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I’m often being asked by new canicrossers what length of line they should buy, as K9 Trail Time stocks a wide range of bungee lines in a variety of lengths. The reason that we offer so many choices is because everyone prefers different things and as with everything, what suits one person and their dog will not suit another.

For example I have always preferred to run my dogs with a slightly shorter two dog line than the average and have opted for the Bono two dog canicross line for racing two dogs.

The line is made of tough webbing, it has a grab handle so you can hold them if need be and it’s a good length for racing, not being too long as to cause issues with tripping other people on the course. The Bono two dog line is approx 2 metres stretched.

I have also been using the Arctic Wolf Canicross Line for running and racing one dog events because it’s extremely lightweight and being 2 metres when stretched, it meets all UK and European racing standards.

When the rules about running dogs at Parkrun changed I decided to investigate a much shorter line and that was when we started stocking the Bonos’ line, which is the shortest line available at approximately 1.2 metres. I now use this line frequently with my dogs because it has a handy grab handle and is much easier to keep your dog under control in a crowded situation. That is the biggest advantage of a short line and whilst I don’t think it’s ideal for racing, as you need to allow your dog to be out in front, the Bonos’ line is certainly the best length for crowded situations and where you need to keep your dog close to you.

I also used the Bonos’ line with my husky cross, as she prefered to run by my side the majority of the time and with a longer line this can mean it drags on the floor and had been known to trip me up!

The Arctic Wolf line as mentioned before also comes in a Parkrun length in a variety of colours with an integrated grab handle.

The Non-stop Line has been developed over the last few years and now has elastic bungee the entire length of the line, making it one of the best bungees available and is particularly good for strong pullers.

However, as most of my training runs are off road and through fields and wooded areas, I have also been using the longer lines such as

the Howling Dog Alaska

and also the light weight Neewa Bungee Line

The longer lines allow the dogs more freedom when we’re training to run to the side of the track and sniff at patches of grass, giving them the option to behave more like they are on a normal walk than a run. I like to make sure that my dogs aren’t always racing in harness and can differentiate between when we should be focused for racing and when we are either doing a longer distance run or are simply having a ‘fun’ run!

If you’re looking to bike or scooter with your dog, we would always recommend a longer line so that your dog is further away from your bike or scooter wheel and the Arctic Wolf, Non-stop and Neewa lines all have specific longer lines for this purpose, all you need to do is select the long length in the drop down options.

So you can see that the different lengths of lines suit different situations and it comes down to a variety of factors to determine which length will suit you and your dog best the majority of the time.