[julie87]

I never had a dog that escaped and got lost permanently... What do you think reasons maybe for them to run away? Do they get lost or maybe they just want to get away from the house they live in? They have amazing sense of smell cant they just smell their way back?Maybe they just don't want to come back home?


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[trcy]

Maybe they're bored.....idk, but it makes me so sad to see stray dogs.

 

[jessac]

The house we live in now has been home to I guess a couple dogs. Our neighbors tell us stories of the previous homeowner. The house had the smallest dog run outside with chain link fence and then chicken wire wrapped in, covering the entire thing like an prison. Found out it's because their dog would escape to run off, climb the fence into the neighbors yard to go hang out over there. I guess they couldnt figure out why he kept escaping and finally got rid of him, poor thing. I'd guess it's because he couldn't move more than three steps in his dog run and it wasn't shaded (we live in Vegas, it would have been crazy hot) and when he went to the neighbors, they played with him, he could rest under their trees and they had a dog which I'm sure was fun to play with. I'd say that they escape because they are bored/uncomfortable. Had this been shaded and they had given him a good workout prior to leaving him there, they might still have the dog.

 

[Galathiel]

Boredom, desire to be with people, or they see something they want to investigate outside the fence is what I've seen mostly.

 

[Mrs.K]

I think it also strongly depends on the breed.

Shepherds you can bind on the house easily. You can bind them to you, to the point where they don't even want to leave your side.

My foster was a supposed runner and a stray for a couple of weeks. He certainly isn't anymore. He lives happily within the pack and is bound to me, the house and the backyard.

Either people do not give the dog adequate time to settle in, or the dogs do not have a strong dog to their owner and territory i.e. house, yard etc.

 

[angierose]

My boy Sam was labelled an "escape artist" by the humane society before we got him. His escaped from his previous owners and was picked up by HS at least three times, once when he was a young puppy. To the best of their knowledge, he was left out in the fenced yard most of the time and I suppose he got bored. He can easily flip up gate latches with his nose, and he's never done it here but I'm sure he could climb or jump a chain link fence.

Here, he shows no signs of wanting to wander. He sticks close by me when we're off-leash, if he's left on the porch while I clean house he simply sits in the sun and waits. One day, without my knowledge, our front gate was open. He didn't leave.

With GSDs at least I agree that the bond has a lot to do with keeping them home. There are some neighborhood beagles, however, who I know get plenty of attention and playtime, but who still love to wander and chase. But that's what they're bred for.

 

[I_LOVE_MY_MIKKO]

I think boredom. I read somewhere that dogs have a natural instinct to roam- and it seems that the dogs I hear about that run away don't get to go anywhere with their owners-walks, parks, training, etc.

I've fostered a few dogs that were found as strays and it's so hard to imagine how they got away being that they wouldn't leave me side (unless their owners had dumped them )

 

[wolfy dog]

Wolf mixes , the northern breeds, hounds, hunting dogs. Better ask which dogs won't run? Intact males have a reputation for running but WD is like velcro.
I think the herding and working dogs are more home bound, depending on the bond with their owners.

 

[Courtney]

We had this terrier mix growing up who would stalk the door waiting for it to open or the fence gate. She just wanted to GO and she was fast. She would come back after a few hours & wait at the door to be let in. Our other dogs were not like that at all. When she would get out it would cause such an uproar with the other dogs. They would pace & whine until she came back.

 

[jourdan]

To me I think that dogs that escape might not have a strong bond with their humans. Why stay some place where you are locked up and just left in a yard all day. Dogs are very social animals and running or escaping provides them the chance to be social, find a place to sleep out of the elements or even "hunt" cars or small animals. Avery has a strong bond to me lots of training, snuggles, hikes, playtime and sleeps on the bed, he is always at my side and would do anything for me.


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[JakodaCD OA]

I would say boredom as well..whatever is out there would be more interesting to the dog I imagine.

I have never had a dog "run away"...Once my gate blew open, unbeknownst to me, the dogs were sitting on the front step looking in

 

[llombardo]

The black lab I got when his owner passed away was the neighborhood dog when he was younger. He always wandered. Never attempted it by the time I got him. My oldest female was awful for darting out the door if she thought we were leaving her. We fixed that and she is good now. My cats won't even leave...I came home one day and the upstair neighbor says, do you know your screen is broke and a couple of the cats keep coming out, sitting on the ledge(I live on a ground level), then go back in? I could not believe that not one of them left. Birds, ducks and geese all around and they stayed put.

