Ahhhh......My Dog!!!!!!?

Question

My dog is a yorkshire terrier....he is almost 7 months old and i love him to death. There is just one problem. He is bound and determined to run away. So we usually put him in the fenced in area, but if we let him be in the front on a chain which is what he likes most( which is why we love to do it) he finds a way to run away. I dont know how and it doesnt seem possible but it happens. We have tried different chains and everything. And i am getting kind of tired of chasing after him. We discipline him in different ways....we spank him,wont let him out for a while, EVERYTHING!!!! nothing works! I was thinking about a strong invisible fence but i dont have any experience with them. Do any of you have experience with them? If so...Good? Bad?.If not...any other suggestions? PLEASE HELP...Thanks so much

Answer 1

Walk him more. give him affection when your inside, when he is good. play with him in the yard. make him feel happy all the time. so he won't want to run away. I have a pure breed Siberian husky (had her for a month). she is a runner big time. when ever she gets out of the yard she is gone. (almost like she is running away) im lucky to have the people in my neighborhood bring her back. i walk her often, when i walk her i make her stay close. i play with her and show her affection. all in all keep her happy. after a month she seems a lot more reluctant to run away. she is happy with me and living where she is. so she has no need to run away to "find something else" except when she sees a cat, thats a whole different story. hope this helps.

Answer 2

I have an invisible fence--LOVE IT! can't believe life existed w/o it! love the fence so much, my dog loves it so much, now 3 of my neighbors have invisible fences & love so much. You can buy them at many places, pet shops, local home stores... I recommend www.petstreetmall.com. I found it to be the BEST price around, they have great customer service to answer any q's, help you w/ what system you need, & even a good return policy if a problem arises. Innotek is the brand I recommend. I know others who have bought different systems, & dogs run through. I have had mine for 2 years, no problems. My dog has her freedom to run through the yard, play with the kids, play fetch w/ us, in & out of the house when needed. think of those rainy days, snowy days, nightime darkness, you can just open the door & out it goes--you dont have to go out. It really is nice to see the dog w/ a sense of freedom, not locked up & on a leash. Also for people thinking its not humane, I LOVE my dog, I would never hurt it. The dog doesnt get shocked all the time, I honestly don't know if my dog ever even got shocked. They may at the beginning, but they'll learn, then they dont get shocked anymore. They will have their boundary, they will learn it, when they get close they hear a beeping sound, they stop & back away. If they continue the beep gets louder, & then to a shock. So they hear the noise 1st, then the shock if they dont respond. It is relatively easy to do yourself. You will save $100's!! A wire needs to be buried is about it. We started w/ a shovel, just making little slits in ground, & laying wire. We then went to local rental store & rented a thing that went around the yard making like a slice about a foot deep. Just layed wire in it. EASY PEASY! Go online, look at the innotek fences, call the 800 # & buy one! YOu will wonder why you waited so long! Get the 1 w/ rechargeable battery though!!!!!!

Answer 3

Well first - when your dog runs away you should never punish him. In his mind he views YOU as a bad thing so he's going to run from you.

Dog: I'm free, I"m having fun ooh what's that - who cares I'll eat it anyway. Oh crap here comes my human, he's going to beat my bum if he catches me!!

I know it's hard because you're frustrated and angry that he's run off. But you have to congradulate him and be happy to see him when he comes to you, that teaches him that it's a good thing when he comes and his "freedom" is over.

The invisible fence isn't a bad thing. I have several friends who use it and it works wonderfully. It's a great preventative measure and it doesn't hurt the dog at all, but teaches bounderies - once he learns where those bounderies are. (Thats what the flags are for.) You post the flags before the shock line, the dog learns to just stop at the flags.

Piece of advice - contact a trainer that will come to your home. They tailor thier training for your specific needs. Then - eventually you may not need the fence because the dog won't run off.

Good Luck

Answer 4

I agree with Maurisa - the halter should work better than the collar, however, if your dog runs away when chained in the front - don't. Keep him in a fenced in area for his own protection & your peace of mind. Your dog is still a puppy so needs lots of exercise - take him for lots of long walks & he won't be so inclined to run. I have neighbours with 2 Yorkies & they walk them 3 times a day about a 1/2 each walk.

Some dogs are just runners - it's curiousity and no matter what discipline method you use it won't work. Never hit a dog - it means nothing to them but pain & they don't understand why you are hitting them. They have no concept of knowing what they've done wrong. If you hit them after they come back it means, to them, that they are being punished for coming back.

Answer 5

Spanking/hitting/striking your dog is a great way to be sure that your terrier will keep running away from you. All of the things that you describe are not improving your relationship with your dog. There are a number of classes (Petco, Petsmart, etc) where you can go to learn about working with your dog. You'll be much less frustrated when your dog seeks you out instead of trying to run.
Work on his recall in places where he'll be safe - in your house, for example. And if you're free-feeding him, that has to stop. Hand-feeding him his meals, and having him do tricks for each bit of food is a good start.

Answer 6

My brother in law uses one, and he's had great results with it. His Weims never attempt to go over the barrier. Do realize that they do require some training in order for them to be effective. You can't just put the fence in and put the collar on your dog and expect it to work. You have to train your dog the boundries and such.

On a side note: It's a really bad idea to discipline your dog from running off away from you. You essentially are teaching that when you get a hold of them, they get punished... so it perpetuates your "running away" problem.

See this link to a question earlier about teaching your dog to come when called: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ah_jpXxWWDkfAJRhP8fr3arsy6IX?qid=20070121211108AA8liQb&show=7#profile-info-1d3b2f6e4be90913d89c7f9097ef9254aa

Answer 7

If you want an invisible fence, look for Pet Stop fence company, or Dog Watch invisible fence company. I'm not sire how much they cost. Good luck!

Answer 8

invisible fences are nice, but i've heard of dogs just running straight through and not worrying about the shock. my sister's dog did really well with her invisible fence and NEVER ran out of it, but she is a really good dog.

it's worth a try if this is such a problem.

does she get out of her collar, is the clip coming loose...we have stake and cable leash for our dog, and he has never gotten off it. he is a 100 pound lab and pretty strong.
are you sure someone isn't trying to steal your dog??

take car.e

Answer 9

I have a yorkie too. I think that at that age (mine is 6 months). They want freedom. Get an exercise pen for him to run around in. They are tall and they are impossible to get out of. If there was a way for him to get out of it, my dogs would have found it by now. They cost around 70 dollars but they work!
Good Luck!

Answer 10

the invisable fence might work, but my boyfriends dog learned that once he got "over the line" it doesn't shock him so a quick shock and he was free. But my question to you is, do you walk him DAILY? why does he want to get free so bad? Is he ever allowed down the street (for a walk)?