The escape artist.......
 

Okay, Hannah is year and a half and she still continues to dart out the door (house) whenever she gets the chance. She then runs while whomever was standing there and saw her, runs after her. Usually the person with the bag of treats catches her. She makes a lot headway while running, she usually makes it two streets over. This is not a fun game for me. I become very stressed out and my boyfriend blames me for her running/escaping. How can I keep her from running out of the house unsupervised? I would like to be able to open the door or have people enter and exit and not have her escape. Her escaping is very dangerous. When ever she escapes she runs willy nilly. She gets a walk whenever the weather is nice and plays in the house off leash. Should I start keeping her on a leash at all times? Naturally, we try to keep the outside door locked so that we know when some one is coming in and I have asked visitors to ring the door bell so that I can secure her. Please help!!!!!!!!!!!

I keep mine confined to the back end of the house with a small gate unless I am upfront and watching them. If I am expecting someone they can't get near a door and when we leave they can't get near a door. So maybe a way to confine her when there is any chance a door is going to be opened is the best thing. You have been so lucky she hasn't been hurt or lost.

Hello, I use a baby gate. it fits fight between my regular door and my screen door. I have found this to work out really good.

Have you tried training her to sit at the door and wait? You even start this inside the some and work your way up to the front door. It'll take some work and tons of patience, but you can do it. Start with a room that has a door, like the bathroom. Put her in a sit, stay then reach for the doorknob while still watching her. If she lifts that little hinney off the floor, STOP, put her back in a sit, stay and wait a few seconds. Then try again. The goal will be to have her sit, stay, and wait for the release command ("OK", or whatever) before proceeding through the door. It will take you a long time to get the door open all the way, but eventually she'll understand what you want from her. Even if you have the door open slightly, if she gets up before you release her, close it, put her back in a sit, stay and wait. For the front door, you're going to want to leash her for safety reasons. It's the same process as what I described above. Put her in a sit stay at a safe distance from the door and somewhere where you can watch her while you're trying to get the door open. As soon as she gets up without your ok, close the door again and start all over. Remember, consistency is the key to success, and trust me, with time you will be successful!:thumbup:

Here are some other suggestions to help with the training process. Always keep your baby's harness on her. It'll make it easier to attach the leash to her. Keep a leash hanging, or easily accessible from the front door, something long enough where she can sit comfortably at a distance from the door (3-4 ft), and is completely slack. Keep treats handy at the front door too. That way, whenever she allows you to complete a door opening without ever getting up she gets a reward. You might want to put a sign on the front door saying something like "We're training our pup to not bolt our the door, please bear with us." So that they understand why it's taking you so long to open the door :) I hope this helps!

Excellent advice about the sit and stay and have her wait!! I have been working on that with Pixie bc she loves to bolt out the door.

It comes in handy! Kaji is a home body so the outside world doesn't appeal to him. :p But I do it anyway. Even when exiting the bathroom I put him in a sit stay. I like to practice because I know someday we will live in a house with a backyard which I hope he will want to play in, and I want him to know this skill well.

I use a baby gate. I brought mines from walmart.

bolting
 

ASbbey bolts too..our opening is 70 in and cant find a gate that wide..terrified of her getting hurt

Neo is very headstrong and WILL NOT wait at the door! We had to resort to using static mats at every doorway to the outside. I don't like them, but they work and it only took one time for Ne-Ne to understand.

mats
 

where to buy this?

I have seen this handled on the DOG WHISPERER and even IT'S ME OR THE DOG.
They need to wait a few feet back from the door when you open the door. Once they are trained to listen to the word BACK or WAIT it helps a lot at a busy door. My 6 Chi's know to stand back when I say wait. We are working with Bella now.
If you can't get that to work I would block them from having access to the door at all.

:thumbup: Training is key. They're such smart little buggers and all they really need is a bit of direction. If they're too stubborn, which we know this breed is known for that, then yes, blocking all access will be your best solution. Kaji's getting more and more brave and he tried to follow me out the door once. We have self closing doors and he got caught in it. Luckily my brothers are sweet enough to always watch him as I leave just in case. They were able to pull the door back and pull him back in safely and my stubborn boy wasn't hurt.

We got ours from Drs. Foster and Smith catalog. They are pricey, but they work very well. Worth it in our estimation! :)

Try training before prevention, DvlshAngel985 offered some great advice.

Lexi used to bolt out the door too, it took some time and practice but she does not do it any longer.

You can also use pressure shower curtain rods and drape fabric between the two rods so the dog can run out...this way you can adjust the height that works for you and your dog and is not as expensive as some other things.

I have a couple of children gates. I use them to block for rooms in our house that I don't want Pixie getting into. But, training is the key. Pixie won't go out a door when it is open she goes back into our kitchen area an waits right there.

