Keeping Dogs Safe if They’re Outdoor Dogs

Many dogs live perfectly happy lives outside. Although most in Western societies think this is cruel, consider this. Dogs lived for several thousand years outside, before they were domesticated, they can be very happy outside. This is of course provided that you provide ample shelter from weather and more importantly, don’t just leave them outside without plenty of attention.

If you crate your dogs, give them plenty of exercise and spend a lot of time with them, they’ll never feel as though there is anything wrong. The place where owners can go wrong is when they leave their dogs outside and only interact with them as they are entering or leaving the house.

Although roaming the streets may be in Jake’s nature, especially if he’s not neutered, this is both dangerous and an annoyance for your neighbors.

Part of leaving your dogs outside means that you have to ensure his safety. This means adequate fencing around the property to prevent Jake from running onto the road or street where he can be hit by a car. This also means ensuring there are no pieces of glass or other unsafe items they could harm themselves with. Ultimately what this means is that you are in effect baby proofing the outside of home as you would if your dogs are indoors.

You can create a corral to enclose them. When they are small, you might think that four feet might be sufficient in height for this corral. However, you could have just brought home a champion jumper and don’t know it yet. It’s best to make build or buy something that is at least six feet tall.

Confining Them Within A Corral - Keeping Them Safe Whilst Not Being Cruel Or Creating an Aggressive Dog

Part of corralling them is to ensure they don’t run off your property but it’s also to ensure that other predatory animals don’t come too close to them. It’s also a means of confining them without being cruel.

If you plan to keep Jake outside, please do not chain him up. It’s cruel and it creates aggression. If you feel that you are unable to control Jake from barking or chewing or creating havoc of some kind, this is a sign that both Jake and you need training.

The other thing that chaining your dog up is that it starts the cycle of bored barking. Your neighbors will be immediately annoyed and this will create problems that didn’t exist prior to bringing Jake home. Dogs are meant to run freely, it’s what most were bred for.

Coyotes

If you live in an area where you have coyotes and your dogs are outside, please ensure that your dogs are safe from this predator. Here’s a very simple solution. Create a fence or corral that is high enough (at minimum 6 feet) that a coyote can’t jump over it.

Photo Credits: n0nick

This post involves:

aggression, baby proofing, champion jumper, dogs, exercise, fencing, neighbors, pieces of glass, predatory animals, weather, western societies, what this means

... and focuses on:

Canines, Health and Medical, Tips for Dog Owners

Posted by Dog Training Pet on August 3, 2010 in Canines, Health and Medical, Tips for Dog Owners. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.