[Verna2197]

Ok I sure hope someone can help me with this. We put the GSD in the backyard which is fenced. If she hears us out front she will climb the fence, then today I put her out, we had been gone for awhile and she was with us, anyway I put her out and before I knew it she had climbed the fence and was out front. How can I break this habit that she has? As of now if we leave without her we will have to put her into her crate and I sure hate to do that.

Verna

 

[middleofnowhere]

Here are a few thoughts:
She's better crated than left in the yard. (Really. not as apt to annoy the neighbors, not as apt to get into mischief, not as apt to be targeted by someone)

But for when you are home:

1. They make an above ground electric small animal fence. You could install this in a manner that would keep her from climbing.

2. You could install an inward facing baffle on the top of the fence. Hard to climb that!

 

[Jazy's mom]

I personally would NEVER leave my dogs outside when I am not home. There are just to many things that can happen. Here is a list of a few things that have happened to dogs that I have read or heard about.

Utility person / repair man opens gate and lets dogs out
Neighbor's kid jumps fence to get ball and gets bitten by dog
Neighbor's kid uses dog as target for BB practice
Neighbor shoots dog with real gun
Neighbors throws poisoned food over fence
Dog hangs himself trying to climb fence
Dog is bitten by snake or other wildlife animal or stung by bee
Dog is stolen

Now that you know she is capable of climbing the fence, I would not leave her out without supervision. It would only take a minute for her to climb the fence and get hit by a car.

I would recommend installing an electric wire around the inside of the fence or altering the fence in a way so that she can no longer climb it. When you are not home, leave her in a crate inside the house. If she can be trusted not to tear things up then you can leave her loose in the house or maybe in the kitchen with a baby gate.

 

[Skye'sMom]

I also don't leave my dogs in the yard when I am not home, but I do have experience with a climber.

My late german shorthair pointer, Sophie could climb any fence. I went to a lumber yard and bought enough of the 4 inch plastic drain pipe (comes in a long rolled up roll - as long as you want it.) It's very cheap.

I used plastic ties to fasten the tile loosely to the inside top of the fence. My thought was that it would move and roll so Sophie could not get over the top. As it turned out, she looked up at it and apparently it appeared to be a solid surface above her.

She never tried to climb again until I moved to my new home. About a month later she scaled the 4 foot tall farm wire fence. Bought more drain tile and it stopped again.

Sophie is gone now. I keep telling myself it's time to take the tile down, but haven't yet.

 

[doggiedad]

you have to crate because now she knows she can get out. as some one posted put up the inward facing baffles. that's a great idea. why do you hate to crate???? if you have to crate for a long period of time get a sitter to come in. i don't like leaving my dogs in the crate longer than 4 hours. i know they can go longer but i like them to be comfortable. make sure your dog can't open the gate. these Sheps are smart. good luck.

 

[Verna2197]

Thank you for all of the advice. The crate is pretty big and brand new so she has plenty of room. I just feel sorry for her caged up in there. I will show my husband your recommendations and see what he thinks. By the way I live in the country on 5 acres, so if she would get out there is less chance of her getting hit by a car. She loves being outside and I just felt that she would be happier out there and cooped up in her cage.

Verna

 

[Verna2197]

your info was very interesting, is there anyway I could get a picture of what you did. I was telling my husband about it and he said that he would love to see a picture.
Thank you
Verna

 

[Skye'sMom]

Well - I fianally have a digital camera - let's see if I can learn to download the pictures. Shouldn't be too tough. I'll see what I can do tomorrow.

 

[RebelGSD]

My dogs have free run of the house when I am away from home.
They would do the same, jump the fence an get into trouble if I just put them outside. Most GSDs would.

 

[Skye'sMom]

I don't think the OP wanted to park the dog outside - I think the problem was like my late Sophie. With me right there she had to climb (not jump) the fence and run for the joy of running.

It's sad to have a yard big enough to run in, but the dog can't be allowed off leash because it climbs.

 

[Verna2197]

ok when we are home she does have free run of the house or outside whichever she prefers. But what I was saying is if she is in the backyard and we are out front and she hears us she will either climb the fence or jump over it to get to us out front. We very seldom left her out there when we are gone. Maybe if I was leaving and coming right back I would. We can not let her have free run of the house while we are gone cause she is still in the tearing up stage. Once she is over this (which I hope is soon) then she will have the run of the house all the time.

Verna