My biggest safety tips for walking in the dark are be seen and be seen! If you wear black from head to toe and go out in the dark, you are asking for trouble. Vehicles need to see you, and you are responsible for grabbing the attention of drivers! Technically, drivers are responsible, but do you really want to trust someone else with your life?
Fall is the most dangerous time of year for pedestrians. Drivers are adjusting to driving in the dark in the mornings and evenings, there is no snow to brighten things up, and pedestrians forget how invisible they are. We dogs are stuck with our humans on walks and runs in the dark and also need to be seen. Aside from Mom wearing bright colors, we use lights.
A couple years ago we got one as a gift and loved it so much, we now have like eight of these clip on lights. They can be a solid light, or a strobe light. Most brands come in different colors too, but we have settled on the yellow/green ones.
Mom clips one or two to her shirt and/or belt, and we clip ours on our collar or harness. They are light as a feather, and the clip has ridges so they don’t slide off or around on the collar even when going running. The batteries last about 100 hours, and with some brands you can change the batteries too.
My sisters love to play in the yard at night, but it makes Mom nervous when she can’t see them. Now she straps a light on each of their collars and enjoys watching the green lights move about the yard in the darkness. The neighbors find it amusing too!
These little lights are bright put out a lot of light. In the darkness, the light coming from the collar is enough to help Mom make sure she gets all the poop pile picked up. From this photo in the dark, you can see the light and how bright it is.
This is the first kind we got as a gift and we still buy them. All the ones we have tried are weatherproof so we can have them out in the cold, rain, and snow without any issues.
Recently we ordered this kind as the batteries can be replaced and they have three modes. Both kinds work great and cost anywhere from $6 to $20. Vehicles can’t help but notice the lights dancing along on the sidewalk. We figure if we get hit, at least the driver can’t say they didn’t see us! Stay safe out there! Dress in bright, light colors and illuminate yourself and your dog!
My GBGV Life did not receive any compensation for this post. We purchased these lights on our own and are only posting about them to help our readers stay safe when out in the dark this fall and winter.
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that’s a super gadget to walk in the dark… I have a GID bandana so I’m a glowing dog too… oh wait… I mean I HAD a bandana…;o)
Maybe you glow inside your belly now?
Those are a great idea. I like that better than a reflective collar, or leash. The blinking would make people notice more.
We usually have one blinking and the others just on. Mom says those kind of things always catch her eye when she drives so she hopes it catches the eye of other drivers too.
Great ideas Emma. Mom’s going to look into this for sure. By the way, we didn’t receive your email this morning, but mom saw your posting on Twitter so she realized we hadn’t read your blog this morning. Just letting you know. We looked through the junk file too but it wasn’t there. Maybe just a Monday morning glitch. Have a great day, your doodle friend Dash
Hmmm…odd. My mom gets my emails so she can monitor things and hers came in. Let me know is you don’t get one tomorrow. Sometimes we have had to resubscribe not only to our own blog but other ones we like. Hopefully it is just a Monday thing or maybe it will show up later after being delayed in cyberspace. Anyway, you can get these lights on Amazon. We order what ever comes on prime.
Emma! Your email just arrived! 4:30 ET.
Yay! We heard there was cyber road construction east of us, maybe that was it, LOL!
Those look really bright! While we normally don’t walk at night, I like the idea of having them on the dogs when they’re out in the yard playing after dark. The lights on the house just don’t illuminate the yard everywhere, and I like to know where they are.
Once we have snow we are pretty easy to see, but right now it is all black out there. Now Mom can watch the green lights racing around here and there so she has entertainment and peace of mind!
That is pretty cool and it is always best to play it safe!
Always good to be seen!
We have a couple of lights for the boys’ collars but seldom walk in the dark. When we do, they wear them and we wear light clothing.
You guys need to strap them on in the yard in the dark Mom says it is hilarious to watch the dancing lights!
We love your pawsome tips!
Thank you.
Wow, what cool strobe lights and great safety tips. Mama is thinking about getting one so she can see Rosy in the back yard at night too…That girl just loves the backyard at night(and during the day too)!
xoxo,
Jakey, Arty & Rosy
Mom loves to be able to see us bouncing around out there. It is amusing to watch according to her.
Momma used to have lights for collars back when she walked Whitley in da dark.
This time of the year we end up out in the dark a lot it seems, so the lights are quite helpful.
We have very similar lights that came from Eddie Bauer! The batteries last forever and we have had them for a very long time! I also wear a baseball cap that is solar powered with lights on the front…mostly so I don’t trip and fall on my head! We have been spending a lot more time outside after dark now that we have more dogs. Great tips…thanks. Happy Halloween to you guys?
Mom has a head lamp but doesn’t like to wear it. The clip on lights are fantastic and so simple too.
I like those! We use LED leashes when we walk at night, which I love. But I also like the idea of having something on their collar too.
Some of our leashes are reflective which adds to being seen. We’ve tried glow collars but our furs cover them up so much. These lights are perfect for us.
What a handy tool! Barley and Rye’s tail tips show up really well in the dark, but we rarely walk when it’s dark outside because our neighborhood isn’t really a good place for that. I love the idea of watching you play with them, though! I bet your neighbors think there are UFOs flying around out there 🙂
Mom tried really hard to video it, but it just didn’t work out. It is hilarious watching the green dots zoom around and the green “halo” looks UFO like.
Very cool, anything to be super safe
Being seen is so important!
A very cool aid and quite timely now that DST ends this weekend! Thanks for sharing.
We walk and run early mostly, so for us it is now a bit lighter for a little while, but we also walk in the evenings when it is dark out.