‘They’re not dogs’: Dad slammed for using leashes for quintuplets

A dad of quintuplets has doubled down on his use of kids’ leashes after online critics blasted him for taking his five-year-olds walking while using the devices.

A US dad has been blasted for using kids’ leashes while taking his five-year-old quintuplets out for a walk.

Jordan Driskell, 31, uploaded a video to Instagram last month that showed his five small children wearing soft leash backpacks as they walked in the sunshine in Kentucky, US, the New York Post reports.

“Come walk a mile in my shoes,” the father captioned his clip, defending his use of the accessory.

A dad in the US state of Kentucky has been blasted for using a leash to restrain his five-year-old quintuplets on a walk. Picture: Instagram

Driskell and his wife Brianna, 34, say it’s difficult to keep an eye on their kids – Zoey, Dakota, Hollyn, Asher and Gavin – and regularly use the child leash backpacks while running errands.

But social media users proclaimed that only animals should be tied up and said they were disturbed by the sight of the father using the device.

One said the kids were ‘not dogs’. Picture: TikTok

But the dad hit back, defending his actions. Picture: TikTok

“Those kids are way too old to be walked on a leash like a damn dog,” one person said.

“They are not dogs. How about teaching them what to do?” said another.

Meanwhile, a third said sarcastically: “Are you gonna train them to pull a sleigh next? Which one has the red nose? Are any of them rescue?”

However, a large number of people defended the dad.

“Do what you have to to keep them babies safe! Love is what I see. None of them look stressed at all. Good for you,” one wrote.

“Keep it up Dad! They are safe, you are sane and naysayers are stupid,” another commented.

The dad doubled down on using the device, sharing a second video to TikTok. Picture: Instagram

Driskell and his wife Brianna say it’s difficult to keep an eye on their quintuplets. Picture: Instagram

Child leashes have long been a hot topic for debate.

Back in 2018, one paediatrician told Good Housekeeping: “As the father-of-three, I am well aware of how quick, impulsive, and unpredictable kids can be. But from an injury standpoint, I would worry about entanglement or choking.”

But Mr Driskell doubled down on the fact he frequently leashes his kids, sharing a separate video to his popular TikTok account.

“Don’t mind me!” he captioned the clip, which was filmed from his perspective and showed his quintuplets happily wearing their leash backpacks as they walked in front of him.

This article originally appeared on the New York Post and was reproduced with permission