Some days I just want to take my 140-pound Saint Bernard on a leisurely walk that’s focused purely on his happiness. But, um, let’s be real. Those days are few and far between because I’m a busy city girl who juggles a bazillion things and never ever doesn’t have some type of errand that needs to be run. Which means that more often than not, Monkey’s walks happen around whatever it is I need to accomplish, whether it’s picking up the dry cleaning, grabbing a coffee, or sending a text message.

The only problem with this plan is that, uh, Monkey weighs ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY POUNDS. And, fine, maybe sometimes likes to pull a little bit depending on if he sees a squirrel. Or a dog. Or a person. Or a tree. Or, fine, a tree branch. Which makes walking him while holding piping hot coffee slightly precarious to say the least. And don’t even get me started on how he always needs to poop right AFTER I get the coffee, which means I’m usually resting it on the top of some stranger’s car (thanks, strangers!), and then, my favorite part: walking with the leash in one hand (and the Saint Bernard at the end of it) and a coffee and a ginormous bag of poop in the other.

Basically, I should join a circus.

All of this is a long way of saying that when I was told about the Liberty Wristband, a device that would allow me to walk Monkey hands-free, I was like, “Um, there’s no way this will ever work, but let me pretty please try it anyway, because ohmygod, what if it did?”

A girl can dream, can’t she?

The Liberty Wristband is made of soft neoprene and has a super-strong fastening device (and a manual quick-release just in case) that attaches to any size leash for hands-free dog walking. In theory, it also helps relieve a stressed hand or wrist (from gripping a leash) and transitions that shock absorption to your stronger, bendable arm. Cost? $29.99.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t a great fit for Monkey and me for several reasons:

1. Though we work on it every day, Monkey still pulls. This was the biggest issue, as having his leash attached to my wrist didn’t allow me to use my entire body to stop the pulling.
2. When Monkey was walking nicely next to me (which he does a lot of the time — good boy!), the leash dragged on the ground.
3. I didn’t feel like I could control where Monkey was going, which is a problem in the city, where I often need to move him out of the way of passing pedestrians. It felt like the Liberty Wristband put the control in Monkey’s paws, although I do think perhaps that could be corrected with practice. (It doesn’t feel natural to use one’s wrist instead of just grabbing the leash.)

That being said, I’m definitely not saying that the Liberty Wristband wouldn’t be an awesome buy for someone with a smaller dog who doesn’t pull, because I think it could be. In that case, though, I would suggest using a shorter leash to keep your dog close to your side (as I personally believe he should be) on walks.

I can also see using the Liberty Wristband when I take Monkey to the beach or the park and there’s nowhere to tether him. It seems like a much better option than the weird “I’ll loop his leash around my ankle and try not to let my foot come off the ground” technique I’m still trying to perfect.

Ultimately, even though the Liberty Wristband is made for dogs of all sizes, I do think Monkey is just too big (and too young — he’s only 16 months, so we’ve still got some puppy pulling/training time ahead of us) for me to feel comfortable walking him without having my hands firmly on his leash. Looks like these callouses I’m building up aren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

Dogster scorecard for the Liberty Wristband

• Quality: It’s sturdy with waterproof neoprene and water-resistant nylon materials. It also has waterproof-grade aluminum with all stainless steel springs and components. Clearly very well made. Keeping all of that in mind, $29.99 seems like a very fair price.
• Style: I mean, it’s a neoprene wristband, so let’s not get crazy here. Still, considering that, it’s pretty subtle. More so than I thought. Let’s put it this way: I didn’t feel like a huge dork wearing it outside. Which is the only place you’d be wearing it, so … that’s a plus.
• Function: The wristband adjusts with Velcro to fit any size wrist. I have bizarrely tiny wrists, and it was snug and comfy. The fastening device was very secure. I didn’t worry about Monkey “escaping” even for a second. That being said, it was just a little too hard to walk a big, strong dog with a tendency to pull.
• Creativity: Love the idea. It’s definitely a product I think every dog owner has dreamed about on many a walk.

Bottom line

I would definitely give this as a gift to a friend with a smaller dog who’s good on a leash. Sadly, it was not a great fit for my 140-pound Saint Bernard.

Read more reviews:

• Monkey the Saint Bernard Tests the Crypton Throver
• Can the Slo-Bowl Stop My Saint Bernard From Gobbling His Food?
• Monkey the Saint Bernard Tries Out BarkBox

About the Author: Daisy Barringer grew up in San Francisco and didn’t let the fact that she’s a city girl keep her from getting her dream dog: a Saint Bernard. She and Monkey love to romp in the snow in Tahoe, visit dog-friendly bars, watch 49ers football, and drool. Yup, both of ’em.