How to Prevent Your Dog from Running Away

Dogs hold a special place in our hearts for many reasons. They are extremely loyal, good natured and always happy to see you. It’s no wonder many of us prefer pet friends to human friends, especially the canine ones. However, even when we think that the bond we have with our pet is strong and unbreakable, bad things happen. If your four-legged friend runs away, do not worry- we are here to help you. Here are a few reasons why dogs run away from home and how to stop it.

How to Prevent Your Dog from Running Away

Problems with moving your home

If you have recently decided to change your place of residence, then you can expect that your dog won’t be too happy about it. In these situations dogs tend to run away from the new home in search of the previous one where they felt safe and where the surroundings were more familiar. The best thing you can do in this case is make him more comfortable, in order for him to stay in his new home. You can achieve this by surrounding him with as many familiar toys, furniture and smells as possible. Make sure to take him out for tours around the house and let him sniff the walls and furniture so that he can get acquainted with the new smells.

Feeling left out

Just like humans, and other social living beings, dogs can feel mistreated and left out if you don’t give them enough attention. In most cases they will develop feelings of resent towards the owners, but the ones that are not aggressive will most likely just run away, which is also a serious issue. What you need to do in this case is really simple – spend more time with your pet, groom it more often, take it out for walks, and give it many tasty treats. As soon as you start bonding and spending more time with each other, your pet will start developing stronger feelings of trust and love. Additionally, if you have more than one pet and you tend to spend more time with just one, the other can start feeling left out and jealous. Make sure to spend an equal amount of time with each one, and love every pet you have so you can create a loving home.

Mating season

If your dog is not neutered it will most likely run away from home in search of a mate when the mating season comes. This is the most common reason why dogs run away, but don’t worry because when this happens they will surely return home after a while. If you want to protect your pet without getting him neutered, we recommend using an alternative method. For example, you can have your dog micro-chipped, or even better, you can buy him a pet ID tag in Australia, which will have your phone number engraved on it so that the person who finds your pet can call you and help you be reunited with your friend once again.

Many dogs have pent-up energy

Dogs need activity just like humans. If they stay inside for too long they will easily get bored, and what’s even worse, their muscles may start to weaken and they could gain a lot of weight. Out of boredom, dogs will stand by the front door simply waiting for someone to come and open it so that they can run out. Unfortunately, this also means that they will run away from home into an unknown direction and get lost. The best solution is to take them for walks more often, and even better, train them to obey your commands. For example, teach them to wait for your permission to leave when you open the door. The first step is to leash the dog and take it to your front door, or gate, and then reach for the handle. If the dog starts to get up and act all nervous, take your hand back and command it to sit down. Because this is a training activity, you will need to repeat the process until your dog understands it.

It doesn’t take much effort to recognize the reasons why dogs run away and to find the right way to deal with the issue. It’s important to train your pet properly, and nurture that loving relationship between you and your four-legged best friend.