Why Does the Dog Run Away From the Yard, And How to Prevent It?

The problem of escapes is more often faced by owners of hunting dogs, sled dogs and mongrels. In solving this issue, it is important not only to find out the cause, but also to try to eliminate the possibility.

What makes a dog run away from home

In principle, a dog of any breed can become a fugitive, but sled and hunting dogs are more susceptible to this because of an innate craving for pursuit. Vagrancy is more characteristic of herding breeds, and mongrel dogs. More often it is associated with a lack of work, social connections and new information. Guard breeds have a very strong sense of territoriality, so they rarely run away.

What to do if the dog tries to escape

• Fix the flaws in the fence. If the dog has learned to dig tunnels, a trench is made under the fence and large stones are dug in, a curb or a narrow ribbon foundation is poured about 30 cm deep without formwork.
• In order not to spoil the appearance of your yard or fence, you can buy an electric fence, for example, coloradopetfence.com. It is absolutely safe for the pet, because you can customize the options for yourself. The sensor is integrated into the collar and an intelligent transmitter, which does not allow the dog to escape from the territory.
• Often dogs jump over the fence if, for example, there is a booth under the fence or firewood is stacked. In this case, you can try to remove the improvised step. It is more difficult if the dog overcomes the fence from the ground. Here you need to increase its height.
• A small visor on the inside of the fence. It doesn’t have to be solid. It is enough to place an obstacle in the form of a wooden bar or a metal corner at a short distance from the upper edge of the fence.
• It’s not worth experimenting with barbed wire. The dog will jump anyway and may get hurt, but a very persistent one will not analyze and learn from its mistakes.
• If the dog has learned to open the gate itself, installing a small latch or hook will help.

To exclude the possibility of escape is the main task. Of course, you can chain an animal or lock it in an aviary, but will a “life imprisonment” be fair to a dog.

It’s hard to say how to wean a dog to run away, but you can do everything possible so that it doesn’t want to.