Finding Fido: How to Keep Your Dog from Getting Lost
We’ve been noticing a very distressing trend of missing dogs in our local community. As our world gets smaller and busier, it can be easier for dogs to wander and get lost.
Good training with a qualified dog trainer or behavior consultant can help to teach your dog boundaries and to come when called. Studies have also shown that dogs who regularly train with their owners have an increased bond and less desire to wander off and explore. This is why we always recommend taking fun and engaging dog training classes a few times a year and offer our clients opportunities to stay active with their pups.
We recommend starting with training early to prevent problems from coming up and have a created a puppy focused socialization and training school for busy owners who want help making sure they are raising well balanced puppies. If you have a pup under 6 months old that could use a crash course in training (especially coming when called and not going out doors!), check out our puppy school.
It’s never too late!
You can indeed teach an old dog new tricks! For some, it may take a little longer as we have to undo some bad habits while creating new ones (for the dog and us owners) but it’s always worth working on it.
If you have a dog that’s no longer a puppy, private lessons or our board and train programs are a great way to get help teaching your dog boundaries and making sure they know to come when called!
Safety, first!
While working on your dog’s new skills of coming when called and staying in the house even with open doors, you can do a few things to keep your dog safe and increase your chances of finding them if they do happen to get lost.
- Proper Identification – make sure that your puppy or dog has a properly fitter collar with an identification tag that clearly displays your contact information on it. Many tags also now come with a QR code that can be scanned to include even more important information than just your name and phone number. We recommend checking out Qalo dog tags or Byte tags.
- Keep them on leash! It’s the law and for good reason. A good quality nylon or biothane leash between 6 and 10 feet long allows your dog freedom to explore when in unfenced areas while also keeping them safe from running away, unfriendly dogs or even cars. A leash connected to a well fitted martingale collar can also be a lifesaver for dogs that are easily scared or startled.
- Never leave them unattended. Leaving dogs unattended can be a quick and easy way for them to get exercise especially when it’s too cold out for us without fur coats or trying to make dinner and help the kids with homework. Most lost dogs escaped or were even stolen when left alone in a fenced in yard. You can never be sure that those smart animals can’t find a way out, so always keep them supervised.
- Invest in a GPS activity collar. There are great GPS collar options available for dogs. First, we recommend the Whistle GPS collar. It does so much more than provide GPS, it’s like a fitbit for you dog and can give you incredible insight into their health and behavior. Our next favorite option is the Fi collar. The Fi collar is also an activity and GPS tracker. Both collars allow you to set geofencing and alerts if your dog goes outside of the boundary and to track them if they get lost.