Wait a Minute, Where's Cody?

Yesterday I was walking the boys in the late afternoon. During the walks I'm always juggling a few items, mainly keys and 2 leashes. Two leashes that are attached to dogs that have 2 completely different walking styles. Simon is on a walk to investigate all trees, bushes, and signs he comes across. Cody merrily walks about soaking up the sunshine and commonly looking for people that might want to pet him. During this particular afternoon walk I remember Simon pulling me in a certain direction, I had to get a hold of him then I had to readjust my keys in my hand plus grab my sunglasses as I had started to knock them off in my hurry to get Simon under control. A few moments later I look down to discover I only have keys and 1 leash in my hand. I glance down to see Simon on my left side. I look to my right side for Cody....nope, no Cody in sight. I look back behind us and there he stood many feet back just waiting for me to realize that I had dropped his leash and he was no longer walking with us. Both of my boys simply stop in their tracks when their leashes have been dropped which is a good thing. I still can't believe I dropped his leash and didn't realize it the second I dropped it. That's the part I've had trouble accepting!

I can see some of the humor in the situation this morning! However, I was beating myself up about it last night because I kept thinking of all the horrible things that could have happened to him. That's exactly why I will never be the type of dog owner that has her dogs out and about with no leashes. In our old neighborhood it was common practice for people to walk their dogs up to the nearby park with no leash. I don't understand how people do it. I dropped Cody's leash for just seconds and was horrified once I thought about all the things that could have happened while his leash was not firmly in my grasp.