Been gone soooo long....... now a loooooong post

[science_doc]

I used to post here from time to time, and now I wanted to post here again. For those of those who don't know or can't remember, I adopted a husky mix from a local shelter about 9 months ago. She is everything I ever dreamed of in a dog. An absolute JOY! She gets along great with our cats too, which is terrific. We have already done one basic obdience class and are waiting to start the next class. One more detail about Hailey (pretty for those of you who remember, LOL), she is what looks to be a husky/hound mix.

So now the problem......She has poor recall skills. I know what you are thinking right now, of course she does silly, think about her mix. Well that's still not my problem. We have been working hard on recall and she does awesome on a long lead, but when she has gotten loose from me, door dashing, etc., she is gone and refuses to come back without lots of work on my part. Just last week a new 17 acre fenced dog recreation area (not an open to everyone who can get there) opened and I had Hailey were there last weekend. Part of the temperment test for the park (a VERY good idea btw) was an off leash interaction with other dogs. Reluctantly I let her off her leash and as I suspected she took off for the far side of the moon. She came back to me after 5-10 mintues, so that was good, but I'm worried. She only stays interested in playing with the other dogs a few moments and then she just wants to RUN RUN RUN. The fench around this park is the "roll out" type that is basically big squares of wire and only about 4.5 feet tall. I am worried that she will take off and then dig under or climb over the fence. The park owners tried to reassure me that it would be safe, but what do you guys think? I don't want to keep my poor dog from running and playing, but I also want to keep her and not loose her..........I have been completely obsessed with thinking about this problem. She had so much fun and the fench definately contained her, but she did check the fence and run along it. In my head she was checking for gaps, just looking for her escape route. Well guys what do you think, am I crazy or is this park not as "safe" as the owners want me to feel?

Okey dokey I just read the thread about dog parks and how most of you seem to feel that they are a bad idea. I was wondering where would be another good place to work on recall without a lead? She comes back to me when on a 50 ft. lead EVERY TIME I call her the problem seems to only be when she is off lead. I live in an apartment and we walk/run 2 hours a day, but I know that is not enough exercise. PLEASE don't flame me.....I'm just looking for some advice from people with experience. This dog area is well designed and cool I can post the rules and tests if anyone is interested.

[courtnek]

welcome back Science. This was actually heavily discussed in the debate forum. Bottom line, Huskies are "independent thinkers", the same traits they look for in guide dogs. It's called Intelligent disobedience. Out on the Tundra, this dog may have to decide to disobey the owner/musher, so that the whole team will not fall into an unsafe crevasse.. Good on the tundra, not good in a recall situation. Unfortunately, this is not a dog you will likely ever be able to trust offleash without EXTENSIVE recall training, and even then the dog may decide not to come back, for whatever reason it sees fit. The Husky breeders will tell you the same thing. My hunting dogs, both of them, are the same way. It is bcause of the intelligence bred into them, to make decisions on their own without your input, that they become bad on recall. Independence does not sit well with recall, and these dogs want to investigate every sight, smell and sound...in most situations, the dog will come back on it's own,. once it has figured out what that interesting smell/sight/sound was...they are very good dogs once you accept the fact that recall is not something they normally take to. Also, Huskies are not real "bonding"...they pretty much like everyone equally...

[science_doc]

:cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry:

These were the responses I was afraid of when I posted. I'm still really torn about the situation and here is why......I don't know where else to work on recall off lead and as I was saying on a long lead she comes back to me without fail. I have always known that adopting a husky or "northern" type breed means poor recall at best. So I never expected to be able to go off lead without a fence. I just wish this place had a slightly better fence. I guess for the next couple of weekends I'm going to take her there and work with her on lead with distractions and see what her response is like. I'm not worried about her going over the fence as much as under while I'm still 100 yards away and out of site(17 acres is HUGE). In her surrender paperwork her former owners state that she had a fenced yard, so I am thinking she will likely be alright, but I'm still torn.

As you all know life with a door dasher is bad enough let alone when the dog takes off across busy roads once she gets out. I think the problem is that when she runs I PANIC and the tone of my voice is too high? All the books I have read on the topic suggest that the best way to deal with a runner is find a safe place for them to burn off that energy so they will be less likely to bolt at every opportunity. Based on all this I feel completely stuck. I want to work with her and help her learn, but I don't want her to be hit by a car either. I would be very open to other training suggestions and we are taking professional classes, this just all takes lots of time and patience. She is pretty good at class, sitting, staying, coming (on a leash for now), down, etc.

[kendalyn]

A good place to work with her offleash in the winter is a community baseball field. They are usually fenced in and are totally empty in the winter time. They are big enough for her to run and play and for you to work with her.