# Keeping dog away from the street.



## AgentCooper (May 4, 2010)

I just recently purchased a 3 month german shepherd. Outside of my fence is a moderately busy street and a few blocks away a major road of the city. I am very concerned about my dog getting loose and running into the road. 

1.) How do I prevent him from getting out of the fenced in yard (i.e. digging, getting through a fragile board) 

2.) How do I keep him from running into the road? 

I want to keep my new beloved pal as safe as possible.


----------



## snark (Apr 25, 2010)

Not sure what your situation is, but when my puppy was 3 months old, he was NEVER outside unsupervised. Too many things could happen - not just your puppy escaping or getting into trouble but someone taking him.

If you have to leave him outside alone, are you able to reinforce the fence? Put wire fence along the base to discourage digging?


----------



## AgentCooper (May 4, 2010)

snark said:


> Not sure what your situation is, but when my puppy was 3 months old, he was NEVER outside unsupervised. Too many things could happen - not just your puppy escaping or getting into trouble but someone taking him.
> 
> If you have to leave him outside alone, are you able to reinforce the fence? Put wire fence along the base to discourage digging?


I'll be keeping him inside for now. When is a good time to introduce him to the backyard?


----------



## PiedmontMom (Apr 12, 2010)

I found this awhile back. You might be able to incorporate it into your situation.

http://www.clickertraining.com/node/2409


----------



## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

You can introduce him to your backyard at any time, but no dog of any age should EVER be left outside unsupervised. Theft, escaping, and getting into things/eating can all cause problems that are best to be avoided.

Along with supervision, taking your pup to obedience classes will help you train a reliable recall in case he is ever off leash in your yard.


----------



## infiniti (Mar 19, 2010)

Indeed, reliable recall is invaluable! As well as always being supervised in the yard, and the yard being completely reinforced.

In addition, I teach my dog to stop at the edge of the road, at curbs and such, while we are on walks. She knows to STOP when we reach a crossroads, and does not cross until I say CROSS. I would encourage you to teach this, or something similar, when you are walking your dog. 

I occasionally have my dog off-leash in the front yard, if I am going to check the mail, or if I am sitting on the front steps waiting for visitors. She knows not to leave the yard, and when we walk to the mailbox, she knows not to step off the curb into the street.

We will be moving soon, and the neighborhood will be completely unfamiliar to her, so we will be starting from Step One in training all these things all over again.


----------



## FilleBelle (Aug 1, 2007)

If the fence is in bad shape, fix it. When the dog is inside the newly-fixedfence, there should be no concern with it running into the street. When the dog is not inside the fence, keep it on a leash.

And, as mentioned, working on a reliable heel and recall will help you to control the dog should it ever escape both yard and leash.


----------



## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

You can attach about 2 feet of chicken wire to the bottom of the fence, about 1 ' high on the fence. Bury the remaining 2 feet, so it goes under ground and curves in, towards the center of the yard. This prevents a dog from digging under. You can also run a couple of strands of electric fencing (like they use for horses) about a foot inside your fence, with one strand about a foot off the ground, and the other strand about 2 feet off the ground. That should keep him away from the fence. You have to make sure to maintain it (keep weeds/trash off it) so it doesn't get a ground and stop working.


----------



## TxRider (Apr 22, 2009)

AgentCooper said:


> I just recently purchased a 3 month german shepherd. Outside of my fence is a moderately busy street and a few blocks away a major road of the city. I am very concerned about my dog getting loose and running into the road.
> 
> 1.) How do I prevent him from getting out of the fenced in yard (i.e. digging, getting through a fragile board)
> 
> ...


Fix your fence, if a board is fragile replace it with one that isn't. Any lumber store had them, a board and a few nails are cheap..

Keep him on a leash outside when out of the fence.

Go find an obedience class and educate yourself and the dog.


----------



## BorderGal (Nov 29, 2008)

Chicken wire along the fence
Bury Habenero peppers just under the dirt
Start working with basic obedience: sit, stay, recall and barrier training


----------



## AgentCooper (May 4, 2010)

DJEtzel said:


> You can introduce him to your backyard at any time, but no dog of any age should EVER be left outside unsupervised. Theft, escaping, and getting into things/eating can all cause problems that are best to be avoided.
> 
> Along with supervision, taking your pup to obedience classes will help you train a reliable recall in case he is ever off leash in your yard.


We can't take the dog to work with us.


----------



## AgentCooper (May 4, 2010)

spotted nikes said:


> You can attach about 2 feet of chicken wire to the bottom of the fence, about 1 ' high on the fence. Bury the remaining 2 feet, so it goes under ground and curves in, towards the center of the yard. This prevents a dog from digging under. You can also run a couple of strands of electric fencing (like they use for horses) about a foot inside your fence, with one strand about a foot off the ground, and the other strand about 2 feet off the ground. That should keep him away from the fence. You have to make sure to maintain it (keep weeds/trash off it) so it doesn't get a ground and stop working.



