How to Break a Dog From Jumping Over a Fence

If your dog is jumping the fence, there are many potential disastrous outcomes. Your dog could end up running in traffic, it could go missing or it could cause damage to a neighbor's property. It is a dog owner's responsibility to keep his dog safe and secure. Boredom and curiosity are the two main reasons a dog would want to to escape, so it is essential to remove both of these motivating factors. It is also important to improve your garden security.

Things You'll Need

  • Leash
  • Food reward
  • Tall garden fence
  • Shrubbery
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Instructions

  1. Instructions

    • 1

      Install a higher fence. If your dog can clear your existing fence, your garden isn't secure. This solves the first part of the problem, as it prevents the dog from achieving success when trying to escape. You should remove any objects that your dog may use to help it get over the fence, such as rocks or trash cans. However, you still need to correct the dog's desire to escape.

    • 2

      Create a natural barrier. Plant some thick shrubbery in front of the fence. This will make access to the fence difficult and will keep the dog from getting a run at the fence.

    • 3

      Remove the motivation to jump the fence. Make the home and garden environment as stimulating as possible for the dog to keep its mind occupied. Do regular, short periods of obedience training to relieve boredom. Play games and give the dog lots of exercise. Make the garden stimulating by creating a dog friendly area with long grass, toys and strong smelling, nonpoisonous plants.

    • 4

      Reduce the opportunity. Make a note of any behaviors your dog performs prior to attempting to jump the fence. Supervise your dog at all times when it is in the garden. If the dog makes an approach toward the fence, be on hand to take action.

    • 5

      Disrupt the act of escaping. To do this, you need to let your dog behave as if it is going to attempt to jump the fence. Put a long leash on the dog to prevent an actual escape. Let it roam in the garden, but as soon as it approaches the fence, issue the "come" command. If the dog ignores you, gently tug the leash to get its attention and repeat. As soon as the dog comes, give it a piece of food as a reward. Repeat this as many times as necessary to reinforce the association between moving away from the fence and receiving food.

    • 6

      Reward and encourage restraint. Once you are confident that the dog is not motivated to jump the fence, allow it to roam in the garden without the leash. Ignore the dog for any period of time in which it is near or approaching the fence. As soon as the dog moves its attention away from the fence, issue a food reward to reinforce this behavior.