 

[doggiedad]

i think the owner of the dog hasn't trained their dog not to
run away. the owner of the dog hasn't trained their dog not
to door dash ( the house, the car, the yard (the gate), etc.
i think a dog should be trained not to dash if a door or gate is
propped open and you're not in the dog's view. meaning if the dog
can't see you he/she shouldn't dash.

I never had a dog that escaped and got lost permanently... What do you think reasons maybe for them to run away? Do they get lost or maybe they just want to get away from the house they live in? They have amazing sense of smell cant they just smell their way back?Maybe they just don't want to come back home?


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[Jax08]

I've fostered a few dogs that were found as strays and it's so hard to imagine how they got away being that they wouldn't leave me side (unless their owners had dumped them )

Interesting, isn't it? Supposedly this St. Bernard/Malamute mix "ran away" from the previous owner. She's been at our house for 2 months and a couple weeks ago I found her laying on teh front porch waiting for us to come home after she broke out of the basement. We've had other dogs get out during the day. One jumped thru a large plate glass window and was waiting for DH when he got home.

Why do dogs run? A variety of reasons...females in heat, no relationship with the owner, boredom, breed...I think it depends on the dog.

 

[julie87]

I guess the better question would be is why they don't come back...


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[Mrs.K]

Honestly, there is no need to train a dog to not run away unless you call bonding training.
I have not had a single dog of mine ever run from me. With or without training.

If a Shepherd runs, the owner is doing something wrong. The Shepherd wants to be around his person and you dont need any kind of obedience training for that. Obedience is just that, Obedience. But basic Obedience and a bond with your dog are two compoetely different things, chances are, the dog has little to no interaction and was sent away for training.

You would not believe how many calls I get from people who want to give me their 8-10 week old puppies into training, so they dont have to do it themselves. That is when I explain to them that it does not make any sense because a. They wont bond with their dog and b. They wont learn with their dog...

I cannot understand how in the world you cannot have a bond with your Shepherd.




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[gaia_bear]

I have a runner. I personally don't think it has anything to do with our bond, she's my shadow inside the house and off our property but turn your back on her in our yard and she's gone. At least I hope it's not our bond.

Maybe she senses that I don't trust her outside off leash since we moved and takes advantage of that? Thankfully she doesn't bolt at doors and has a solid enough recall that she'll come back or she realizes that I'm not running after her and comes back to check out why.


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[Liesje]

I have a wanderer. He is a neutered male (neutered VERY young). He doesn't obsess about getting out, but he will absolutely take advantage of someone leaving the gate unlatched or not closing the front door. We think he escapes because he has a larger range, if that makes sense? Like if we lived out in the country or on a farm, he wouldn't really "escape" because we'd have more space than a 44'x130' lot (minus the space the house takes up). Every time he's escaped, he's never gone more than a 1/4 mile away. For whatever reason he always stays within that radius and seems to know exactly where he is. In general he's a pretty independent dog. Not hyper or high drive by any means, but he has a more primitive nature, for lack of a better word. He'll often lie outside for hours and often he will "patrol" - walk slowly around the edge of the yard checking stuff out (he doesn't pace or fence run like GSDs though, he's more deliberate and methodical). It has nothing to do with lack of a bond or being neglected as far as physical or mental exercise, he's just a large dog with a wider range and he loves to be outside on patrol. From his perspective I'm sure it seems arbitrary to stay inside of such a tiny area when there are plenty of things to check on within that 1/4 mile radius.

ETA: This dog is NOT a GSD, he has a totally different temperament but in now way is any less bonded. He is my heart dog, absolutely irreplaceable. He is definitely a mix, but of dog breeds I know a little about I'd say he acts most like a Great Pyrenees (and that is likely 1/4 of his mix).

My GSDs on the other hand have never, ever been runners. I used to let Nikon out as a puppy without going outside with him before we had any kind of fence, no issues.

 

[julie87]

Why do they not come back?


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[Liesje]

Not sure, mine does. Well, normally if he gets out (usually because company isn't careful) we go get him back and don't wait for him to come back, but eventually he just walks up to you wagging his tail and that's that. I don't think he's ever been away more than 1/2 hour.