[sgtamos]

Hello!
I just joined this group & am hoping someone will have some insights for me. I've read several other posts about dogs running out of people's yards & have seen some good (& not so good) responses. Thought I'd try to find an answer before posting a previously asked question.

Anyway, my 2-year old likes to open the garage door (the one that leads from the garage into the house) when the big garage door (that leads outside) is open. I don't know if she's purposely letting the dogs out, or if they're just pushing past her b/c she's usually a few steps ahead of me. This usually happens when we've just gotten home & my arms are full of bags from the car...she goes ahead to go inside & the dog comes running out. She often stays right around our driveway unless there's another dog walking within a few houses of ours & then she takes off.

My older dog just kind of wanders around a bit, but she listens reasonably well. My younger dog LOVES to please, but she also seems to be constantly searching for another dog to play with--which is really disconcerting to people walking past to see a dog dart out of a garage & come toward them. She dances around them & tries to get them or their dog to play with her , but the fact is, she shouldn't be running out there in the first place.

I've got a two-fold problem b/c I need to get my 2-year daughter to understand that she must not let the dogs out (we have a walled backyard where they spend some time when they need to go out), but I also need our younger dog to understand what the boundaries of our property are. I've read about people walking their dogs around the perimeter of the property on a leash every time they go out to go pee, but I'm not sure if this is what I should be doing with her or not (because she pees in the backyard & doesn't go out in the front unless my little one lets her out).

If you've got any real ideas (not some of the stuff I've read about getting rid of the dog or hurting her, etc.) that could help, I'd really love to have your input.

Thank you so much!!

[sandyh]

socialization Your dog just like your child needs socialization with other dogs. It also needs to be taken for a walk everyday. just letting it run in the backyard is not enough. There are 3 programs on tv 1. is on animal planet and that is It's the dog or me
the 2nd is also on animal planet and that is Good dog u and the 3rd is on national geographics which is dog whisperer with Cesar Millon. These programs will help you understand why it is so important to socialize your animal and take it for walks. I hope this helps.

[Lara's mom]

Sandyh made a lot of really good suggestions. However, from where I sit, your main problem is with your 2 year old. I've never had human children but, I'm not sure she is old enough to be able to grasp the concept that letting the dogs out is not a good thing. She's still very much a baby herself. You might solve at least part of the problem by putting a lock of some sort above where she can reach. BTW, nobody on this forum would suggest that you do anything that would hurt your dogs! We're a group of people who love them! Also, "getting rid" of them would never even enter the minds of people here!

[sgtamos]

Thanks to both of you for your answers. Guess I should clarify a few things--

1. We only have basic cable & don't get any of the shows that were suggested (Or I probably would have already watched them & solved my problems already! :-)). Any other options for finding them? I might check hulu to see if any of them are on there...

2. We get our dog together with a neighbor's dog & they wear each other out as frequently as our schedules allow. Our dog seems to think that every dog walking past is going to want to play with her as much as this one dog does... I feel like she's been socialized, but perhaps there are other things I need to be doing for this? I'm not really sure how else to go about this. I have a really bad neck, so I can't take her out on the leash much (if she pulls, she can pull my whole neck out of alignment--this wasn't the case when we got her, but it's something I have to be very careful of now)...she walks pretty well on the leash unless another dog comes up that seems interested in her (if they ignore her, she follows suit).

3. We've talked about putting locks higher up on the door into the garage, but the problem usually comes when we're entering the house & my little one is a few steps ahead of me...opening the door while my hands are full...so a higher lock wouldn't do anything at that point b/c the dogs are right on the other side. I'm really not trying to shoot down your suggestions--just trying to give a little more background so it might be easier to have a more complete idea of what's going on. Is there some way I can teach her to stay inside & not come out when my daughter opens the door? I'm really not sure how to go about that...

