So, your four legged friend is an escape artist. Mine too.
With this being the pet issue of Abilene Scene I thought I would touch on what has been a problem for me as a pet owner. My two fur-babies put Houdini to shame when it comes to escaping the yard.
Christmas of 2015 we bought our first home. Over the next 9 months it felt like one or both of our dogs went missing at least once a month. We stopped up holes with rocks, added chicken wire to the bottom half of the fence, buried the chicken wire, secured the chicken wire with fencing nails and just about lost our minds until we figured out that the dogs weren’t digging their way to freedom. Our chunky pug learned how to open the gate by shaking it with her paws until the latch flipped up.
Helpful Tips on How to Prevent Your Dog from Escaping.
I seriously considered getting them GPS enabled collars at $180 each. We definitely invested in readable and durable name tags with our contact info on the back (available at PetSmart), in addition to getting them chipped (Abilene Animal Shelter). But once we figured out how they were getting out, all we had to do was buy locks for the gates and voila. The dogs have stayed put since.
With one exception.
Yes, that is our terrier. Yes, he is in a tree. The most recent missing dog fiasco lasted nearly 24 hours. We could not find our terrier, figure out how he escaped or figure out why Dany-the-pug had not escaped with him. At this point we had a routine down. Post on Facebook, share with the neighborhood group and the Lost Pets of Abilene group. Contact the shelter and register a lost pet form. Search the neighborhood as thoroughly as possible.
Murphy was nowhere to be found. So, we went to bed and hoped for the best. We didn’t sleep well worrying about him. Also, curiously, the neighbor dogs wouldn’t stop barking. Weird, because that had never happened before.
Next day we left Dany-the-pug inside so she wouldn’t try to escape and look for her brother. Going home at lunch to give her a rest break, Michael noticed she kept standing at the bottom of a particular tree and staring hard at it. He went to her, and that’s when he heard a small whimper coming from the sky. Murphy had spent the night in the tree.
How he managed to climb 15 feet up, we still do not know. I would bet money he got carried away chasing a squirrel and didn’t realize what he was doing.
Word to the wise. When your dog escapes, take all the precautions but definitely don’t forget to check the trees.
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@bajaelsol & @AbileneScene
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