I ran across this and thought it was good advice to share.

http://www.vetstreet.com/our-pet-experts/the-worst-way-to-deal-with-a-loose-dog

Personally, I have a hard time not panicing which is the wrong thing. Usually it results in a very exhausting chase. One of mine I can get to come every time I call him but the others not so much. I almost lost my Sebo in the back woods of Arkansas when he bolted out the cabin door. He was gone in a flash into the undergrowth. After calling for what seemed hours I turned Mikko loose (the dog with good recall) and told him to find his brother. In a matter of minutes the two of them come running out of the woods together and right up to the cabin door. I was relieved and very lucky.

I'm 98% sure if I didn't run after Koda he'd just wander back in the door, but I can't stay still. Every time I've gotten him back nearly it's because he runs to some dead end, sees a cat, and is scratching up a wall.. other times people have opened their yards to have him run in.
Can't even tell you how many times he's gotten out, though most of it was 15 months old and younger and due to Jarod's mom opening the door and conveniently letting him take his leave, or would leave the door open, or the gate open.. Since that my nephew has let him out 2x but then Koda got to where when Noah opened the door he'd sit next to him.. and then people leaving dog park gate open..and collars/leashes snapping.. uhg.

Rogue will follow you anywhere if you have any food or make her think you do. Hoping she has good recall!

Same here. Jack will wander back to the house/car/tent/kayak (ME). It's really just a matter of time. He's kinda like a cat that way. Of course, he was a stray for 2 years, so he knows the joy of running free and can't resist the temptation. But because I'm his first owner, he also doesn't want to stay gone too long, like he's afraid I might not be there, or might not take him back. He'll leave, run 14 miles away, and mosey on back in a huge circle. Then just chill on the porch for 2 hours until I come home. But, as for when I follow him, I get on my rollerblades or bike (we go on runs with both), or jump in the car. I find him and pass him, then just stay 10 feet ahead of him dangling a leash at my side. He's drawn to me, wants the leash on, and will follow me all the way back home. I just have to make it a race. And I HAVE TO WIN!!!

I run away from her calling her name...

She stops right away and come charging at me.... Shes gotten away from me twice while practicing recall.

Both times I turned around run away from her and called her. She stopped, looked at me ,and just bolted right to me.

Maybe it's because I was working on recall at the time, but it has worked thus far.

~Tika~

Shadow would come when called, but sometimes I would have to call and call since she would wonder into the woods and then get sidetracked coming back. Shania you had to chase or jump in the truck and get along side of her and ask her if she wanted to go see fire trucks. She would jump in every time. She loved fire trucks. Stormy hasn't gotten away except once when we are still little and I was able to catch him fairly quickly (in bare feet non the less). I made the mistake of letting Shania off leash when she was little and slow....not making that mistake with Stormy. He doesn't even know he can go out the back door without his collar and leash.

I'm working on Storm's recall. He's kind of independent, but then again, we've only had him 5 months. I can't remember when Ginger's recall kicked in. Not great, but the one time Ginger snuck out and ran to the park across the street, I called her and she came running back....WHEW! It was good thing because hubby went running after her and she thought it was a game.

The one time Storm casually walked out the front door (after only a few weeks of adopting him) that was blown open by the wind because it wasn't latched all the way, Storm went walking down the block, and hubby stood infront of our house, whistled and called his name. We were lucky that time that Storm came bumbling back right in the door. Now he likes to explore the dog park and will suddenly go deaf! So we're working on that with Storm.

When Zander gets loose, he's gone. It's all fun and games for him. He doesn't really just run, even though he is very athletic and LOVES to run, getting loose isn't about running for him. It's like dealing with an ADD kid, really. "OMG Mom! Do you see that!? What is this? Oh, look at that dog over there! Have you smelled this tree?!"

He'll look at me if I say his name, but no other response. He isn't food motivated, he isn't thrilled about "Bye, Bye,", nothing. He has never come running to me, unless he sees something and it scares him. If I start walking away like, "This isn't fun", he'll follow me until he sees something more interesting.

This is where being in shape has always paid off for me. I just run with him, I make it a game, and then I run away and hide. He usually follows long enough for me to double back and catch him. Or, I'll use another dog as bait for his blasted "fun time".

But, really....I start bawling as soon as he's loose. Zander is my heart dog. To have him "gone" sends me into hysterics. I always say my heart and my soul belongs to Zander and my husband. If I lost either of them, I would never be whole again.

Siku has only gotten loose once. I freaked, but my bf calmly walked after her and when she stopped to sniff a stop sign I threw a few treats in front of her nose. Thankfully she came to me for more and I could grab her.

I've had 4 incidents with Mya and ummm 2 with Kody. Three of Mya's were when she was about Kody's age (1yr old). One time hubby opened the door and she bolted out. I had to chase her barefoot praying that she would stop before she got to a sorta main street. She was heading towards the park where we take our walks. Luckily, a guy was washing his car and she stopped to say hi. The second time she saw the neighbors dog and jumped the fence right in front of my face. She ran towards the park again and some other dude that was out grabbed her. The 3rd time I wasn't home and she got out on hubby. The last time was like 3 months ago that I had her ready for her walk and the leash unclipped when I opened the door. Thank goodness that my mother in law was getting home and she stopped to say hello to her.

