German shepherd keeps escaping from backyard pen
Question: We have a female German shepherd. We live on 1-½ acres, so she has plenty of room to run around. Unfortunately, we have to put her in a pen because she gets out of the gate anytime she?s loose and no one’s outside. Do you know what this comes from? Will she grow out of it? She was 2 years old in October. — Raquel
Answer: The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence! Your dog has probably smelled every blade of grass, hunted every animal and rolled in everything stinky in your yard already. However, there are lots of new smells right outside of your gate. Why not go and explore?
Seriously, your dog is probably bored and finds it infinitely more exciting to go play outside of your yard. She has learned under which circumstances she can get out of the yard through simple trial and error. This behavior is self-reinforcing. This means that after she has escaped, you can’t do anything to change that she received pleasure from it.
Now, if you find that your dog escapes the back yard and runs to the front yard to wait for you at the front door, or that she only escapes the yard when you leave her by herself and then waits for you outside the gate, she may have separation anxiety. If this is the case, you should also see signs of this behavior when you leave her alone in the house. A simple videotape of what she does when you are gone will tell the tale.
If she has separation anxiety, she should see your veterinarian to start treatment. If she is simply escaping for fun, you can reduce this behavior by making sure that your fence is escape-proof or bringing her inside when you come inside.
Lisa Radosta DVM, Diplomate ACVB
Florida Veterinary Behavior Service
PO Box 210636
Royal Palm Beach, FL 33421-0636
561-795-9398
www.flvetbehavior.com
Read more articles by Dr. Radosta | Ask her a question
Source: http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/pawshere/2011/04/19/german-shepherd-keeps-escaping-from-backyard-pen/
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