I never thought that I would embrace the concept of the toddler backpack harness until our two and a half year old son tried to leg it from me in the mall. Around and around we ran, it was both scary and comical as he kept backing up and mocking me before running off again. You think as they are small that you can outrun little toddlers... I can't speak for all of them but it was definitely not so with this little "Speedy Gonzales" of ours.

When we returned home I did a lot of research on my computer and made an exhaustive shortlist of child safety toddler backpack harnesses - I displayed them on the screen and Speedy picked the backpack he liked best - the green dog design.

It is just large enough to hold the odd item such as a diaper, a snack and a toy, but it's nice because Speedy likes to pack and unpack it by himself. I am told that toddlers like to take charge over something so that they can "own it" and as a result this can make them more pliable in other ways (such as dressing to go out - this can take half an hour but since the backpack came along, he packs it and then allows me to help him get dressed in record time!)

Top rated animal/plain toddler backpack harnesses

Take a look at the selection below and see what you think once you read the reviews - one thing to note is that the ones with plush/furry leashes can get rather warm in summer, this is why there are more of the padded canvas types to look at:-