Fence jumper, how do I fix this?

[SAcres]

My 8 month old akita/Heeler puppy recently discovered he could jump our 5 foot fence with ease. There was no warning to this behavior, I had never seen him dig at the fence, jump up at it, run up to it, etc. He’s never done it when I’m out with him, only with family. I’m thinking it might be related to separation anxiety, which I am taking steps to fix, but I also need to solve this much more dangerous issue.

Replacing the fence isn’t in my budget, however I was thinking about stapling an invisible fence to the inside of the fence. I was also looking for a way to extend the height of the fence, possibly with a layer of chicken wire. It wouldn’t be a great barrier, but hopefully it will be enough of a deterrent.

Any suggestions or experiences with this would be greatly appreciated.

[Bluey]

Our yard has a 6’ chain link fence and our aussie would get out any time she wanted.

The fence was not there to confine her, so we didn’t care, but if it had been, we probably would have tried to add a hot wire low and another higher, as she would jump to grab the top pipe with her paws and then shimmy up pushing with her hind feet on the wire and walk wobbling up there on that pipe, 6’ above the ground, then jump off on the other side.
We think she was part monkey.

If you add to the fence, be sure to go high enough, or angle the extension to the inside.

[ChocoMare]

7 foot T-posts driven in and HOT tape run. Since there’s Akita in there and Akitas are known diggers, I’d run a line of HOT tape at the ground level too.

[Sabino]

I wouldn’t do the invisible fencing. If the dog jumped over the fence, got zapped, I don’t think he’d figure out that he’s have to jump back over to stop getting zapped.

[jetsmom]

They also make “no jump” harnesses. get a good quality one, and try it on when you are home so you can make sure he doesn’t chew thru it (that is the problem with cheap ones.) Neutering can help eliminate desire to wander. Also 45 min of brisk walking/trotting twice a day can help, interspersed with obedience training to tire out his mind.
Keeping him inside when you are gone is also a good option.

[Houndhill]

You could use the 4’ “Deer Fence”. Attach it to light wooden posts affixed to your existing fence, then it would be 9’ high. I think you can get deer fencing up to 6’ high, that would give you 11’.

We did this several years ago when we had a fence jumper and it has worked well for us. Ours just jumped, though, did not climb and then jump, might not work as well if the dog is climbing/jumping.

One person saw the fence, and asked, “what are you keeping in there, gazelles?”

[khall]

Coyote fence roller
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1uCQdtJFIk

[S1969]

You could try an e-collar with a remote and watch for the behavior then give him an unexpected zap if he tries to jump. Timing would be critical, but it’s not a huge investment and can also be used for other things.

We had to put up a fence extension last year when our snow was very deep. It wasn’t pretty but we used zip ties to connect 4’ step in posts to the hard fence, then strung electric tape across. It wouldn’t have been hard to attach a solar charger but we never needed to do that.

[Horsegal984]

Coyote bars. Work wonders.

Cheap DIY version
https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=0ahUKEwisn4a19fLJAhWBPiYKHeK7B8YQjB0IBQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.pinterest.com%2Fpin%2F30821578672304191%2F&psig=AFQjCNEGvFsI-hCXhpSIbavDHaRwxWmQbQ&ust=1450992213831662&rct=j

[Houndhill]

[QUOTE=khall;8452799]
Coyote fence roller
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1uCQdtJFIk[/QUOTE]

That is very cool!

I wondered why the dog didn’t try to climb up on that pile of brush or downed tree right next to the fence.

This looks great for the dog/coyote that climbs/scrambles over a fence, but wouldn’t deter the dog who jumps it cleanly. My Irish Wolfhound fence-jumper could easily jump a five-foot fence from a standstill, without touching it.

First jumper I’d had in forty years of wolfhounds. I suspect many of them could have done it, but just didn’t.

Fortunately none of her puppies and grandpuppies have inherited the jumping gene…though quite a few of them can open doors. Sometimes you do not find out they can do that until they really really want to be on the other side of the door.

