Here Kiddie, Kiddie, Kiddie

Recently I took my children to the zoo.  The temperature was ideal, the sun was shining, and the zoo animals were active - a glorious day!  There were even very few visitors so we weren't fighting crowd either.

Often when I visit a zoo or amusement park setting I wind up practically following the same people the entire time I am there.  They are people I don't know at all but somehow, as if planned, no matter how many bathroom breaks, detours or snack breaks we take - the same people are standing right in front of us.

On my most recent zoo adventure, we followed a family from exhibit to exhibit - despite my efforts to separate our paths.

The family we were unintentionally following was utilizing a child leash on their child - who was at least 4 or 5 years old.

I recognize that what I am about to say may fly in the face of some of my readers - but what is up with a child leash?  What is the purpose of the leash?

There are several reasons I am opposed to the child leash.  While I realize as people we are animals, children are not dogs - why would you treat your flesh and blood the same way you would your beloved pet?

Is the purpose to help protect your child from being kidnapped because he or she won't be far enough away from you to be abducted by a stranger?  If that is the case, know that this is typically the thing many parents fear the most.  However, you can rest a little easier knowing that according to Gavin de Becker in Protecting the Gift, "A child is vastly more likely to have a heart attack, and child heart attacks are so rare that most parents (correctly) never even consider the risk."

Is the purpose to teach your child to stay near you?  I personally find that setting rules for my child and consistently enforcing the rules with my children a far more positive and effective method for teaching my child to stay near me.

I respect that parents have the right to choose the products they use on their children and if you are the parent that chooses to utilize the leash - I respect your choice.  But as a mom, I choose not to use a leash and choose to actively parent my child rather than relying on tools I would consider archaic and demeaning.

What do you think?