O.T. Dog.... Gone

[Dr. Zack Jennings]

Dog Today.... Gone Tommorrow

I got one dog because that was all that was available. I put up a 20 X 20 portable dog yard, bought food, plastic dog house, collar etc. Went and got the dog, a Beagle Puppy stray @ 10-12 weeks old.

The dog sqeazed under the door while I was snapping the doghouse together. I caught him, fixed that spot and got him set up with food, water and shelter.

I watched him eat some food and take his first dog crap in his new yard. I went inside. Fifteen minutes later, the Dog Was Gone ! I haven't seen him since. I've searched by foot with flashlight, by bycycle and on my Harley. The only plus: I've had a nice visit with most of the neighbors.

Lessons Learned:

When setting up a portable Chainlink dog pen, dig a trench to lower the bottom rail into the ground.
Add landscape timbers at the base.
Chain the dog for the first few days to be sure he learns where his home is so that if he ever gets out, he, at least knows where to return to for food and water.
Lock in the garage or in the house if necessary so the dog has time to get to know you.

I haven't given up but it's possible he was picked up on the road by some caring person who felt he may get killed or he's been taken in by a neighbor I haven't talked to. At least I hadn't known him long enough to get distraught about it.

[Ed Falis]

Zack,

Sorry to hear it worked out that way so far. But he may be back later - has certainly happened to me before. Then again, he's a beagle - they're a peculiar subspecies ;-)

Anyway, I hope that dog comes back, or that you get a suitable replacement. A good dog's really not something easily done without.

- Ed

[Jim Young]

That's kinda sad. At leat be happy you didn't pay for one of those high price pure breeds. Hope your dog comes back.

[Steve Clardy]

up, I'd be glad to give you a replacement. We usually get 5 or 6 strays a year out here. People like to dump other things besides trash also. Would 1 be enough, or would you want all of them? lol:D :D :D :D
Steve

[Brad Hammond]

it was probably just a matter of time before she dug out. Beagles LOVE to dig, dig and dig some more. the chain for a couple of days thing sounds like a good idea. We had a beagle come up to the house about a year ago. Of course she was limping. It took 3 days to get a hand on her before i could get her to the vet. Long story short,,,, femur fx overlapping about 3 cm's, pelvic fx in 5 places, lots of stool from eating bones, and the usual electrolyte screw ups that follow dehydration. After an enema, bag of fluids and 3 weeks of laying on 4-5 inches of cedar chips she came out one morning looking for breakfast and running around the yard on her chain. Now she does great, but DIGS LIKE CRAZY.
hope everything turns out well, keep looking! and check the local pound, you can probably call them and leave a description.
cya
brad

[Rob Sandow]

I hope I don't offend anyone with this post, because that's not my intention. There's nothing personal here, but I just gotta say what's on my mind about this subject.

Please reconsider your decision to get a dog if you do not intend to keep the dog indoors. Taking care of a dog, especially a shelter dog, can be a lot of work. I know, I have 2, a beagle and a shepherd/hound mix. Both came from the SPCA, and they can be a handful at times. But they both live inside the house. My wife walks them several times a day, and takes them out into the yard for a few hours to play, but then they come back inside.

To me, there is nothing sadder than a dog that is kept chained up or penned in outside, especially when it's cold or raining. When their master is inside the house they must get lonely out there. Any vet will tell you that it's best for pets to be kept indoors, dogs should only go out when they are supervised, and cats should not go out at all (I have one of those, too).

OK, I'm off my soap box now. Back to woodworking.

Rob

[David Rose]

However I feel that some animals need more exercise than they can get inside. One case being our malamutes or many work dogs.

The real alternative to keeping them inside is adequate outside containment. Our boys have an acre, and I feel for them it is a minimum size. If you've seen my posted pics from an earlier post, they do get inside quite a bit. And we spend quite a bit of time with them outside.

The downside is what it costs to build a "compound" this size and the fact that we look like a zoo. We have 6' chainlink, 2-3' leanins at the top of that, 4' chainlink attached to the bottom of the fence buried flat as a dig barrier. That is just the start. The fence was here before the dogs and I did the rest. It still was a several thousand dollar project.

Question... why do you say that cats should never go out? We have a unique situation with our "yard", but our cats usually want out several times a day. They are about 4 years old and we have not caught them outside the fence yet. If you are speaking of the roaming problem, I agree. Our guys are neutered too, which may help some. But they like to hunt and just roam around the yard. They get pretty intense when they can't get out for a day or so.

Rescues can be tough. They need a LOT of special attention for quite some time. With enough patience and training, they can be great animals.

Pets are a big commitment, IMHO.

David

[Rob Sandow]

David,

About the cats, it's because they like to get into fights, with other cats, racoons, skunks, porcupines, you name it, they'll get in a fight with it. This is especially true with males. Also they can be attacked by stray dogs, I lost a cat this way once. They can also get several fatal diseases from other cats if they don't have all the immunizations. I lost another cat to feline leukemia, which she got from another cat while outdoors.

I agree with you about the malamutes, though. We once had a siberian husky. These dogs really need to run, that's for sure.

Rob

[PeterTorresani]

Rob

No offense taken to your comments, but I disagree with it wholeheartedly. I have no problem with indoor dogs. Mine spends >80% of his time indoors. I do, however, know of quite a few very good dog/owner combinations where the dog is principally an outdoor dog. The key is that you need to spend time with the dog (a lot of time) regardless of where you keep it.

Cold temps don't bother larger dogs if they have a good kennel. My dad's lab prefers to sleep outside. Every night around 8-ish, he goes and lays by the back door to be let out. He promptly walks to his kennel and sleeps

As far as what a vet will tell you on the subject, I think you are mistaken as well. Taz has had 4 vets over the last nine years (I move to often) and none of them thought indoors was better. Two actually preferred outdoors

As far as cats go, shave them all bald, so I don't swell up like a beach ball :)