Is That An Open Door?
Moree knew what it meant to escape. He was very well aware of the difference between us letting him off leash, and sneaking trough a door, past a gate, or under a fence. His recall, which was excellent at the off leash park, was non-existent when his mind clicked in to escape mode.
When Moree got out, patience was your best friend. If you tried to follow him, that just gave him the bravery to go further. Your best bet was to sit outside (with treats in your hand) where you could still see him, but not chase. On his own, he would not go too far away. The only caveat was if he went a direction where you knew you could corner him- that allowed for getting him home. But for the most part, once Moree escaped, no one was going to catch him until he was ready to come home.
The only other trick was if you could follow him in the car. He loved getting in the car. So if he was close enough to the street that you could open a car door and call him in, he was all about that. But in many of the places we lived, his running routes were nowhere near the road. (And I’m not really complaining about that.)
Moree taught Smokey the joy of escape early on. The first 4th of July we had them, they got out and were gone a long time- Smokey over 10 hours and Moree over 12. In fact, any time they got out together, they were gone longer. Having a companion gave them the courage to go further.
Given that, I am conditioned to it being an ordeal if one of the dogs gets out off leash. Which makes our current set up seem so odd, and really wonderful.
Larry is excellent at slipping out the door. For the most part, he just wants to go the bottom of the steps to bark at whoever is on the porch. Or this weekend when he slipped out while I was in the driveway, he just wanted to get to me. I walked forward and with just voice and hand signals was able to direct him back into the house. That never would have happened with Moree and Smokey. (On his own, Smokey would run to the end of the block and then come back.)
June shows very little desire to get out to begin with.
And Howie occasionally slips out off leash. He can be fast. Most of the time, it’s because he needs to go out and he’s not certain you are going to take him, so he makes a mad dash as soon as the door opens. He wants to go out and come right back in. Earlier last week, he decided to do a little exploring and went through our “hedge” wall onto the street. He then spent the next couple of minutes trying to figure out how to get back to us. He had no intention of going anywhere.
I will always miss my Moree and Smokey dogs, but I do not miss the stress of escaped dogs. It is so nice to have dogs that mostly want to be in the house with us.