Letting your dog run loose outside of a fenced area is dangerous. Just ask the 120 people whose dogs ended up in the shelter last year.
There’s a story behind every one of those dogs – maybe the morning routine is to let the dog out to do his business expecting him to come right back, but he didn’t; maybe you went hiking and thought your dog would stay close by but he took off after a deer.
As with most everything in life, allowing your dog the freedom to roam comes with a risk. Even if your dog has a solid recall, things can go wrong.
Probably the scariest scenario is your off-leash dog being hit by a car. Even if you don’t live near a busy road the possibility of a loose dog getting hit is worth considering.
It just takes one time for your dog to see a bunny across the road and off she goes. And if a car is coming at the same time, the result could be devastating.
Another very real threat to allowing your dog to run off leash is the possibility of them getting lost. If they get on the track of a deer or a loud noise scares them, they can cover many miles very quickly. If they do get lost you have to hope that a good Samaritan will find them and contact you or the shelter.
Other possibilities, especially in rural parts of our county, include getting caught in a trap. One of our own staff people found his dog in a trap on his own property. Your dog could also easily encounter both rattlesnakes and copperheads in the county and bites from either of them can be fatal for your dog.
It’s also possible that your loose dog could encounter wildlife that could injure them or make them sick. Skunks, raccoons or coyotes might be tempting for your dog to chase and bite, but they could catch a disease such a rabies from a wild animal.
Hunting season is an especially hazardous time for your pup to be running loose. A hunter might catch a glimpse of your dog and mistake him for a deer, turkey or rabbit. Or if a loud shot goes off in the woods it could scare your dog and cause them to get lost.
For dogs that love to swim, if they are allowed to wander off leash, they could encounter a swift flowing stream and not be able to get out of the water.
There are so many life-threatening things that can happen to dogs that are allowed to freely roam. Understanding the risks and making a smart decision is up to each individual dog owner.
