When a dog constantly runs along a fence, it’s a show of force or protection to anyone passing by. To make your dog stop, to take steps to discourage them from even thinking about engaging in their fence running ritual.
The preventive steps that you can take entail things like emotional training, and where feasible, setting up your yard to discourage this type of behavior. By utilizing the preemptive measures below, you can form a strategy that prevents them from rehearsing their undesirable dominance routines.
Things You’ll Need
To start with you, you’ll need to prepare the following three things before you start trying to train your dog to stop running along the fence.
- Leash
- Long line
- Treats
Step-by-Step Guide
The first step is simply to recognize fence-running for what it is. A problem that will only get worse the longer you leave it unchecked. Next, you have to focus on changing the emotions that your dog associates with fence-running, be it a show of force or an attempt to protect.
At this point, the next step is to identify what limitations they might have in regards to change, and once you have a handle on what those are, you can start training and reward them for doing what they’re told.
- Recognize it is a problem
- Change your dog’s emotions
- Identify their limitations
- Begin training and reward good behavior
Problem Recognition
Running up and down fence lines is a dog behavior that tends to escalate with time. If your dog is exposed all day to stimuli that excite him, frustrate him, scare him or cause him to stress, the behavior risks becoming habitual and even addictive over time. High arousal levels combined with frustration in dogs can spill into aggressive behaviors, which can be problematic if your dog escapes the yard or a child leans against the fence. Preventing your dog from engaging in this behavior will lower the chances for problems.
Make sure your dog has plenty of opportunities for exercise and mental stimulation during the day. A bored and underexercised dog may be looking for ways to fill his time and get rid of pent-up energy, result in fence running and other undesirable behaviors.
Emotional Change
Because fence running behavior in dogs is often triggered by fear and anxiety, changing the way your dog feels about stimuli on the other side of the fence is helpful. This can be accomplished through the open bar, closed bar technique, a behavior modification method based on classical conditioning. In this case, you would keep your dog on a leash at a distance from the fence. Every time the stimulus that causes the fence running behavior passes by, feed your dog high-value treats exclusively given for these sessions. After some time, your dog should understand that the treats are contingent only in the presence of the trigger. Instead of dreading its existence, he’ll look forward to seeing it.
Identify Limitations
While changing your dog’s emotions and training is helpful, it’s essential to realize that the fence running behavior may never totally go away. The best course of action for fence runners is not to leave these dogs unattended outside and to install a visual barrier. The barrier should block the dog’s ability to see stimuli, so he has fewer chances of becoming reactive. Albeit expensive, a brick wall or privacy fence works best. If you own a see-through fence such as a chain-link fence, use slats to limit exposure. Tarps or plywood, on the other hand, may offer a temporary solution.
Training Exercises
Once your dog’s emotions about the trigger on the other side of the fence change, you may find it helpful to train your dog to respond to a command that stops him from engaging in the fence-running behavior. A strong recall command used the moment you notice your dog’s intent of running by the fence line is an excellent way to interrupt an undesirable behavior and encourage a desirable one. Follow these tips:
- To help your dog succeed, use a long line at first.
- Keep him on the line and work on training him to come when called from short distances and low distraction areas at a distance from the fence line where he’s better under control.
- Use high-value treats to reward him.
- Progress by getting gradually closer and closer to the fence line and asking for recalls from longer distances.
WARNING
Keeping your dog alone in the yard with nobody there to redirect him, will cause your dog to rehearse the problem behavior and undo your training. If you’re having difficulty training your dog, consult a reputable trainer.