Is Your Dog Always Running Away

If youre experiencing issues with your dog always running away, there are numerous things to look at first. In this article I hope to first direct you towards things you can change and be sure you are doing, then hopefully direct you towards a way to keep your dog from needing to escape in the first place. Dogs escape for a few reasons, lets look at those first.

Dogs, like us, get bored. The difference is we can call up a friend and go out in the town or go shopping, fishing, or what ever it is we all like to do. Dogs are usually found stuck at home. Put your self in their shoes. If you were stuck at home ALL the time, wouldnt you look for ways to escape too? Now even if you were stuck at home all the time, you would still be able to watch TV, read a book, play on the computer, clean the house, and lots of other things. We can even eat when we want to eat. Dogs on the other hand are usually left with nothing to occupy them at all. Take away all the things you can do and think about how awfully bored you would be!

Dogs also have a lot of energy. They need ways to burn this energy. If youre not giving this to them, then yes, they are going to look for a way to do this themselves. Running away is usually what they come up with, only its a lot of fun because they arent having to pull their owner along behind them on a leash trying to go and do what they want. They can simply just go!

Not only do dogs have a lot of energy, they also have a mind. Their mind also needs a way to be stimulated. Think about a slow day at work and your just sitting there watching the clock. Arent you bored out of your mind? Dogs get this way too! Do something with them, anything! Play a game, training, tricks, interactive toys, anything to get them thinking! Save them from being bored out of their mind! If you dont, once again they will look for a way to save themselves, usually ending up in trouble or running away.

Dogs need to get out of the house! Dont let them be locked up at the house ALL the time. Even if they are outside. Take them with you on errands, take them for a walk where they can go up to people and see others. Let them sniff the trees and go on an adventure! Schedule play dates with other dogs, if they like other dogs, or with kids if they like kids and you know some. Take them to the park if they are allowed. Sign up for some classes you can take them too. Getting them out will help prevent them from the need of running away.

Now, if you have done all the above and your dog is still running away, then perhaps he has a special place or thing he likes to do when he is out. Perhaps you should try to play detective and see if you can follow him. Maybe he goes to a certain persons house every day that has kids, lets him in, gives him left overs and loves on him all day before sending him back home. Maybe hes met a certain dog that he just loves to play with. If you are able to follow him and see where he is going, and you find that this is the case, you can try to set up a time with that person, or the owner of the dog, to have your dog come over and play.

Your dog could also just know of some great places to get food. Lots of restaurants tend to put food out in the dumpsters and such, perhaps hes found a great one with a lot of food to eat. See if you can find out where your dog is going, what hes doing there, and if there is anything you can do in your time with him to provide the same thing. He obviously loves this activity so much he escapes the yard to do it! Youll find a lot of dogs who escape tend to have a routine they do. Find out what that routine is.


Once you have looked into fulfilling all of your dogs needs, now you can look into ways to go about training your dog to stay in the yard. There are many things out there that can help. I am a huge fan of Don Sullivans Secrets to Training the Perfect Dog [DVD]. His system is awesome and I recommend it to everyone all the time. If your all about clicker training and positive reinforcement, this video is NOT for you. If treats and clicker isnt working in all aspects for you, if your dog is still pulling on leash, having ANY aggressive behavior, has separation anxiety, stealing food from table or kids hands, check out this video.

Don also has an amazing guide on boundary training to teach your dog how to stay in the yard! He even shows you how to take this training with you where ever you go, teach your dog to stay off the road, teach your dog to stay in your camp ground, and so much more! Don is an amazing trainer and its very obvious in his full packed DVD set. He teaches you how to get your dog off leash and reliable, and to come no matter what! His methods work fast too.

I know I kind of went off on this, but I absolutely love his system. I have it myself, I watch the videos all the time and learn more and more from them. I have used his methods in my training and have an excellent results. Check it out, it will be well worth the money!

