A break from the deals for a moment...
My dog has run away for the 5th time in 3 days. I hate him. If my husband is here he is perfectly behaved. He plays in the front yard and never thinks of leaving. If my husband is not here, and he can manage to get onto the driveway or in the front yard he takes off. And I mean BOLTS down the street, than I end up spending an hour trying to catch him. So yesterday he took off and I didn't chase him, I was so angry. When my husband got home he jumped in the car and found him a few blocks away. Today he bolted again. It was late afternoon and I had to get kids to practices, so I just left, I was so mad I didn't really care if he ever came back. We got home after dark and he wasn't around. So I got the kids ready for bed and left our side door open and sure enough about 30min after we got home he came running in the house. I was a little relieved for the kids sake.
I have had it with him, this is the first dog I have ever owned. He is a 18mo old labradoodle. I was probably not firm enough with him in the beginning and I suppose I am paying for it now? Any suggestion from the dog people out there??
P.S. Our cat has been missing for 5 days now. I fear the worst. It is a bad time to be a pet in my house!
20 comments:
I have a 2 year old female white boxer, she huge clumsy & a big baby with zero manners but she is the most amazing family pet Ive ever owner.I trained my boxer using a clicker from PetsMart, every time she did something good I would click it & give her a treat. So now whenever I click it she comes RUNNING & sits down waiting for a treat. I keep it in my hand when unloading groceries etc & it works like a charm. As a last resort my suggestion is to use an invisible fence, you bury the posts & the dog wears a collar that gives them a zap when they cross it, Yes i KNOW how this sounds but its better than him getting hit by a car. Kinda like kids I think she responds well to positive reinforcement because I think shes a bit too dumb to get why I'm yelling at her for running in the street!
Our cat ran away for 3 weeks last year and we eventually got her back (someone finally looked at her collar and called me). She was gone during that torrential rain storm last year and my husband told me she probably got rinsed down the storm drain.
She took off again for 2 days this week and then came back.
I guess what I'm saying is don't give up hope on the kitty. I stuck a couple "flyers" on the neighborhood mailboxes to make myself feel better.
Thanks guys! I am putting up signs for the cat, mostly to make the kids happy. I have thought he might be sick and took him in, they said they didnt see anything, didnt do blood work but I am wondering if he went off and died?? thats horrible I know, but I am still wondering?
I was thinking about the shock collar myself.
Tiffany, I'm so sorry! I had a dog like that and I would just cry out of frustration when it happend. Mine would always run out the side door when one of the kids (and sometimes me) would unsuspectingly open it. I finally put up a very wide baby gate with the little door that you could open. That worked really well, unless someone didn't shut the gate. She usually would do what I called her, "victory lap" around the neighborhood and come back. One day she finally didn't. It was horrible timing. We were getting ready to leave on a cub scout family camping trip. We had no choice but to leave when we searched and couldn't find her. Our neighbor even looked for her the whole weekend and even put up signs. We never found her. This was over 2 years ago and the kids still bring it up often. It makes me feel guilty, but I am also relieved. We have a new dog now (you saw her picture!). She is a total opposite and has relieved my conscience a bit. I figure that if I can have one good dog then the first one must not have been all my fault. Hang in there and stop chasing dogs!!! You are way too pregnant for that!!! Kari
We had a cat that kept running away every time I got pregnant. He never came home the last time. I feared the worst but told the kids (and myself) that he was so cute that someone had to of picked him up and he is living in a good home.
You may have to get a lawn stake and pretty much tie the dummy up. It might seem cruel, but it is a rather inexpensive way to get it done without having to install the electric fence. Just make sure you purchase a harness as well, harder ot get out of it.
We have a yellow lab, George, who sounds just like your dog. He is too smart and stubborn for his own good. We have an invisible fence. He just backs up, then dashes through it. Now, he has to stay in his dog run most of the time, unless he is in the house. I have no suggestions, just sighs of understanding for your similar situation.
Oh. My. Gosh. I swear we are living parallel lives. Except you love your coupons and I draw faces on mine.
See my post from yesterday.
I looked at "containment" fences again today online. Sam's Club has them for $100. I'm not a member but I will get soooooo much satisfaction from shocking her.
I finally took someone seriously and decided to try out the "my dog is bored" theory. Today I took her on a walk. About 15 minutes. Later, my 10 year old took her on two more. She was pretty good.
I'm also putting her on a leash and I'm practicing opening the door (tempting her) then yanking her back when she tries to bolt.
Did I say yank? I didn't mean yank. I meant "gently pull."
And then Scott comes home and she walks by his side out to the mailbox. Like she's wearing a freaking leash BUT SHE'S NOT BECAUSE HE'S THE ALPHA DOG AND HE DOESN'T GET WHAT THE FUSS IS ALL ABOUT!
AM I PMS? YES! ALTHOUGH NOT REALLY PRE ANYMORE. JUST M.S. AM I YELLING?
Sorry.
