Escaping!

Last week Harry got out of the garden and I spent a couple of hours looking for him, and I have just had someone knock on the door to bring him back again!
He managed to break a hole in our screen fence behind the shed and push past the fencing behind it.

I am really perplexed to what he keeps escaping? He gets exercise, he gets food and he seems happy enough, he's a rescue and has been with us for about 18 months, he was found as a stray, why would he suddenly want to escape?

We have just been making so much progress with him as well, his recall has got so much better, it was non existent when he came to us.

Wasnt his escape last week more oportunist? (as he found a gap in the fence?)

If so, it may be that he enjoyed his time out on his own and is now therefore actively trying to escape.

I thought the same as collie

This adequately demonstrates the reason why dogs should never be allowed to rehearse inappropriate behaviour.

Once a strategy has been found successful, they will repeat it.

I don't really know what you mean? I didn't let him get out of the garden!

Is he supervised when out in the garden? This could give you the best clue, e.g. is he spotting a squirrel or a cat and following it, or has he had a mooch around, got bored because he's out there on his own and decided to go exploring? I hover in the kitchen to keep an eye on mine (am currently sat at the dining table as I have the kitchen door open for the dogs to wander in and out while it's lovely and sunny) and occasionally recall them and make a big fuss, so they don't forget to check back in. If they start to look like they might find entertainment elsewhere, as opposed to playing with each other or sunbathing, I get them back inside before they get tempted to leap the fence.

There's a big wide world out there and his curiosity gets the better of him and he wants to explore it. I used to have a prt who given the opportunity would go walkabout, he was always overjoyed to be found but they don't think about getting lost and not finding their way home they just think what's that over there if I dig here and pull there I be able to investigate. I had to get down to his level and find all the possibles and concluded a new fence would be easier than trying to patch the old one, so that was my priority. Remove all opportunities to go wandering and they'll stop going. He wasn't a rescue, I had him from 8 weeks.

I would imagine that he's not trying to escape through lack of enjoying his lifestyle, more that it's more fun to be out and about and making his own decisions .

Most dogs will take the opportunity again once they have found a weakness in security . Best way to solve it, of course, is to strengthen the fence in any and all areas of weakness. Once he finds he can't get out, he'll turn his attention to have his fun in the garden again

I do apologise I must have misread your original post where you said that last week Harry got out of the garden?

You spent a couple of hours looking for him.

Now he has repeated the experience and someone brought him back again.

He managed to break a hole in your screen fence behind the shed and push past the fencing behind it.

You are really perplexed about why he keeps escaping?

Obviously I have totally misunderstood your post................

I thought this meant that your dog had left the garden twice now and you wanted to know why he had suddenly decided to do this?

My answer is

a) because he can

b) because he enjoys the adventure and excitement.

He had a good time the first time he escaped, and he wished to repeate the experience.

You put:

'This adequately demonstrates the reason why dogs should never be allowed to rehearse inappropriate behaviour.'

I did not Allow him to get out of the garden. The area he got out from last week has been blocked, this was a totally new area where he has broken though existing fencing to escape.