Problem Solving- Bolting

Does this sound familiar:  The moment you open the door, the dog runs out and the chase is on!  In some cases your dog’s life could be at great risk, especially if you live on a busy street like we do. To say this is a serious issue would be an understatement.   If this is an issue for your dog, I have a few tips that may be of some help.

Quite often I’ve discovered that dogs who bolt are rarely exercised.  Or they aren’t receiving adequate mental stimulation throughout the day.  Think about it from your dog’s perspective.  They’re locked up inside all day and eager to get outside.  The moment they see daylight, their going to make a break for it.   My first bit of advice is to regularly take your dog for walks, outside.  Your dog will be less likely to bolt out the front door or through a side gate if they’re taken out regularly.  Combine this with boundary training. The solution is typically teaching your dog where the boundary to the threshold is and the rules at each threshold.

Your first job is to make your dog aware there is a boundary.  Pick obvious markers to help your dog know where to stop.  It’s great if your dog is proficient at sit-stay before working on this exercise.  Let’s choose the front door as an example since that’s the most common area where bolting occurs.  Have your dog sit-stay several feet away from the door.  Reach for the door handle and if the dog gets up you’ll pull away from the door and ask the dog to sit-stay again.  Repeat the process until the dog doesn’t get up.  Give your marker word (Yes!) followed by a treat.  Next, have the dog sit-stay again in the same location and this time turn the door knob and open the door slightly.  If the dog gets up, close the door.  Have the dog go back to the same location, and sit-stay.  During this process be sure you are body blocking so the dog can’t squeeze out the doorway, and make sure to keep your hand on the door knob so you can close it should your dog get up at any time.  Try it again until your dog is successful at staying in their chosen spot.  Give the marker word “Yes,” followed by a treat for successfully staying as the door was partially open.  Next you’ll open the door 1/4 of the way as your dog is sitting and staying.  If your dog gets up, again close the door immediately.  After your dog sit-stays as the door is open 1/4 of the way, again give your marker word followed by a treat.  You’ll then repeat the same process as you open the door 1/2 of the way.  Then shoot for 3/4 of the way open, and finally all the way open.  Be sure to praise and reward your dog for staying. Don’t rush the process, as sometimes it takes a while to build up to opening the door all the way as your dog is in the stay position.  You’ll want to practice this exercise over and over again until you’re confident your dog won’t move a muscle when the door is open.  I would also recommend having a leash on your dog during this process, and you can tether your dog to something during the early stages of this exercise to prevent the dog from bolting.

Another exercise you can work on is walking your dog on a leash over to the boundary like a street curb and make a habit of stopping at the boundary and turn away from it.   Avoid giving a verbal cue, since you want the dog to respect the boundary whether you’re there or not. Always praise your dog each time they lead you away from the boundary.  During this training it’s important the dog never crosses the boundary… like the street for instance.  Set up a boundary perimeter so the dog can’t cross it when you’re not present.  (Baby gate, door closed, or only supervised access in the yard, etc.)

On-leash sit-stays at the boundary are a great way to show your dog that you and other family members can cross the boundary, but they can’t.  Give a lot of treats and praise for successful sit-stays on his side of the boundary.  Leave the dog for longer periods of time in a sit-stay position on his side of the boundary, as the training progresses.  Praise and treat for successful stays.  This will make it clear that the way to get attention and rewards is by remaining on his side of the boundary.   After each sit-stay make sure to always walk the dog back away from the boundary line.

As your dog anticipates stopping when approaching the boundary, give him a little more leash to allow him to approach it more freely.  Be prepared to stop him quickly if it appears he’s not going to stop and then quickly ask him to sit.  Then release him and back away from the line.   Set up some distractions next, and see if there’s success.  After a week or so, give your dog less guidance.  Use a long line and stay back from the boundary this time around and see how it goes.

Finally I always preach consistency, as it’s vitally important when dealing with bolting!  It can’t be wrong one moment and okay the next.  Also everyone in the family should be committed to helping the dog be successful at this.