My dog used to be a bolter. I was lucky, after chasing him on foot for years (while I was yelling) we realized he loved to jump in the car, so I would drive down the street and he would hop in. We had good luck with the electric fence by the front door also. He is now 13 yrs. old and doesn't bolt any more. You just need to have patience! Miller will eventually grow out of it! LOL
Is he neutered? Dogs that are not neutered tend to wander in search for girlfriends.
Try watching The Dog Whisperer on National Geographic. He can teach you to deal with any problem with your dog.
I have a beagle just waits for the opportunity to slip out the door.. I use to chase him up the street but he would just run further.. now I just wait and he always comes home.. chasing him was a waste of time.. since he was neutered it is less of a problem and he doesn't go as far.. you could always leave a trail of beggin stips to the door and inside.. mine can't resist the beggins!
My male boxer decided to run away the other Saturday evening. (He ran across four lanes of busy traffic to get to McDonalds! Stupid dog!) Our female boxer no longer runs away after she did it as a puppy and my husband beat her with the leash within an inch of her life. He had called for her, she looked at him and turned and ran away from him anyway. Maybe it sounds drastic, but getting run over is a lot more painful, I'm sure.
Our male is already 6, though, so I doubt beating him would help. Plus, he was abused by his original owners so we don't lay a hand on him besides a smack on the butt here and there. (Or our female either, lest we sound like dog beaters!)
Maybe a good smack with the leash when you get him would get through to his dumb brain? :)
I assume that his name is Miller and it means he is male. : )
Male dogs enjoy wandering. Especially young ones, and 18 months is young and still in the puppy stages I believe until after 2 years old. If they are neutered, this usually calms their urge to wander. However, not always.
We currently own four dogs and one cat-dog. Three females, and one male. Chocolate is our male catahoolah, he is now 10 years old, he is not neutered. He goes where I go...he would only leave the yard if I were to go with him. It's a long story that really. So I don't have to worry about him. He loves to be inside, as close to me as possible. Snowball, female, spayed, 2 years, Chow chow mix...loves to BOLT. It's frustrating. She has gotten much better about listening and coming back when called. It takes time and patience. (Although, a fully enclosed 6 foot privacy fence that surrounds our backyard helps tremendously.) If you do not have a fence, and cannot get one right away, putting him on some kind of leash while outside will save your sanity.
Good luck! Dogs are wonderful animals, although they can be so very infuriating at times. I sympathize.
I forgot to add that I hope you are able to find your cat! I have always favored dogs over cats, until Odie, our car, adopted us.
You know another thing I thought of Tiffany, I have seen these little pads you put in door ways & I think they are made for cats & when they step on it, it gives them a shock, but I imagine with kids this isn't a good idea....or maybe it IS!!!
One of Jeff;s cats loves to bolt (dogs were a deal breaker... most days I think that cats should have been one too!!) Thankfully she is a "scaredy cat" and when she escapes she gets so freaked out that she runs right back in. But I do get tempted to just close the door... but the thought of how upset Jeff would be to lose her...
Right now the other one yowls and yowls in the middle of the night. I HATE it. But what can i do? lol We put him in the basement, that is the compromise.
Good luck you to you.
A shock collar has worked wonders for us. And not one attached to an electric fence, one you control. Our lab was a stray (and is part husky, who love to run), so if she could get out, she'd go for miles. She was known to slip a paw under the garage door as it was finishing going down and getting out. While we were visiting friends we used their collar. Put it on her and 5 of us sat in the grass playing with her and their dog. Once she realized she was off leash she bolted. One zap and she was back. Played for hours off leash with the other dog and never once tried to leave again. We ordered one on the way home! We have probably had to zap her a total of 8-10 times and we've had it over 2 years now. It also has a "sound" warning that we occasionally use and she responds to that quickly as well. We hardly even put it on her now and if we do, the batteries have been dead for months, but she doesn't know that! She will walk with us to the mailbox, down the street, play fetch in the field behind our place. Hasn't bolted since and will even come back right away if we yell at her when she goes off after a rabbit. It's been incredible and everyone - us and the dog - is much happier!
People. There are better ways to train your dog to stay home than a shock collar. Shock collars are cruel. My veterinarian says to put it on yourself and give a shock. See how it feels.
How about contacting a dog trainer?
Never used a shock collar, and don't plan to. Animals may not be human, but they certainly feel pain and electric shock just as well as a human does. There are better ways.
I have a beagle, male, fixed, who will wait for any opportunity to run out the door. He will bolt down the street at high speed, never looking back, if he gets the chance! Lately he only makes the loop to my mother's and then comes back. I've gotten to the point too, where I don't go look for him and secretly hope he won't ever come back. Mostly I think about the damn by-law officer and the life expectancy of the dog if I end up getting a ticket because he just HAD to go for a run. I think I should have stuck to my cats!! :)
Nothing has worked so far, to stop the bolting! Good luck with yours!! :)
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