Excellent advice! Thanks


----------



## Nil (Oct 25, 2007)

AgentCooper said:


> We can't take the dog to work with us.


I don't necessarily see the correlation here. No dog should be left unattended and unsupervised in their backyard for hours at a time. Too many risks that have been stated already.

When you are at work, your puppy should be crated and inside your home. An adult dog may or may not have free roam of the house at this time. However, your dog should be inside your home while you are away.


----------



## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

I never said you needed to take your dog to work with you..


----------



## AgentCooper (May 4, 2010)

Nil said:


> I don't necessarily see the correlation here. No dog should be left unattended and unsupervised in their backyard for hours at a time. Too many risks that have been stated already.
> 
> When you are at work, your puppy should be crated and inside your home. An adult dog may or may not have free roam of the house at this time. However, your dog should be inside your home while you are away.


Do you think adult dogs shouldn't be in a fenced in back yard unsupervised when the owners are at work?


----------



## snark (Apr 25, 2010)

For the most part, no. Too many things could happen, especially in a city or suburb - your dog could be stolen, kids could torment the dog until he bites, or he barks constantly because he's alone and bored thus driving the neighbors crazy (and if you have a looney tune for a neighbor... well, I've heard of people poisoning annoying dogs).

If, however, you are in a rural area, you could probably get away with it but there is still the risk of the dog being stolen ('bunchers' have been known to cruise rural areas since a lot of dogs are loose on their properties and can be easy pickings). 

Is there a doggy daycare near you?


----------



## DJEtzel (Dec 28, 2009)

No. When you're at work your dog should be inside, not left out unsupervised. Your dog could escape the fence and get hit by a car, killed by another dog, shot, poisoned, stolen, etc. Likewise, while contained the dog could be stolen, a dog could jump your fence and kill him, or he could be poisoned by someone/something intentionally or otherwise. 

Inside he should be crated until you can be sure he won't destroy your house. Some dogs never earn this right. For puppies, someone should be home every couple of hours to give him a potty break or you will need to hire a pet sitter/dog walker or take him to doggie daycare.


----------



## infiniti (Mar 19, 2010)

Nope, I am also not an advocate of leaving your dog unsupervised in your backyard for hours at a time. 

15 years ago, my two purebred Rottweilers were stolen while I was at work while they were in my backyard. I didn't own a dog again until last year. It was an incredibly devastating event for me to have experienced.

That will NEVER happen to me, or a dog I have, ever again.

My dog only goes outside in our backyard when I am home, or when my daughters are home. If she goes out alone, she is never outside for more than 15-20 minutes by herself. A door is always left open while she is outside so that we can see her at all times.

When I am at work and my daughters are not home, my dog is in my house, and all doors are locked. 

It's my job to protect my dog, not her job to protect me and my house.


----------



## jess4525 (Aug 27, 2009)

While we are at work, our dog has access to the kitchen and living/dining areas and has a dog door out to the back yard (completely fenced in). I would suggest getting a doggy door if you can, because then they can come in the house or be outside. 

Our fence is part privacy fence/chain link. The chain link runs along the back of the yard where there is a wooded area, and the privacy runs along the front and sides that are near our neighbors homes. 

This works really well for us, I control everything that *I can*. We live in a nice neighborhood (I know this doesn't stop bad things/people from coming in), our gates are locked at all times, he's not disturbing everyone (our neighbor is home during the day and we have talked to him about it). 

We took our puppy to day care until he was older and house trained. We are confident leaving him with access to most of the upstairs. I would suggest doing day care until he is older, and then train him with a dog door. Once he's comfortable using the dog door, he can go in and out as he pleases. 

I'm sure this doesn't work with everyone, but it's worked very well for us.


----------



## spotted nikes (Feb 7, 2008)

I'd also recommend a doggie door. But make ABSOLUTELY sure your yard is secured. I'd supervise him until I know he can't jump out or dig out. The electric fencing will help, but you need to check it a couple times a day (and after winds) to make sure it is hot. I'd also padlock the gate, and make sure dog has an ID tag, with your home and cell (if you have one)ph #'s. I wouldn't put an address on it, because if the dog somehow got loose, you don't want someone finding him and just putting him back in there without letting you know, so he could get loose again.

I have a doggie door that is a lifesaver. But my house sits back from the street, and the gates are padlocked. So no people passing by my property would be able to get to my backyard without being really obvious. Plus I have high rock walls, so no one can poke sticks thru the fence, or try to pat my dogs. Plus 2 of my dogs are territorial and would go after someone coming into my yard uninvited.

If my fencing was in front next to a sidewalk, I would not leave the dogs out unattended, as I wouldn't want people to try to pat them, poke sticks at them, etc.


If there is any doubt that your fencing is not secure, do not leave the dog out unattended until it is.

Make sure that if your dog is to be left out, he has access to shade (throughout the day...the position of the sun will change where there is shade. What's shady at 9 am, may not be at 3 pm. Also access to clean water. Maybe consider 2 water bowls so if one gets knocked over, he still has teh other one.


----------

