How do I know if my dog will run away from me if I let her off the leash?

Question

I have a 1 year old Maltipoo. Whenever I walk her I always keep her on a leash. How do I know if I let her off the leash if she will run away from me? I would like to take her the park and play fetch with her. I have at times taken her off her leash in an enclosed back yard and she seems to stay fairly close to me but I have no idea what she would do with no boundaries. How can I train my dog to stay with me when off of a leash?

Answer 1

Yes, train her the basic commands, Sit/stay, heel, come, etc. Do not let her off a leash in a park, unless you are certain that she will obey under any circumstances. Even then, I would choose a park that is not very busy with other dogs, kids, joggers, etc. Bear in mind, in most places it is illegal to allow your dog off a leash in public. A retractable dog lead will give her lots of freedom, without letting her out of your control, or breaking any laws. Many parks now have fenced in dog runs, that would be the ideal place for practicing your commands out in the "real world." Good luck!

Answer 2

You've already gotten some good answers, so I'll just add this:

One technique I've used successfully--particularly for dogs that just don't seem to understand that the command "come" is not negotiable--is to tie a light, strong cord, anywhere from 20 to 50 feet long to the dogs collar and let the dog drag it as we're walking together. I'll test the dog several times by letting it get a cord-length away, then calling the dog back to me. If the dog bolts and runs the other direction (they think that's a fun game to play), I simply need to step on the end of the cord and reel them back in and tell them what good dogs they are for coming back to me, even though it wasn't their choice. It generally doesn't take long for them to realize they can't run away. A few breeds (like my Aussie) are smart enough to know they've got a cord tied to them and will wait until they are without it to misbehave. Fortunately, those dogs seem to be very good at understanding language and intent, and respond well to time-outs for bad behavior. There is no worse punishment for an Aussie than to make it sit still for a while.

Any dog I'm working with or temporarily caring for that I'm not absolutely sure of will be dragging a cord or leash until I'm sure I can trust him.

Answer 3

Play the Recall game with your dog - in your enclosed back yard, have a friend help you and hold your dog gently by the collar. Walk away a few steps from your dog, turn and look over your shoulder at your dog, call her name (and then your friend releases her collar) and then run! She should come shooting towards you. If she comes straight to you, reward! Play with her and then try again - increasing the distance. Not only is this fun, but it gives you a very accurate assessment of where your relationship is with your dog. If she stops along the way, sniffs and then goes off, or seems intimidated about the whole thing, then it's a better idea to keep her on leash in unfamiliar territory.
For more:
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB813
There is a DVD too.

Answer 4

most dogs, especially dogs that have a strong bond with their owner, have an "exploratory" comfort range of a few hundred feet or so from where you are, and also, if there aren't any major roads nearby the park let her loose, and see what happens. If she does happen to bolt with out showing any regard to safety try one of these plans. You can do the fake "Bye, (what ever the dog's name is) I'm leaving" as you're walking away and waving your hand. A lot of dogs that have separation anxiety issues don't like the idea of being left alone. Also if she ignores your calls you can try crouching on the ground in a hunched position with your arms over your head. And yes I know this will make you look like some kind of freak, BUT your dog will also wonder what the hell you're up to and usually come back to investigate. the main thing is though, don't panic and start YELLING her name, because she might think your really angry with her, and run off even further. Have fun with it.

Answer 5

Train her to always, ALWAYS come back when you call, no matter what is going on. If her recall is good and she knows the 'come' and 'heel' commands, you should be fairly safe. However, choose parks that allow dogs that are not near roads with heavy traffic or a lot of things going on around, just to be on the safe side. Go to the library or book store and look for books on dog training, there are tons of different ways to train a dog and you need to find the one that works best on your dog.

Answer 6

It depends how good your training is. If you always give her a treat when she comes back and she comes willingly, then give her the benefit of the doubt. Wait until the park is quiet and let her off then, again giving loads of treats when she does come back. If there are other dogs then curiosity will get the benefit of her but you are her comfort zone and she should'nt stray too far.

Answer 7

Take her to a large enclosed area such as a feild and let er off, make sure there is no way for her to escape, and get a stretchy lead, so she can stray away from youbut cant g too far, and instead of realing her in, call her name for her to return to you, this will train her not to go to far and to respond to your call.
hope this help,s an stretchy lead first, then let her off in an large encolsed space...sorry for any confusion

good luck

Answer 8

If you haven't done any off leash training, then she will run. The backyard isn't a good judge because she's on her territory with familiar smells. In the park there's other dogs, other people, lots of new and interesting smells and she's likely to bolt.

The good news is, in most places it's illegal to take your dog off leash so I wouldn't worry about it. If you want to play fetch take her to an inclosed dog park. :)

Answer 9

Take her off the leash and find out.

Answer 10

you will know if she runs away, because if she runs away you probably will see her, well... running away!