Walking my Siberian Husky

Question
Hi
I have a Siberian Husky who is 18 weeks old. Before getting her I did all the research about the breed, read the books etc etc. One of the things that I read on every website was that they should never be let off the lead.
In my local park where I take her every day, I am getting people being quite nasty about the fact that she is not allowed off the lead.. I use a retractable lead and run with her so she gets plenty of excercise.
There are two other huskies in the park, one is a year old and the other 5 months. Both are running free. I am doing recall with mine and she will come back but because of all I have read I do not feel confidant about letting her off the lead but am getting stressed about what other dog owners are saying. Things like, Let her run, Let that poor dog off the lead. etc etc. The other morning a Doberman jumped on her which frightened her and the owner said it was my fault for keeping her on a lead. I would really appreciate some advice to help me feel that I am doing the right thing to not let her off..
Thank you
Wendy

Answer
Short answer - you are doing the right thing.  Other dog owners are obviously ignorant of the research you have done in understanding your dog.

One option for the recall, is get a long line.  Maybe a 100' lead - you can just use rope and attach an eye hook and you can usually get them at home centers, and they often sell them as packaged for pet leashes.  This will allow you to work longer recalls, and the 100' lead, while not really controlling the dog, does allow you to pull her back in if she gets off to exploring.

As for the Doberman - obviously, the other owner doesn't have control of  their dog.  Don't worry about it.  One thing I have noticed is that if a dog is attacked by another dog (or just playing around), it isn't a bad idea to drop the lead.  The pull on the neck can be misinterpreted, and there is a little truth to the idea that the dog is thinking that, under your control, her job is to protect you.  This can cause a little aggression in these cases, but that's minor.  Generally, if another dog comes up on my dog, and they are interested in meeting - I drop my lead, and just let them sniff around and swat each other or whatever they want to do.  I don't allow chase games, and I'm usually within inches of grabbing the lead off of the ground if either dog shows any sign of aggression, or a chase game is about to start.

Overall though, you are doing the right thing, and while you probably could let the dog off lead to play around while at the park and be fine, there is a chance that it might be the one time your dog decides to chase after a squirrel, or anything else.  And once the prey drive kicks in, recall is not always a reliable means of getting the dog back.  To me, it's not worth the risk.