4. I really don't think that the normal members of this board would want to harm dogs. I just read through a few other previous posts before posting this one & saw one where someone said to "shoot the dog" or "use a shock collar" or called the owner irresponsible because her dog was running off. Some regular users mentioned that these people were probably just trying to "bait" the regulars into arguments by posting ridiculous comments...and I was just trying to head off any facetious comments from the beginning. My time is at a premium right now, and I just wanted to find some legitimate ideas, that's all. I apologize if it came across too strong to the "real" members.

I'm all ears for anything else that you come up with. Thank you, again, for taking the time to reply!!

[Lara's mom]

Would erecting a fence in your front yard be at all possible?

[caniscan]

i have five dogs
two have poor natural recall -what i mean by that is that their need to be somewhe re is greater than needing to be with me

so i understand

with a two year old there is some years before she understands the consequences so id be going in first without groceries and holding her hand
and tethering the younger dog whilst the garage is open and you can get the bags out safely
or you could lock it up for a few mins
anything-just til your child can work with you to avoid the escape

in the meantime train your dog on a long leash and a bag of goodies-high value treats -like roast chicken or even a squeaky toy
it has to be way better than the doggyfriend inits eyes

you have to have total control the whole time and if the dog doesnt come back dont get mad-go get it or pull gently on the long lead
ihave a horse lead -about twenty feet or so of rope so itrain mydogs on that
one is a sighthound so ihave mydoubts as to whether i will ever have himin perfect recall but i knew that and i control his environment- never off lead til he is away from roads or other dangers

it does depend on the breed and the individual- some just feel anxious if theyre not right there with you and others have that great need to play and chase
there is noquick fix but id be doing the physical restraining first while you start the groundwork of training perfect recall...good luck!:-D

[sgtamos]

I've spent some time last night & today watching dog training videos online to see how different people do it. I saw some that used the long lead & will try that. We just have a regular leash, but I'll make a stop tomorrow or Monday & pick up something a little longer.

I think I'm going to have to leave the bags in the car while I go in with my daughter. We can let the dogs out in the backyard while I go back for the bags. It's often 100+ here during the day, so I usually try to make as few trips as possible, but if it keeps Meia out of trouble (& us, as well!), then it's worth it. I'll still need to train her to have a (mostly) reliable recall, especially an emergency recall--we actually taught her that in her obedience class when we first got her, but we haven't needed it until recently & I'm sure she doesn't remember it now.

As for the fence in the front yard, it certainly would make it easier, but our HOA will definitely NOT go for that. They're fairly picky when it comes to the way things look. Too bad, though, because that would simplify things greatly! :-)

And thank you all especially for giving real answers & not just some of the crazy stuff that some other people have offered while drifting around the site & antagonizing others. I know it'll take a bit of work, but I'm actually looking forward to the challenge & hoping things go well. I'll be going out of town for an extended trip soon, but hopefully I'll be able to at least lay a good foundation that I can build on once we return. Again, thanks!!

[sandyh]

here are 3 places you can watch online videos to get some good ideas. i hope they will help!

Good Dog u-


Cesar Millon

its me or the dog with victoria stillwell

[bostonlover]

have you tryed a baby gate at the door that leads into the garage? the one i got has the hardware so you can mount it to the wall or frame and it swing open and close like a door.

[sgtamos]

Thanks for the links, SandyH--I hadn't had a chance to look them up yet, so it's nice to know exactly where to go! :-)

BostonLover--a baby gate...hmmm...I hadn't thought of putting one there. We'll actually be putting the house on the market in a few months (we think...all depends on my husband's job), so we're hesitant to "install" things that would leave holes in the walls or door frames. However, we have one that is tension mounted & though it would be a royal pain to climb over it whenever we go in/out, that's definitely an option. Seems that we still have one new in the box that has the swinging gate on it (I think). Not sure if that has to be screwed into the wall, but if it doesn't I can probably put it up this afternoon. We never needed them with our little girl, so they just got stored in the garage. Thanks for the idea!

[Lunareclipse]

We got a tension mounted gate that you open with foot pedal. It is great. $35.00. It is made by Safety First. You can google it.