If your looking for something else, check out the PetSafe Wireless Pet Containment System, PIF-300. I know a few people who have this and they have all had great luck with it. Its really easy to use, just plug it in. You should follow the training guide and such as well to be sure your dog knows where the boundary is. The training will also help you to eventually be able to take the collar off the dog and have them stay home. You can even take it camping with you and your dog will stay in the camping grounds. It lets you adjust how big of a circle they have to stay in, so it can be a very useful tool to use.

Hopefully I gave you some good tips and such and I highly recommend looking into both of those! I think with either youll be happy and your dog will be staying home in a short amount of time. No more worrying about them getting hit by a car.

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Dogs and babies Not always cute

Hi Mia,

Oh, Arf! Based on the way I treated him, its a good thing he was stuffed. I remember dragging him around by his leg (or maybe it was his ear) so we could "spend time" together. 

Given he was a stuffed animal, I have to admit its pretty cute. Nowadays, it seems like one of the functions of social media is sharing cute stuff. You cant go a day without seeing something posted, tweeted or shared that elicits an, "Aww cute" response.

Some photos mix and match baby animals:

Baby animals get us every time

Others photos are more in the cute-weird category:

I see a piece of strawberry and broccoli on that plate. Do you?

Then there are the dog and baby pictures. On our Do You Believe in Dog? Facebook page, I posted the below picture. We got 37 likes, 27 shares and 1, “Awwww!" comment. This picture also appeared elsewhere on Facebook, and I took a screen shot to capture all the attention it received (listed below): 1,658 likes and 464 shares.

In one sense, when it comes to dogs and babies, the above picture is something we are very accustomed to seeing, a gaggle of mushy cuteness.

But theres more to the story, and this is clearly where you are going in your next installment, The Science Surrounding Kids and Dogs: The Ugly (Part 3)

Kids are bitten by dogs and some babies don’t become kids because of an interaction they had with a dog.

This is a fact. A really upsetting fact.

• A retrospective study examined 341 children who had been bitten by a dog, and they found: “Incidence was highest in 1-year-old patients and decreased with increasing age.” 

• Another study found: “Children younger than 6 years constituted 52.8% (n = 204) of the sample. As compared with older children, a higher proportion of younger children were bitten by their family dog whose rabies shots were up to date.”  

• And another: “Children younger than 5 years represented 34% of all dog bite victims, but 50% of all children requiring hospitalization. Thirty-seven percent of all children admitted to the hospital were bitten by a family dog. The cost of direct medical care during the study was $2.15 million.”

These figures are quite painful. Even writing them sucks. But the numbers tell us something. 

• First, some families will have a traumatic experience as the result of an interaction between a dog and a child.

• Second, many of the dogs doing the biting are family dogs.

• Finally, young children constitute a high proportion of children being bitten (and often by the family dog).

Putting it together: Images of dogs and babies
Madeline Gabriel is a San Diego-based Certified Professional Dog Trainer who holds training classes about dogs and babies. On her blog, she recently took a look at ubiquitous dog and baby photos, exploring whether “Cute” Dog and Baby Photos Feed the Fantasy?
  
Photos of dogs and kids often suggest that dogs and kids are just supposed to be "best friends," that dogs should somehow be comfortable having their space invaded, their toys handled, their food bowls touched and their tails tugged.

Gabriel points out, "parents don’t know about safety with dogs and babies and toddlers.  Why should they when our society chooses to surround itself with imagery showing dogs and babies as “best friends?”  You cannot pick up a children’s book with dogs in it without finding talking animals or smiley cartoon dogs who seemingly love being hugged and [their] space invaded by babies.  We have chosen to sacrifice the real to the fantasy.

The price of fantasy is being paid every day by children and dogs and the families that love them.  Hardly ever does a baby or child die from a dog bite (that’s why a single incident will be news across the country), but even a less serious bite is devastating to a family.  Tearful clients tell me, “If only I knew, I would have done it differently…”

She continues, “No one purposely puts babies with dogs they think will hurt them.  The more a dog is tolerant, the more liberties will be allowed.  It’s human nature to believe what’s in front of your eyes (“He’s good with the baby!”), particularly when spurred on by a society that rewards and covets “cute” dog and baby interactions.  That is, until it goes wrong and then you’re spurned — as if you did anything different than millions of other parents who cling to the fantasy.” 

