Runaway Dogs

In earlier blogs I shared some of my more memorable stories which wouldn’t have happened if the dog didn’t get out of the house, or yard. It’s funny when it’s all over and nobody got hurt. But while it’s happening it can be scary and a pain in the okole.

Michael Walsh with Danielle. She was cute, but she was
a wanderer. 1977

Susie's escapes and wanderings were legendary. In 1990, she found the other Kevin Walsh on a campus of 40,000 other students. Her story is written about in Follow the Dog Home.


Every dog I’d ever had, prior to German Shepherds, has had wanderlust. My Shepherds have really had no interest to explore the world, because their world was wherever I was. They’re like shadows. They like hanging around the homestead.

When children came along things changed. Beverly gets very upset when she can’t be with my children and the neighbor kids playing outside. She’s a protector and that’s a good thing. The trouble is, the pack of kids wander. What starts in our backyard sometimes migrates next door, and down the road. The kids just go, and Beverly would often follow. That created some problems, namely concerns about passing cars.

Wherever the pack is, Beverly follows.
And that means everywhere, 2009.

To keep Beverly on the property we installed an underground fence which provides a beeping sound when the dog gets too close to the property line, and a mild shock if she crosses it. For the most part it works quite well. But instinct can trump technology. We’ve seen it. Bev will willingly take a zap and cross the line to keep an eye on the kids. I’m a fan of the underground fence, but it’s not foolproof. And anyone who thinks it is, is just plain foolish.

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