Running out the gate any chance she gets

Jazzie likes to run. She goes absolutely mad whenever the gate opens for me to drive in or out. I've taken to putting her onto a lead where someone else holds her whenever I leave the house. She doesn't seem to go crazy if anyone else is arriving or leaving and stays back at the house with me or walks with me to the gate; and that's when I need to put her on a lead again.  :-$ 

I was recently mortified - I was trying to coax her back in and getting toyed with so eventually I lost my cool and "GROWLED" myself, practically doing 13 jumps in one I was so mad (I was late). She of course thought it was a joke. Apparently so did the workers who'd been watching from a truck parked in front of a nearby house. It took my helper and I all of 20 minutes to shepheard her back into the house. I swear sometimes I feel like a cattle herder, not a dog owner.

The moment that gate opens she hits the road - although its a quiet road she thinks its a game to let me come near her and then tear off up the hill "rabbit run" style.

It's quite troublesome to have to keep putting her on a lead just to be able to leave or arrive at home especially when I'm arriving because I have to be able to open the gate to get to her [i]before[i]I can open the gate


Any suggestions on how to keep her INSIDE would be greatly appreciated (short of penning her - I cant put her in a pen and leave the house and I can't put her in the pen, leave the car outside, go back inside, and release her from the pen because I need to leave and that would mean opening the gate. you see my problem..)

I think it really is just a matter of practicing, rewarding, and repeating. Take some time to get her used to the situation and reward the good behaviour. It may mean taking a day or two soley dedicated to practice but worth it in the end

Sounds like you need a wait command, so you can open the gate without her running through?

Sazzle wrote:Sounds like you need a wait command, so you can open the gate without her running through?

Excellent point, and feeding times are a good opportunity to practice.

Do you usually leave the home and arrive back at about the same time each day ? if so she may be waiting for you to get back.

Some recent research here in the UK shows that dogs may know when we are about to arrive back home because our scent has almost left the living area of our home, or the scent is running out. This being the case it may be an idea to leave an item of your clothing near where Jazzie spends her time or near her bed inside, this way she can easily smell you and not get anxious later in the day when you are due to arrive home. It may be worth a try and see what happens.

Out stairs are right next to our front door and Darcy knows when the bell go's to sit on the stairs and wait until she's called to say hello or the door is shut again, it just took practise perhaps you could try this xx

Sounds like training as per above. You say you can't stick her inside, take the car out and then go back in to let her out. Why not? We live in a complex so there's no way I'd take the car out the garage with my two roaming around, so we just get going a few minutes sooner to take the car out and then go back in to let them out again.

A wait command is a great idea too and as said, feeding time is the perfect opportunity to practise. This one has come in handy when we come home and park outside first. We ask them to wait a little back from the gate so we can get in and then take them inside so we can put the car away.

Lots of luck, keep us posted

RoxysMum wrote:Sounds like training as per above. You say you can't stick her inside, take the car out and then go back in to let her out. Why not? We live in a complex so there's no way I'd take the car out the garage with my two roaming around, so we just get going a few minutes sooner to take the car out and then go back in to let them out again.

A wait command is a great idea too and as said, feeding time is the perfect opportunity to practise. This one has come in handy when we come home and park outside first. We ask them to wait a little back from the gate so we can get in and then take them inside so we can put the car away.

Lots of luck, keep us posted

Thanks everyone; wait command, that's what I need to start working on! Today. She's good at "sit" now, but if I move an inch she's up and jumping. Always jumping.

Not sure how to reply with a quote but to Roxysmum the reason I cant go back inside and come back out is that the area is not a safe area and people are frequently hijacked (stolen away inside their cars) and the property is over 2000 square meters - the only safe pen is situated at the far back end of the property behind the house, and as soon as I let her out and got to the front gate to open it she would dart off again and laugh at me!!   (I'm convinced she laughs at me, the tease!).

Reading the answers here on so many questions, though, I'm starting to understand her a lot better. She's just different to other dogs I've ever had (including my parents' staffies) but judging from all the other stories here, its because staffies are special.

Kathy wrote:Do you usually leave the home and arrive back at about the same time each day ? if so she may be waiting for you to get back.

Some recent research here in the UK shows that dogs may know when we are about to arrive back home because our scent has almost left the living area of our home, or the scent is running out. This being the case it may be an idea to leave an item of your clothing near where Jazzie spends her time or near her bed inside, this way she can easily smell you and not get anxious later in the day when you are due to arrive home. It may be worth a try and see what happens.

Wow, you bring up a veerrrry interesting point because during the week I'm pretty regular in my coming and going and she is far more busy and jumpy and running out that on the weekend. Its as if she knows that on the weekends I'm in and out so much that she doesn't bother so much...    definitely need to think about this one.

Kathy has raised a good point. My Flo knows, almost to the min, when I am due home, possibly because its dinner time   

Will be interested to know how you get on.

Ah, understood - I'm in SA too   

RoxysMum wrote:Ah, understood - I'm in SA too   

Yep - then you know. We're close to a township. The large property, the river, the crime, these were all reasons we got Jazzie because we could give her a good home. She jumps and licks and loves anything on two legs and the "ignore it" type of training approach is not one that the rest of the family can actually appreciate. They're more the "get the role of newspaper" type, and to each their own but I believe that with the right, kind approach, miracles are possible.
Her "cons" are that she licks, she jumps and she nips. But her "pros" are that she is BRIGHT, she is alert, she stands right next to me in the night if someone else drives in - that's when she has decided "Mom, I've got this!" and we do love her. Once she attacked a child that came in. And yes, she ATTACKED the child. I saw a whole other side of her that was terrifying. I was angry, I was ready to "sell her to the gypsies" but something in me said to find out why she did that. And I found out that the kid had been teasing her for days from over the river! When the kid came inside the property to play with my son, Jazzie remembered, and her attacking was a natural response. It was actually the parents' fault because the teasing was quite obvious to anyone home (I wasn't home) and you cannot tease a dog and expect to walk into their turf and have them be grateful for your majestic presence. Although I protected the child, I sent him home immediately and he is not allowed on my property. I'm sorry, but you earn the right to be a part of our family, Jazzie has earned hers, he has not. Am I picking dog over human? Absolutely. I am not going to put Jazzie away so that someone who teased her will come into her territory and be "the man".

I'm rambling.... lol.. yes SA. I'm in Kzn - township is close by so maybe Jazzie needs a friend to play with and that may make it easier for her as well? It's too big a place just for her methinks..

I have the same problem, both Spud and Suki dont slip out at the gate but if I take the car out and put it back I need to put them on leashes and tie them to the gate. When they are tied they sit and wait patiently but I once tried not to tie them and once they were outside it was a mission to herd them back. Yesterday Spud,s leash unclipped when we walked out the gate to go for a walk and it was once again a mission to get him back as it seems during these times his ears are shut. He just wants to play and run to other gates in the street were there is dogs. I am not really worried that he will fight but my biggest concern is that a car can run him over as some people drive like lunatics.

Kathy, I think there,s a possibility that Rocky can be Suki,s twin brother