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I think a lot of dogs and cats greatly dislike their homes and will leave if they get the chance.
A lot of puppies are played with until they are no longer cute. Then they have to spend the day in a crate or behind gates until someone gets home. Then they might get walked or tossed into the back yard. Alone.
Dog are pack animals and want to be around people/other dogs. Some herding dogs also get very bored if they don't have a job, so if some get a chance to leave, many won't come back, especially if someone else picks them up, and given the cost of getting a dog from a shelter these days, some folks who pick up lost dogs aren't motivated to look for the owner.
That doesn't sound very likely and sounds especially unlikely for cats. Dogs, like humans, tend to form a bond with their person.
And the cost of a shelter dog? You can get a dog that is fixed, chipped, vaccinated, and HW treated for practically free. A bag of dog food or a vet visit and HW test is going to run you more than a shelter dog would. One of the shelters around here, can't remember which one, charges a whopping $10 and that includes the city registration fees. :/
Fairly easy. You have contractors at house and one of them forgets and leaves the gate to fenced in yard open. Spouse and/or family member doesn't realize and let's dog out in back yard. Next thing ya know, doggie on the loose.
Edits to include: We have since installed a gate swing-back mechanism. Very helpful. Also, whenever I'm aware that we have had anyone at house to do work, I always check that back gate before letting dogs out in fenced back yard.
Ours haven't gone far but we have had a few other incidences of running around but have been very lucky that a) they came back [after cavorting] and b) we were able to get them before they got too far away. When stuff like that happens, I swear it feels like my heart stops beating. All our dogs that we've ever had in the house have been spayed/neutered; however, there are some breeds that do like to experience a sense of "I'm free, gotta go check something out".
Last edited by cat1116; 06-11-2015 at 09:58 AM..
Reason: gate swing back
And the cost of a shelter dog? [ . . . snip . . . ]One of the shelters around here, can't remember which one, charges a whopping $10 and that includes the city registration fees. :/
It's $125 here, unless they have a "sale" and it's still $80 or so. It's not cheap.
I recently saw a dog tag that contains a satellite marker chip that can be tracked through GPS.
It costs $30, and has a replaceable battery, such as is found in a hearing aid.
As long as the dog isn't under ground, the tag should be able to give it's location down to a 10 yard square location. Same technology that GM has on it's vehicles to be tracked when stolen.
Older dogs are really good at disappearing during thunder storms.
Dierks Bentley, the country singer lost Jake a few years back during a wild lightening storm in Nashville, TN. He rescued Jake as an older pup. Jake is up there in years and evidently, as well trained as he is, the severe storm scared the bejesus out of him and managed to get away and kept running.
Dierks posted flyers everywhere. A young lady found Jake And recognized him from a local news segment. Jake was returned, after a few weeks on the loose.
I have a 12+ yr old dog that I rescued when she was a little over a year. We think the reason she has always tried to wander off in the direction where we found her, is to find her puppies. I looked for them and couldn't find them. Try and tell that to my dog.
Knowing a dog's penchant to just disappear in a storm or go away when they are ready to die, the mister knows it is lawyer time if he ever lets her out in the main yard when a storm is coming. She will sneak off in a skinny minute.
Not everyone that loses a dog is irresponsible. Sometimes we wrongly assume our dogs are so well trained, they wouldn't think of doing anything wrong.
Then there are the dogs that disappeared right out of their yards because they were kidnapped. THAT is a whole nuther ugly subject.
It's $125 here, unless they have a "sale" and it's still $80 or so. It's not cheap.
That's a tad high for a dog that is going to be euthanized after 14 days (or however long they hold). I don't think most shelters are going to be that much though. Indianapolis and Chicago are about $60.
I've heard of dogs who have traveled many miles to be reunited with their owners, and I've always thought of dogs as being intensely loyal, always by their the owner's sides, and why would they jeopardize leaving a good home?
Dogs can't all find their way home so easily, even from a much shorter distance than those in the remarkable stories, and they just don't think that through. The lure of a big adventure can send some of them over or under a fence, and they don't anticipate getting lost. I'm sure if they knew they stood a chance of never seeing their home and family again, most (not all) of those would be more careful!
Has anyone heard of these devices you can put on your animals that give your pet a mild shock if it strays too far away from your house?
I was talking to a ferret owner, one night, on the Las Vegas Strip, who lives in the country, and? surprisingly enough, he has unleashed ferrets who never get away from him. He told me about this device you can put on your animal, and he has it on his ferrets, and he hasn't lost one yet. Not sure if he was exaggerating or if it was a true story. I tend to believe he was lying to me!
If this truly works, then why not put it on dogs?
My of my, have I misjudged dogs all along!!! I've heard of dogs who have traveled many miles to be reunited with their owners, and I've always thought of dogs as being intensely loyal, always by their the owner's sides, and why would they jeopardize leaving a good home?
My sister adores greyhounds and has sent me various things to read about them. "Invisible fences" don't usually work on them, because they move so quickly that they are out of range within a second or so. If they see a squirrel or rabbit, they will take off at a sprint (40 mph). You can't take them outside without a leash because if they bolt you will never catch them, nor will they stop or turn back if you call. The instinct to chase is too strong.
Last edited by JustJulia; 06-11-2015 at 11:40 AM..
Okay one more story. I had a Boston Terrier, all of 15 lbs, whom I would often let her roam my rural neighborhood. She always came back upon whistling . One day I am out with the dog on a leash in the neighborhood and I see a guy and his kid on bikes coming towards me. When he gets close he stops and asks me if my dog got away recently. I say I don't know of any specific incident and I ask why ? He says that he came home a couple of days ago and there was a dog that looked like mine inside his house chasing his dog around. When he went to try to catch the dog it ran out through his dog door. He swore my dog was that dog. I asked him where he lived and he tells me a place at least 1 mile away from my house through heavy woods. I never saw my dong wander that far and I still have my doubts that it was my dog but hey, I don't really know.
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