With Kody both times were when we first got him and TOTALLY hubby's fault. He dropped his leash on a walk, but Kody stopped a block down after me chasing him with Mya. I think he stopped b/c of her to be honest. The 2nd time, hubby once again dropped his leash, but this time in a garage. So he ran down 2 floors and i corned him between 2 cars!

Well I lose mine in the mountains about twice a year. I stopped yelling and chasing a long time ago. Silence is my friend who shows me which way to go. Twigs snapping, panting, jingling collars and the sound of pine needles rustling are unmistakeable. So far I'm getting pretty good at it hunting him and hardly panic over it anymore. When you're in a gulch framed by 800' vertical faces on three sides, finding a loose dog doesn't take long.

When he gets out of the house, he goes across the street to where that one cat was that one time like three years ago. And that is extremely rare. As in it has happened three times since he started coming around in 2007.

For the most part I preempt the desire to bolt by crushing him with exercise. Then he looks too happy to go anywhere and I know I can go about my day.

When Neo gets loose, I just laugh at him, and calmly act like I am not trying to catch him until I get close enough to grab his collar. Brad chases him down the road like a madman untll he corners him somewhere a few miles down the road. We used to only put his collar on when it was time to go outside, but I quickly learned that was not a good idea. Now I only take it off at bedtime, because I cant stand the jingling from his tags while I am trying to sleep.

i<3neo wrote:

When Neo gets loose, I just laugh at him, and calmly act like I am not trying to catch him until I get close enough to grab his collar. Brad chases him down the road like a madman untll he corners him somewhere a few miles down the road. We used to only put his collar on when it was time to go outside, but I quickly learned that was not a good idea. Now I only take it off at bedtime, because I cant stand the jingling from his tags while I am trying to sleep.

Google 'quiet spot', they take the jingle out of the tags. They also protect them from wearing off.

Shania was a little angel once when my husband's aunt and uncle were watching her in Ocala. She knew the leash was clip to the collar wrong and waited till they were out the door before slipping her head out and taking off. They caught her by bribing her with a ride on the golf cart. She once got loose at my mother's and I followed her down the road where she walked into somebody's basement while they were setting up for a graduation party. She went over and sat down at the food table like "I'm here could someone make me a plate please?"


We had a beagle that followed our sent to the VFW. My mom and I were out looking for him when the bartender called and said that he walked in and sat down at the table we were sitting. Always thought that was cool.

Ill definatly take alook, Brad said something about getting those whatever they are called thingys that go around the edges that the military wear on thiers to keep them quite. But...hes being a little slow, can I hide this post from him? lool

i<3neo wrote:

We used to only put his collar on when it was time to go outside, but I quickly learned that was not a good idea. Now I only take it off at bedtime, because I cant stand the jingling from his tags while I am trying to sleep.

We have issues with the collars being left on OR off. They play and bite each others necks ALL THE TIME! When we first got Kody we had a real bad experience. Mya's bottom jaw got caught on his collar and we couldn't get it off. I ended up with bites all over my hand/arm. So, yeah, I'm paranoid about the collars, BUT I don't want them to be untagged either! So I put the collars on when they go in the yard and take them off when they come back in. It's such a process!

MelissaI wrote:

i<3neo wrote:

We used to only put his collar on when it was time to go outside, but I quickly learned that was not a good idea. Now I only take it off at bedtime, because I cant stand the jingling from his tags while I am trying to sleep.

We have issues with the collars being left on OR off. They play and bite each others necks ALL THE TIME! When we first got Kody we had a real bad experience. Mya's bottom jaw got caught on his collar and we couldn't get it off. I ended up with bites all over my hand/arm. So, yeah, I'm paranoid about the collars, BUT I don't want them to be untagged either! So I put the collars on when they go in the yard and take them off when they come back in. It's such a process!

Mine have the same issue. I've had to replace collars because they get all chewed up! I take their collars off when play starts to get wild, but I'm afraid ill forget to put them back on, and sometimes I do. I would be a mess if they got away, but I'd totally lose it if they didn't have their I'd tags! They're both chipped, but I still like having the classic I'd tags too.

Max got out last night and it took us a half hour to find him. turns out this time that he had run off a little further than ever before. Most of the time we find him within about 15 minutes but the longest time he was out running for about 2 hours. We just go out looking and calling his name. Last night however I had help from somebody that is kind of a neighbor. It was a total shock that she came to help me but she must love animals that much. Either way I was grateful for the help.

Because I live right by a highway I take every precaution to prevent my huskies from getting loose. BUT, they're huskies and sometimes my efforts are not enough. Salsa got loose and climbed my 6 foot fence when we first brought her home. She was on a mission to chase a cat. I, thankfully, was outside when it happened so I could react quickly. Part of me wanted to have a heart attack when I saw her go over the fence but I made myself calm down and I just called to her. To my surprise, when she heard me call, she stopped chasing the cat and came right to me! Then I wanted to have a heart attack from shock! I thought I was in for an all day chase while, at the same time, trying to keep the cat from getting killed by the dog.

That was a couple of years ago and nobody has gotten loose since.
My sister's husky used to get loose all the time. She would panic and chase after her but 9 times out of 10 she would come home to find Kiana sitting on the porch.