Stopping a Dog Who Bolts

You open your front door to leave and your dog takes off, running like the wind.

It's a scary occurrence if you own a dog who bolts like this, especially if you live in a busy urban neighborhood and your dog doesn't know the first thing about crosswalks or stop lights. He just takes off.

While there isn't really a cause for this type of behavior, there are some things you can do to try and get your dog to behave when the door is open. But, before we talk about fixing the behavior, let's discuss what you should do if your dog makes a run for it when the door opens.

If your dog runs, you don't want to go racing after him screaming. Yes, it's counter-intuitive, but chasing and screaming just increases the anxiety of the situation, making it more difficult for your dog to focus and more likely for him to just keep running. You have to keep him in sight, but you need to stay as calm as possible. Try and get his attention and have him come to you, instead of trying to grab him. Using a favorite toy or a ball for fetch can help, and getting down on one knee once you have your dog's attention can sometimes encourage him to come to you.

When you do catch up to him, do not punish him. Running was the misdeed, coming to you is the good thing, so you have to tell him what a good boy he is when you finally get a hold of him, even though you probably feel more like strangling him if he's given you a good scare. If you punish him, you're telling him he should have kept running. Instead, just take a moment and pet him and praise him, calming both him and you before you lead him home.

The best way to handle this, though, is to make sure your dog doesn't bolt in the first place. Start by working on your dog's behavior at the door. He shouldn't be leaving through an open door unless he is told to do so, and you can work on this with the 'Sit' command. Teach him that when the door opens, he sits well back from the opening. Working with a helper, one of you can put your dog on lead while the other one operates the door. The person operating the door needs to give the commands and praise while the person holding the lead makes sure that the dog does what he's supposed to do. Open the door and say 'Sit' at the same time. Praise him and treat him. Close the door and tell him to 'Come'. Then do it again.

After doing this for a few sessions, start opening the door only without saying 'Sit', with the door opening taking the place of the command.

Also, you may want to get a whistle or bell that your dog can hear above other noises, and start using that interchangeably with the 'Come' command. This will give you another tool to use should he get loose and you aren't able to get his attention.

Work on this a little each day, and soon your dog will only run through the door when he's following you on lead.

Lee Strayer has worked with thousands of rescue dogs as head trainer with AdoptALab.org at http://www.adoptalab.org, a not-for-profit Labrador retriever (and other breeds, too!) rescue organization founded by his wife, Patty. Sign up here for our free newsletters on dog training, rescue and more: http://www.adoptalab.org/?FORM=NEWSLETTER

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