[Ready_To_Riot]

I have an Akita husky mix. He can jump anything and will jump anything. E-collars don’t work. Since the e collar didn’t work, I didn’t waste my money on the invisible fence because it’s the same principle.

He now goes outside on a tie out. It’s annoying and I hate it, but it’s his own fault

[SAcres]

Thanks for the suggestions! I’m not sure the roller bar would be effective as he doesn’t pull himself up, he clears in completely, but it may be worth a shot. I think a fence extender might be the best option, but the yard is approximately half an acre, it’s going to take a while to build it.

I’m still contemplating the invisible fence idea. He’s a quick learner and I think after he got 1-2 shocks he wouldn’t try it again. An e-collar could be a good solution as well, but I would be worried about people abusing it or using it the wrong way.

Unfortunately I don’t think an anti jump harness would work for him. It would have to be left on all day because my mother (who will have him out with her during the day) would not be willing to put it on and take it off.

[UlysMom]

I had this issue long ago with my GSD. Didn’t know she was an escape artist when I adopted her (found out later I was her fourth home because of this).

I did most of what was suggested above to try to contain her. She could easily scale a 6 ft block wall, run along the top and flip me off with her little paw as she jumped down the other side. We started life together in a townhouse with a decent sized yard. I tried crating and she practically killed herself trying to get out. Leaving her in the house alone, she ate a couch and all of my wooden blinds. She had severe separation anxiety and would try to escape when left behind.

My decent sized yard quickly took on the appearance of a maximum security prison, with tilted lattice fence extensions, hotwire, “creative planting”, etc. Everything I did eventually kept her in the yard, but honestly, it was not a pleasant place to hang out anymore (and bumping into the livestock hotwire while gardening because you’ve forgotten it’s there kind of takes the joy out of your green thumbery).

I took all of that down when I put my place on the market and installed the electric fencing at my new house, with both block and wooden solid fencing. (I also added a large, custom fully enclosed dog kennel for her and my Rottie to keep them secure when workmen or family kids would be coming in and out unsupervised.) She learned quickly and knew where the boundaries were throughout the yard. She never once tried to test after the first training period. As soon as she felt the vibrate, she’d hit the brakes. Had it installed in the two houses we lived in after that too. Honestly, I think I had the system turned on for a week at the last house and she never wore the collar again once she learned where she was allowed to be within the fence line.

I will say, though, she used to flinch if she heard a beep that sounded like the one her collar would give off. Always made me sad to see her react that way. I’m not one for incorporating electric corrections into my dog training. But in this circumstance, it worked for us and I was desperate to keep her safe and in my yard.

Good luck. You’ve been given a lot of great suggestions above. My current foster is an Akita mix (/Husky). He’s probably one of the smartest dogs I’ve ever had. Hopefully yours will get with whatever program you put in place.

[Houndhill]

OP, I agree a fence extension might be your best bet with a clean jumper, as opposed to a climber/scrambler.

I did an acre enclosure, by myself practically (ok DH helped a bit) it seemed very quickly and not that expensive.

The deer fence, which is plastic, is available online in 100’ rolls, quite inexpensive.

Then you will need the stakes, they just need to be insubstantial ones, we used narrow wooden ones affixed to the substantial wooden ones.

Then, you staple the deer fence to the thin wooden posts, and run a cord stapled to the top of the post (which is 4’ or 6’ or whatever above your current fence) and affix the top of the deer fence via hog rings- these little rings, you need a special little tool that is sold with them) and it is not difficult, time consuming, or expensive to do.

The deer fence is black, so kind of disappears so you don’t feel that you are living in a prison.

It has worked for us, for a clear- jumping rather than scrambling dog seems to work. Few dogs can (or will, even if they could ) clear jump 11 feet or even 8 feet.

If the dog learns to scramble/climb, all bets are off. I’ve seen beagles and foxhounds that can climb and go over 6’ fence pretty easily.

As long as they don’t do that, (or learn that they can) you are good with an extension that they can’t or won’t jump.

Oh-for some areas close to the house, we chose the plastic white lattice 4 x 6 pieces on top of the regular fence. It looks ok.