It is truly heart wrenching. Your riding along the road going about your day and lying in the middle of theroad is the lifeless corpse of someone's pet. Why a dog would run out in the middle of the road is anyone's best guess. As much as you train them the truth is that these animals have a built in prey drive and natural curiosity that is going to take them out of the territory that is their yard.
It Can Be Prevented Though!
Dogs are much like children and as their care takers it is job to keep them safe and healthy. However unlike a child that you can scold for getting in the road a dog isn't going to immediately understand that dog+road=DEATH! However there are a number of options that you can employ in order to keep your pets away from danger.
Dog Lead:
This is probably the oldest and least expensive method. Simply put you either tie a lead to a tree or stake it in the ground. Although this is usually very reliable I did once have a dalmatian that was able to pull the anchor out of the ground and (thats after getting a heavy duty anchor for him.) Other problems included him digging up his the area within the lead and thus making an unsightly mess and he always had this forlorn look while on there.
Fenced In Yard:
This is the most reliable yet time consuming method there is. It consist of wrapping a length of chain link fence around your yard by attaching them to post that you or someone you pay is putting in the ground. For a truly professional job I would recommend hiring someone so that the fence looks well put together. Otherwise you may need to buy some special tools to compete the job.
Dog Run:
Dog runs are great if you have small dogs like dachshunds or certain breeds of terriers, and they will even work well for limited periods of time with large dogs and Jack Russells. However dogs naturally love to roam (hence the reason you are reading this article in the first place) and no matter the breed you are going to need to take them out for a walk and keep their kennel cleaned out. which is going to be a daily occurrence.
Electronic Fences
This is probably the most high tech method out there. In many cases it involves you placing a wire underground and your dog wearing a collar. When the dog reaches the boundary set by the collar it will at first emit a warning tone and then emit a minor electric shock. I have felt this myself before I put it on my dog and it wasn't extremely painful. It could best be described as a "surprise" and a minor sting against my skin.
The down side to this method is that like with the chain length fences installation can be time consuming however and that the fence isn't "plug and play." What I mean is that in order for it to work properly you must train your dog what the warning tone and the buzz means.
However there is a wireless variety of fence created by Havahart that sets a zone around your house that your dog must stay in. You won't have to spend all day on a Saturday installing it while you could otherwise be enjoying your day off. Furthermore if you ever move you will won't lose your investment by leaving all that wire in the ground. Depending on the particular set up, you can also set up exclusion zones within your yard so that you can keep your flower beds in pristine.
Training:
To get the most out of any electronic fence system you are going to need to train your dog to avoid it. Dogs are notorious for their short attention spans so training should be limited to 15 minutes per day however you can train them on the same subject 2-3 times per day.
Training Should Include:
Passive Training Days:
This is a way to acquaint the dog with the fence system. At this time anything that can shock the dog should be turned off but the buzzer in the collar needs to be turned on. The point of this training is to teach him to move away from the fence upon hearing the tone.
Active Training:
During this phase a low correction is going to be applied to discourage the dog from crossing the wireless boundry.
Distraction:
During this phase the dog will remain on the leash while as distractions are placed outside of the set zone. This is in order to train the dog not to cross the line to chase cars or other animals. This would be a great time to have something that usually gets his or her attention (like a treat or passing human) out side of the zone. If they decide to leave the area to pursue the individual or treat let them leave and feel the correction.
Off Leash Supervision:
This is similar to the on leash distraction training. During this period you should continue to keep an eye on the dog as they explore their area.
After that your dog should be reluctant to aproach the trigger zone even if distracted by passing cars, humans or other wildlife.
This is a summary, for full instructions please the havahart site for more details.
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