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Better safe than sorry. There are several worst case senarios that come to mind. Is there any way to come home at lunch? Maybe a friend would help out or neighbor. I know it sounds awful to us to be caged all day but many dogs like their kennels. They feel safe and sleep the day away. Obviously a crated dog will need to be exercised before you go to work and when you get home. Good Luck!
It's fenced. However the property is hillside, and there is one place in particular where conceivably a coyote can get in (but not out). I don't even know what an invisible fence is but it sounds creepy.
An "invisible fence" works with a shock collar that will give the dog a shock if they step over the "fence line". This of course does nothing to keep other animals OUT of the yard.
I don't know that a coyote would be stupid enough to jump into an area they might not be able to get out of, particularly with a dog in that area.
I've got six dogs myself and although I live in a rural area on 15 acres with the nearest neighbor a half mile away I still have a fenced yard for the dogs. (I have the immediate acre around the house fenced). Other people let their dogs run but with the snakes and the coyote packs in the area I don't. My guys are beagle/American Eskimo mix and they wouldn't stand a chance against a coyote.
Or you could put up a live wire around the top of the fence. Tractor supply sells electric fencing supplies and it wouldn't cost much to put one live wire around the top of the fence. (It would keep the neighborhood kids out too...)
Imagine some hateful jerk that lives close to you and throws tainted anti-freeze laced (soaked) meat into your backyard. Both meat and anti-freeze (sweet tasting) is irrestible to your beautiful dog. People are vicious and sick (sometimes just plain mean). Some people just don't like dogs.
I know this has happened, and it is insane for someone to do this, but I am just not paranoid enough to worry about this.
I will explain that I am not opposed to crating. I am not a dog expert, but I would consider myself an experienced dog owner. In my personal, non-expert-but-experienced-dog-owner opinion, dogs are better off when they are not crated daily, just like people are better off not working in a cubicle. That said, people thrive even though they work in cubicles. I think people should do whatever works best for them and their dog.
In my dog's situation she needs to be outside, with all the attendant risks: coyotes, skunks, cyanide laced dog biscuits. There was a time when I could hang out with her all day at home with the back door open for her to come and go as she pleased, but those days are gone. Crating has not worked for her. Something happened in her past which will not allow her to be left alone in a house or in a crate or a car by herself. She will sleep in the crate if I'm home, with the door latched, but if she hears me leave the house she goes bananas. There could be a delicious pig carcass in the crate with her and she would ignore it until I came home. Call it separation anxiety or whatever. I don't know what it is. But I struggled with it for a couple years, tried to train her out of it, etc. For whatever reason, she wants to be outside until she puts herself to bed the night inside. Maybe she was an outside dog with her former owner. Who knows... But finally I decided to work with her personality rather than against it and she has been much more calm and relaxed and is a very happy, loving dog (still with issues). Yes there are risks with her outside by herself, but she at least will not get carbon monoxide poisoning.
The coyote links were very interesting. The coyotes by my house are very small, the size of a fox. I also read somewhere that the only confirmed rabies infection in wildlife in the last 20 years in LA County has been bats. A cat got rabies in 1986.
If your yard is fenced you could get some coyote rollers
You know, funny enough, I've made some rollers out of pvc and galvanized pipe to keep my dad's dog IN the yard. I never thought it could stop a coyote. Good idea...
actually NO a single coyote is not a threat to a boxer, howevercoyotes dont typiclaly run alone...and ive SEEn large dogs Seriously injured and even killed by a PACK of coyotes...ive also seen cotes scale 8ft and dig under fences with no issues...
most coyote work as bait, theyll send 1 coyote out to lure the dog into a vunerable position while the rest wait for ambush...
perosnally id NEVER EVER EVER leave a dog of any size of breed out in the yard alone all day...
not only are the coyotes a potential danger (even if the boxer survived an attack coyotes are common vector species (rabies)) but youve also got the danger that one day shell figure out how to get out of the fence, then theres the risk of theft dogs are often stolen for bait dogs, lab resarch ect... the risk of people teasing her through the fence ect, and the possibility of disgruntled neighbors and just flat out horrible people (after a friends dog died from eating rat poisend meat that was tossed over the fence by a neighbor...)