I'm sure it's been mentioned, but I would engrave the "stay" command into her little mind...I use "stay" with my boys a lot, and it really works for a lot of situations. If you are very persistent with it, I'm sure she will pick it up :)

Taylor was the same - and very un-streetwise! she has no clue that cars can kill her or that not ALL dogs and people are her friends! normally she is in our backyard but was getting out the fence and running miles from home. Hears seem to fail her at the best of times. We had that wired up high enough that you would think we own a german shepherd! lol!

As for the front door tho - she will take a chance sometimes but i have always told her a firm NO when she has tried and called her back and she will now only go out if i walk out and i call her and give her permission. Perhaps some training would help? They can be very defiant and test their boundaries and if allowed to they will walk all over you! You have to be firm and make her understand that you are her leader and she must follow. Never, for example, let her rush past you through the door first or jump in the car before you. You need to be her leader and she must know she is at the bottom of the "pack" so to speak.

It relates to any little thing. I allow mine on the couch, but when we eat she is not allowed up at all and will now sit outside the door and wait until our plates are gone and then run in. It's all about being firm but kind and teaching them to respect you and their boundaries. They need a leader and that is you.

Perhaps try taking her to some training sessions to get her to listen. By her ignoring you she is showing her dominance over you unfortunately. Easier said than done I now but it will take time, patience and hard work to get her to listen.

I'm a firm believer in postive reinforcement. I like the one post about practising it. perhaps if you go outside the door and teach her to stay inside and reward her for not rushing past you that will help too???

All the best! Consistency is key in trainging. Remember these are VERY clever little dogs and need education :) I feel your frustration! I think we have all been through this! lol!

Bumping an old thread but...

Has anyone had luck getting the dog to stay in the house without the "stay" command? He is pretty well trained to not bolt when told to stay but if a guest is over and opens the door, he runs for it. It's frustrating and so scary.

I am hoping we can get him to stay every time the door is opened without the command. Any ideas on how to do that or am I dreaming?

Some obedience training will help but in the mean time you need some gates to keep her away from the door. You may have to keep her in one part of the house.
I had this problem with Gracie when she was a puppy. She just loved to get out the front door. Once she actually left with a repair person!:eek: I had to pick her up and hold her before anyone could open the door. If we had workers around then I would put her harness and leash on and keep her right with me. Once I put her in a bedroom to be safe but someone let her out when I wasn't looking.

I know how stressful it is to try to catch one of these escape artists! Another thing that helped with Gracie was when I started walking her outside more. It seemed to help satisfy her need to investigate the world outside the door. It helps use up that pent up energy, too.

I just want to add that Gracie never runs out the door now. She knows she is supposed to stand behind me when I open any door. It did take a great deal of time and training to get to that point. When she was a youngster I didn't think she would ever get to get her to where I could open a door without picking her up first. She turned 2 the end of May.

Good to know! He is almost 1yr now and he has gotten so much better. If the person opening the door says "stay" he stays. If not, it's fair game.

We noticed that he always ran to the same few places so we walk him every day and make sure to stop by his favorite sniffing spots so he can get it out of his system.

If you do it consistently, eventually they'll look for the "ok" command to proceed out the front door. No need to say "stay", but definitely enforce the "ok" "let's go" or whatever command. I can leave the front door wide open for hours on end and Kaji is not tempted. he knows the stay command well and after so much practice he knows to wait for the release. We have 3 years of diligent practice. Trust me it works! You just have to put the time in now to get the results you want later.

:lightbulb Got it. We've really been putting the emphasis on stay and the "ok" is an afterthought. I think am I so preoccupied with stopping him. This is really helpful. Thanks!

:) keep us updated on your progress.

I've been working on the sit and stay as DvlshAngel described. Blazer has bolted three times now and that is towards the school bus! Thankfully he was easy to catch but I'm still mad that he managed to get of a door I thought I was physically blocking! Sneaky little devil... I also need to teach him his outside boundaries so that if he DOES get out off leash that he won't leave the yard. I'm not sure how to do it, though. DH trained our GSP with a shock collar. :(

Are these mats a training tool or permanent solution?

My Yorkies will take off if the door is left open. I have fences up so they can't get out. In my house you would have to move the fence or jump over it because of the dogs. I do not want them running down the street and getting hit. Please think of getting a fence. I got a really nice wood one at Petsmart. It stretches across the entryway and the dogs are confined to the tiled living room. Hope those fellas stay home and do not escape anymore. TOO Dangerous.

We have our Yorkie trained but I don't think it is 100% reliable for a dog. If they see anything interesting outside, they might still go for it. I am very lazy so I just use baby gates. They are reliable, not expensive.