In her follow-up post, Gabriel gives examples of photos of dogs with babies and kids that dont foster the fantasy: each has personal space, no hands are in the dogs face and dogs are not cornered or smothered.

This photo would not have made Gabriels list:

Feeding the fantasy?

Looking forward to your take on this topic!

Julie

Recommended reading 
Madeline Gabriel. 2010. Good Dogs Don’t Bite Children, Do They? Dogs and Babies Blog


References
Madeline Gabriel. 2012. “Cute” Dog and Baby Photos Feed the Fantasy. Dogs and Babies Blog 

Madeline Gabriel. 2012. Should You Share That Cute Dog and Baby Photo? Dogs and Babies Blog

BERNARDO L.M., GARDNER M.J., ROSENFIELD R.L., COHEN B. & PITETTI R. (2002). A comparison of dog bite injuries in younger and older children treated in a pediatric emergency department, Pediatric Emergency Care, 18 (3) 247-249. DOI: 10.1097/00006565-200206000-00024

Daniels D.M., Ritzi R.B.S., O’Neil J. & “Tres Scherer L.R. (2009). Analysis of Nonfatal Dog Bites in Children, The Journal of Trauma: Injury, Infection, and Critical Care, 66 (Supplement) S17-S22. DOI: 10.1097/TA.0b013e3181937925

Schalamon J. (2006). Analysis of Dog Bites in Children Who Are Younger Than 17 Years, PEDIATRICS, 117 (3) e374-e379. DOI: 10.1542/peds.2005-1451
© Julie Hecht 2012 

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Should you always trust your dog

Big game tracking season is in a full swing now, and one of the messages shared by many dog handlers is "Trust Your Dog". When a dog is experienced and earned your trust by all means - trust her. But when you have a young dog, without much experience in natural tracking, be careful! It is very important how you handle your dog. This short story illustrates my point of view. Hoss is just six and a half month old, and this is his first tracking season. He came from Bernard Demers litter, and he is owned by Nathaniel Newman from Ohio. Nathaniel have put a lot of training into Hoss during summer, and this is what happened recently.

John/Jolanta,

Good afternoon.  My pup Hoss and I had a good Saturday morning as we received a call from a muzzleloader hunter.  The hunter reported over the phone a 15 yard broad side shot with a ton of blood at the hit site.  After arriving at the hit site the shot turned out to be more of a 30 yard shot at a quartering deer with a decent amount of blood at the hit site with no other visible blood anywhere.  I got Hoss on the hit site and gave him the command to begin tracking. He started out and appeared very confident even though we could not find any visible sign.  He led us to a dry creek bed that contained a tremendous amount of deer sign/traffic, we followed this for about 15 yards and then I could tell he lost the track.  

Since there was no sign to confirm he was ever on the right cold track I took him back to the original hit site about 60 yards away.  He went right back on the same track he initially followed, but this time I slowed him down tremendously in hopes we both would not miss anything.  I ended up locating 3 drops of blood about the size of a pencil eraser over a span of about 50 yards which made me very excited to know he was on it.  We ended up back at the dry creek bed but this time he very eagerly climbed the bank.  He led us to a nice healthy doe about 15 yards beyond the bank of the creek.  Hoss and I were very excited and he made claim to the deer by tugging at it very aggressively.  After tying up the dog and then examining the deer, we found a high and little far back entry wound with no exit wound, which explained the lack of blood.  The slug was later found in the right rear leg by the hunter during the skinning process.  I am very happy to see my pup reap the rewards of a lot of dedicated training this spring/summer.  We absolutely cannot wait for our next Ohio tracking experience… 

Hoss first recovery. Restarting him was critical to the final outcome.

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Dog poo turning green – the power of science

Hey Julie,

Thanks for the run down on ScienceOnline and ‘Lend a Paw’ month. 