YOUR not there you dont know if she barks all day, you dont know what she does all day...soshe might bark, she might annoy the neighbors ect...
if she doesnt like being left alone all day get a dog walker to come in and take her out/play with her and if crating is not an option give her a dog safe room to stay in...mabe with acess to a large chainlink run with a cover so she can come in and out as needed/wanted but shed be better protected form the MANY horrible things that can happen.
im not saying be paranoid...i am saing becarefull.
also boxers arnt built to be outdoors all day, their short tight coat doesnt protect them from the cold and certianly doesnt protect them from the heat, they also get sunburn, boxers are highly prone to skin cancer.
also boxers arnt built to be outdoors all day, their short tight coat doesnt protect them from the cold and certianly doesnt protect them from the heat, they also get sunburn, boxers are highly prone to skin cancer.
I know I'm being overly touchy but since it's the internet I will indulge myself. I am also sort of in a bad mood for unrelated reasons, which is fueling me here. I am well aware of the reported weaknesses of the boxer breed. She's not running the iditarod. She's not left all day in some concrete wasteland of a backyard with only the shade of a spindly cactus to keep her cool. She lives in temperate Los Angeles in a predominantly shady, large, enclosed, hilly backyard with plenty of room to run, she has water, shelter, an igloo full of clean warm blankets and towels, squirrels to stare at, butterflies and hummingbirds to leap at. I mean, we're talking about an idyllic scene back there. Maybe she will get skin cancer one day. That is my main concern. I put sunscreen on her nose and belly, but still skin cancer probably is her biggest risk because of her pink nose and because she loves to sun bathe. But considering her individual personality, it's a risk I'm willing to live with, because her quality of life is high. While she's in the backyard, nobody messes with her. Nobody except my neighbors can get to the fence without coming fifty feet onto my property. I live on a steep hill with no non-resident foot or auto traffic. She's not a barker. I've asked my neighbors. They all have dogs and we all watch out for each other's dogs. None of my neighbors have babies or work odd hours. She has no interest in running away. I could leave the gate open all day and she wouldn't take a step out. I didn't train her to do that. It's just the way she is. My concern today, other than skin cancer, was whether there is a realistic coyote risk. After reading posts and looking at information about coyotes, I think the risk is miniscule.
I know I'm being overly touchy but since it's the internet I will indulge myself. I am also sort of in a bad mood for unrelated reasons, which is fueling me here. I am well aware of the reported weaknesses of the boxer breed. She's not running the iditarod. She's not left all day in some concrete wasteland of a backyard with only the shade of a spindly cactus to keep her cool. She lives in temperate Los Angeles in a predominantly shady, large, enclosed, hilly backyard with plenty of room to run, she has water, shelter, an igloo full of clean warm blankets and towels, squirrels to stare at, butterflies and hummingbirds to leap at. I mean, we're talking about an idyllic scene back there. Maybe she will get skin cancer one day. That is my main concern. I put sunscreen on her nose and belly, but still skin cancer probably is her biggest risk because of her pink nose and because she loves to sun bathe. But considering her individual personality, it's a risk I'm willing to live with, because her quality of life is high. While she's in the backyard, nobody messes with her. Nobody except my neighbors can get to the fence without coming fifty feet onto my property. I live on a steep hill with no non-resident foot or auto traffic. She's not a barker. I've asked my neighbors. They all have dogs and we all watch out for each other's dogs. None of my neighbors have babies or work odd hours. She has no interest in running away. I could leave the gate open all day and she wouldn't take a step out. I didn't train her to do that. It's just the way she is. My concern today, other than skin cancer, was whether there is a realistic coyote risk. After reading posts and looking at information about coyotes, I think the risk is miniscule.
I would love to be wrong and hope I am on ALL counts.
My boxer lives in the backyard while I'm at work. She is a rescue and has issues with being left in the house alone, but she loves being outside. I have been seeing a lot of coyotes in my area lately, even in the late morning and early evening. Should I be worried about one or more coyotes trying to get her? She is a beefcake, and they are small...
You need to protect this dog. Try to devise a kennel in your home, garage something to protect this dog from the coyotes. One dog is not going to be able to prevent a pack from hurting it. Small children are at risk too. If you are seeing these animals, things may already be out of control in your area. These animals do not normally allow themselves to be seen. Call an animal warden. Do some google research, they are attacking children in broad daylight in neighborhoods in some areas of so. cali.
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