Quick Fixes for Common Problems: Door Dashing
This is the fourth installment in a series on quick fixes for the most common behavior problems I encounter as a professional dog trainer.
The Problem: Door Dashing
Darting out the door isn’t just annoying. It can be dangerous. Especially if your dog doesn’t have a strong recall cue.
The good news is that it’s relatively easy to implement a quick fix that keeps your dog safe.
A Quick Fix. Too Good to Be True?
Getting relief from dog behavior problems doesn’t have to be complicated or include lengthy training programs.*
Often, the fastest and easiest solutions come by simply adjusting the environment or human behavior to prevent the problem from happening in the first place.
Is that a cop out? Is prevention an inferior solution? Are you a wimp for solving your dog’s dumpster-diving habit by using a locking-lid trash can?
Nope! Not in the least.
(Even if a training program is necessary, the first step is always prevention anyway so you can’t go wrong by implementing prevention!)
The Quick Fix: Physical Barriers
Contrary to what you might think, my first step for solving door bolting is NOT to teach recall/come. That’s step #2.
Step #1 is getting a plan in place to prevent the dog from getting out the door in the first place.
Why? Training a reliable recall takes time. Think weeks, not days. We need to rely on something other than a recall to keep the dog safe during (and maybe even after!) that time.
Air-lock system: the dog cannot access the front door (or front yard) without first going through the gate.
Here are three prevention options:
Walk-thru Baby Gate. My all time favorite. Love, love, love mine. It makes life so much easier. Set them up so your dog doesn’t have free access to exterior doors. When you need to answer the door, leave the dog and the door dancing behind the gate.
Tether. You can use a regular leash or actual tether for this. Secure it around a sturdy piece of furniture or in an eye-bolt secured to a stud. When you need to answer the door, clip the dog to the tether first.
Backyard or bedroom. You may not even need any fancy equipment. Just pop your dog into the backyard or a bedroom then go answer the door.