I completed the survey about my cat’s behaviour, it was quick and easy to do. 

I also liked your stroking video, but I’ll get back to that later, right now I need to tell you how dog poo (I think you usually say ‘poop’ in the USA?) is turning green.

Dog poo is turning green

It’s turning green and it’s thanks to the power of science. Or perhaps it’s the science of power? It’s easy to get confused. 

(source)

The important bit is that a Melbourne-based entrepreneur, Duncan Chew, received funding in 2012 from the Inspiring Australia strategy for his idea to turn dog waste into energy to light up parks around Australia. Titled Poo Power!, his project is using science to help our communities live more sustainably.

How big is this issue?

In Australia, we have one of the highest incidences of pet ownership in the world with over 60% of households owning a pet. The average dog produces 0.34 kilograms (that’s 0.75 lb) of faeces per day.

Do the maths, and that’s around 1.4 tonnes of dog poo needing to be disposed of DAILY in Australia, which adds up to a colossal 490,000 tonnes each year!

490 MILLION KG!  That’s 1,080,270 MILLION lbs!

(or almost 20 million labradors if you were following my pre-post riddle clues on our Facebook page!)

The USA have more than 20 times the number of dogs as Australia. Just saying.

The issue of dog waste disposal (what I like to call Poo-llution!) is an especially important issue in areas of growing urbanisation, cities with limited park spaces and in light of declining landfill site availability.

Using our love of dogs to brighten the future

Dog poo light? Not as silly as it might seem! (source)

The project will see a series of biogas generators turn dog waste into energy for lighting up Melbourne parks, at the same time as engaging audiences on the issue of ‘what is waste?’, and the potential opportunities posed by reassessing waste management practices. 1kg of dog poo will give you about 25-30 litres of raw biogas.

Biogas harvesting is achieved utilising anaerobic digestion (where a bunch of microorganisms break down biodegradable material in the absence of oxygen) to produce a renewable energy source that can be used to power lighting. Or cooking! Imagine having a coffee as your dog runs around the park, while the coffee machine was powered by your dog’s poo!

I’m not talking crap (well, I am)

We know this can work. This kind of project has been implemented previously at ‘Park Spark’ in Cambridge, Massachusetts, near MIT. 

Munich Zoo similarly harness the energy of their animals’ faecal output to help power their operations. Imagine if shelters and other kennel facilities could use this system to reduce their power consumption and expenses? That would be awesome!

(source)

Can’t get enough of green dog poo? 

If you’d like to hear more and you happen to be in Melbourne this weekend, a) you should come over to my place, so we can say hi, and b) you can watch Duncan Chew and Melbourne filmmaker James Boldiston talk about the Poo Power! project at 12 midday on Saturday 16 February 2013 in ‘The Big Tent’ at Federation Square as part of the Sustainable Living Festival. Otherwise, you can keep up with further developments at the Poo Power! website. 

I’ll be touching base with you again after I speak at the RSPCA Scientific Seminar. 

Looking forward to having lots to report about animals and the science of positive welfare – more stroking!

Mia 

Further reading:

Miller R. & Howell G.V.J. (2008). Regulating consumption with bite: Building a contemporary framework for urban dog management, Journal of Business Research, 61 (5) 525-531. DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2007.07.006 

Wells D.L. (2006). Factors Influencing Owners Reactions to Their Dogs Fouling, Environment and Behavior, 38 (5) 707-714. DOI: 10.1177/0013916505284794 

Okoroigwe E.C., Ibeto C.N. & Okpara C.G. (2010). Comparative Study of the Potential of Dog Waste for Biogas Production, Trends in Applied Sciences Research, 5 (1) 71-77. DOI: 10.3923/tasr.2010.71.77 

Nemiroff L. (2007). Design, Testing and Implementation of a Large-Scale Urban Dog Waste Composting Program, Compost Science & Utilization, 15 (4) 237-242. Link: click here to view PDF

© Mia Cobb 2012

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