controlled ones on short leashes) are something I keep a very careful eye on, because they have an element of randomness that people don’t. As a cyclist, I’d definitely appreciate being able to see a dog as easily as possible.

    The fact that you have him on a short leash puts you above 98% of the dog walkers though, so I certainly wouldn’t be inclined to yell anything at you. :)

    October 7, 2011 at 2:35 am #930832
    KS1G
    Participant

    Some neighbors clip a cheap bike blinky to the collar or leash on or at the dog’s end and have some other illumination/reflective vest they wear. This lets me know where both the person is and the dog is – very handy to be able to see clearly what the dog is doing (usually less predictable than the people).

    October 7, 2011 at 2:41 pm #930838
    Usern Ame
    Participant

    How about a light that gets attached ot the dogs tail©

    October 7, 2011 at 7:03 pm #930846
    txgoonie
    Participant

    I put a RoadId blinkie light on my dog’s collar. I did have reflective tape on her leash, but after a while it peeled off. Frankly I liked that better b/c you could see it from more angles.

    Always err on the side of overdoing the safety gear. Based on the number of people I saw between 5:30 and 6:30 this morning on the MVT without a light or a single piece of reflective anything, we are, as Jabber said, overestimating how easy we are to see. If you’re done up properly, you’re going to be the thing a cyclist coming by is concentrating on (as it should be), so that actually puts a greater importance on making sure your furry friend is getting due attention.

    October 7, 2011 at 9:30 pm #930851
    FFX_Hinterlands
    Participant

    Lights on your dog.. makes me think of the Phineas and Ferb song “Squirrel in your pants.”

    Here are some reflective dog products from my favorite dirt-cheap-led-light website:
    http://www.dontgethit.com/reflective-pet-wear.html

  • Author
    Replies
Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 16 total)
1 2
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.