| When a dog has not got the necessary social involvement at home the dog may want to seek its "fun" in life somewhere else. If the dog is new to your home, it may wish to try and get back to its old environment. If you have an entire male and he senses a bitch on heat, he may feel the need to follow his instincts and escape. If you have a bitch on heat, the bitch may feel it is necessary to escape to find a mate. (If you don't want stray dogs hanging around when your bitch is on heat then you need to do the following. When you take your dog for a walk. Take her in the car to a park a few kilometers away from your home. The bitches urine is the main cause of attracting entire males to her. This way dogs will find it hard to track her scent.) Sometimes when dogs escape they form packs, although some animal behaviourists say this is untrue, I disagree. I have seen this happen a number of times. A good dog training collar will always be useful. Dogs can easily roam freely on their own, they do not have to form packs, but occasionally other dogs may join the group and they run together. This does not mean that the pack could be any more dangerous than the single dog roaming on its own. Any animal that is free on the street should be approached with extreme caution unless you are familiar with that animal. Dogs normally roam because they are bored and they need to explore out of interest. If you were to exercise your dog every morning and every evening then this should reduce the amount of escapes that your dog need to make.
If the dog has a lot of energy, you will need to wear the dog out so it sleeps all night. You need to check your property for gaps in fences or places where dogs can escape. Do not underestimate your dog because it could escape from any small place around the yard. If you have bins up against the fence the dog may jump up onto the bin and over the fence. T O STOP YOUR DOG FROM ESCAPING.Before you first receive your dog check to make sure that the fencing is adequate to keep the dog in. - Some dog breeds like Bull Terriers, Blue Healers, Cross Breeds and Kelpie dogs can jump to enormous heights for their size, so you need to have a fence that is the right height according to the breed as well as no holes for the dog to climb or dig through.
- Some products available on the market can be purchased to restrain your dog on the property like the invisible fencing. These fences can be expensive but easily outweigh the cost of a boundary fence.
- Give your dog plenty of exercise morning and night this will be able to tire out your dog so it may sleep all night.
- For a temporary arrangement until you can stop your dog from escaping you may have to tie your dog up at night or when you go out. If you have to do this make a running line for the dog and give the dog adequate shelter and water for the period it is to be restrained.
- Keeping a dog tied up for long periods will also cause behavioural problems like over excitement when you arrive home or excessive barking.
If you wish to catch your dog out when it escapes try the desensitisation methods I have talked about in the GENERAL TRAINING section on this disc. You need to remember that if you are going to catch your dog out and reprimand the dog for the disobedient behaviour you need to apply the punishment to the dog immediately. This does not mean that the dog gets a beating as soon as it is caught escaping. All you need to do is verbally attack your dog or hose the dog down with the hose as he is coming out of the hole or jumping over the fence. The best and most inexpensive way to stop your dog from escaping is to kennel your dog in the yard, this kennel must be sheltered, have water, be dig proof and the dog must be exercised if it is to be kept in the kennel for long periods. Feed the dog in the kennel and never tell it "GO TO YOUR BED" if it has done wrong. You want this to be a happy place and a place where the dog feels secure. |
