- 26
- Jun
Some dogs are just fence climbers. This particular German Shorthair, Daisy, is a 30 pound bundle of energy. She is as sweet as they come, but you have to watch her; she climbs fences better than my 5 year old boy (who climbs like a monkey, by the way).
We have to have a lid on the kennel and have it tightly wired down. Daisy hadn’t been in the kennel 10 minutes and was out again. I was dumbfounded as to how she got out, because there was a top on it. I put her back and watched her leap 6′ in the air, cling on and climb to the top and push her way through the roof fence panel edge. Needless to say, we have wired it down tight all the way around now. Now she climbs around the upper section of our kennel about like a gibbon, but can’t get out.
As for the 4′ property fence, I don’t think she really sees that as a barrier. She will leap up to where her body is 1/3 the way over, then land her front and back paws on the top of the fence and propel herself the rest of the way.
How do we deal with a fence climber, you ask? For starters, we have her kennel top tightly wired down so she can’t push her way out. The floor is wooden, so she can’t dig her way out. Then we stay out in the yard with her when she is out. Typically we have all the dogs out, so they are busy romping and playing with each other and she doesn’t have any desire to leave the yard. Daisy is a very social dog that loves to be with you. Usually when she climbs out, she is looking for you, so as long as you are around, she sticks close.
I’ve talked to several others with fence climbing dogs and the three solutions I have found are Kennels with a top, tie outs, and electricity. As for electricty, folks I talked to either used a pet containment fence, or a pet electric fence. If you use the electric fence, I suggest using the pet series rather than one for livestock, as the voltage is much lower. I also suggest using the white ribbon tape rather than a wire, since it is much more visable so dogs and kids can see it more easily. As for us, we use the roofed kennel, supervision and lots of exercise.
Let me hear your stories of your fence climber. Cheers, …
March 9th, 2008 at 11:21 am
I think the kennel you keep your dog in is wrong. Dogs need yards to run in and not be confined to 4 ft kennels. No wonder why she climbs
March 13th, 2008 at 7:56 am
Dear Dog Lover,
Thanks for your concern for our dogs. We too are concerned about how dogs are treated. We invite you to view the rest of our website, and to come and tour our facilities and see what you think. We have the utmost concern for our dogs and those we are training. We run every dog 4 miles every day, train 3 x a day and they get lots of yard time with us and with the other dogs. It is important to us that dogs are around us as much as possible, and therefore they spend a majority of time in the house with us. We just can’t all of them in the house at the same time. Our aim to to produce happy, enjoyable companion hunting dogs.
Thanks for your concern. Come by for a visit.
Sincerely,
Chris & Julie Colt
April 30th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
WOW am I relieved to hear my Sophie is not the only one. I’m at a loss! She’s a 2 yr old lab who just cannot get enough attention or exercise. She too has a playmate in the yard and still climbs out. She won’t climb out if I’m back there, althought she thinks about it. I’ve tried rewarding her when she stays in the yard, but that doesn’t seem to change anything. Although I really dont want to result to electricity, as Sophie has NEVER responded well to force, I dont really know what else to do. I want her to be able to enjoy the yard while I’m at work, but I dont want her to have any harsh feelings against me for the electricity, or WORSE, something bad happen if she does get out. Any suggestions?