How to Keep a Dog From Climbing the Fence

Dogs are surprisingly good climbers, especially when they have sufficient motivation to leave a fenced-in area. These motivations include food, mates or sheer boredom. A loose dog can be hit by a car or picked up by police. Once dogs figure out how to climb a fence, it can be hard to get them to stop, but it's not impossible.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Chest harness
• Dog tie-out stake
• Dog tie-out stake rope
• Microchip (highly recommended)
• Dog toys

1. See how the dog is getting out. Go inside your house and watch from out of the window. Is he sticking his claws into the wire mesh? Is he using any objects to leap onto and then over the fence? If the dog needs other objects in order to help get onto the top of the fence, move them.

2. Keep the dog in the yard only for short periods of time when you are at home and can supervise her. According to the Humane Society of the United States, keeping a dog for hours or days at a time in a yard will result in boredom and will be the main reason why a dog will climb a fence.

3. Fit your dog with a chest harness. The chest harness will keep a dog from choking when tied to a stake.

4. Buy a dog tie-out kit. Whenever he is outside, even if you can supervise him, tie him by the harness to a stake or around a very solid tree. Eventually, when the dog is happy to stay in the yard, you can stop tying him.

5. Exercise your dog more. A dog needs daily walks of at least a half hour, plus time to romp in the yard. According to the ASPCA, some breeds like the pointers will need two walks a day. If necessary, hire a pet sitter or dog walker to keep him active and exercised. Keep dog toys and chew toys in the yard to make it more interesting and to keep the dog at home.

6. Praise the dog for staying in the yard and behaving, especially by playing with the dog in the yard. Yip like you are hurt whenever you see the dog begin to climb the fence, but don't hit him. Make sure everyone in the family and visiting friends do not encourage the dog to climb.

Tips & Warnings

• Make sure your dog always wears a collar with an ID tag. Also, get the dog microchipped. In this way, should the dog escape, you have a much better chance of getting him back.
• Never use an electric fence or invisible fence shock collars. They can injure a dog severely. They can also make dogs too terrified of going out into the yard, which will lead to housebreaking issues.

Resources

• Video: Fence Climbing Dog
• Humane Society of the United States: Escaping Dog
• Microchipping for Your Dog's Safety

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