PET-PROOF YOUR HOME AND YARD

Is Your Dog An Escape Artist? PET-PROOF YOUR HOME & YARD

By Gail Mayhugh

JULY IS NATIONAL LOST PET PREVENTION MONTH

➠ It started in 2014 by PetHub to make people aware of how to keep their pets safe at home with pet-proofing measures.

Your dog’s escape pattern will determine what you need to do to keep them safe at home. As with any problematic behavior, training needs to be introduced. With that said, I’m going to share our adventures with our new rescue, Maggie.

We’ve never had one challenge us as she has, but we’ve never had a pup with separation anxiety. Along with training, we’ve gone to lengths to keep her secure in the house and yard. Your dogs may have other reasons they’re bolters, jumpers, diggers, or squeezers, or one like Maggie, who needs to be with her Poppa. She’s always with me when my husband is home, but she looks for him when he leaves. Luckily, he’s retired and has home hobbies.

JUMPER AND CLIMBER

Can you raise your fence? We found a 50-inch-high fence where she couldn’t get her paws in and pull herself up. We use this in areas where our block wall is lower.

Landscaping is an effective way to keep them away from the fence. Tall shrubs or full bushes will keep them where they can’t get near the fence. Watch what you have near the fence. If you can climb on it, you can guarantee they can, and over the fence they’ll go.

BOLTER

Along with jumping, climbing, and squeezing, she’s also a door dasher. We bought a free-standing iron gate so our other pups couldn’t get out the door, but Maggie was able to scale it. So, we had to get a higher one.

We have an older house, so it’s not an open concept. There’s a doorway between the kitchen and dining room, which leads to the front door. We’ve trained our other dogs not to go past that line, but Maggie hasn’t gotten that yet. So, we put in a retractable gate so we can get in but she can’t get into the room and out the front door. We also have a front gate and do what you do at dog parks; we don’t open one until the other is closed. You know I’m a crazy Mom if you’ve been reading my articles. So now there are two backyard gates! The one to the street has a lock on it and a self-closing spring gate which is further up the walkway. I didn’t like that I couldn’t see my girls and didn’t want them by the front gate. I prefer a lock but you could use a carabiner if you’re back and forth. It also keeps the gate from blowing open.

SQUEEZER

Outside, ensure that your fence is secure and there are no gaps they can squeeze through. Maggie is a small, lean Border Collie, so we installed a mesh on top of our front and side gates so she couldn’t wiggle through. Look at the clearance from the bottom of the gate to the ground. Can they sneak under it?

DIGGER

So, you have a digger; thank goodness Maggie is only a Gardner, so what can you do? Most fences stop at the ground. Clever dogs quickly figure out that they can move the ground underneath the fence if they can’t move the fence.

One option is to pour a concrete footer along the base of the fence. You can use large, heavy boulders if they’re not jumpers or climbers. There are also dig barriers made specifically for animals.

I’d be careful with any wire or material laid on the ground. Ultimately, they’ll get through and seriously injure their paws from digging.

We have a way to go with Maggie, but we’ve put protective measures in place to keep her home. And yes, she is worth it.