Dog Blog - March 1, 2021

Your Worst Fear Just Came True...Your Dog Just Ran Away!

You adopt a new dog and you’re super excited for what the future holds for your family and your new companion! When all of a sudden, you open your front door to get your mail, and your new pup quickly dashes out the door past you, running out of sight in an instance. It’s dark, cold, and you’re worried that your new dog is gone forever!

What do you do? If your pup is not trained to ‘WAIT’ at the door, or to ‘COME’ when called, your only option is to chase after him and try to notify as many people as possible for help.

Oh No! This Just Happened!

Unfortunately, this nightmare scenario happened this past weekend to a local family who adopted a pup from The Washington Area Humane Society. Here at Paw & Order, we are fortunate to be able to spend time at the WAHS to help with some of the dogs who are up for adoption.

The Dog that Got Away

In this particular case, we knew this 2 year old Beagle named Camo was really timid and afraid of people, which would make him extra challenging to catch. Camo was only at the shelter for a short period of time, so we didn’t get a lot of time with him; we were working on his trust issues, but he had a long way to go when he was adopted. Our trainer, Christie, worked with Camo at the shelter, and knew he would let her approach him without being afraid, so she felt compelled to help.

Happy Ending Ahead!

Both the owners and Christie made urgent posts on social media for help and we received numerous reports from people who saw him, but Camo ran from all of them. After several hours of canvassing the neighborhood, and getting tip-after-tip of Camo sightings, Christie finally received the call she’d been waiting for. A family left their gate open, and Camo entered their yard where they safely held him until Christie could arrive to take him home.

A huge THANK YOU to the dog-loving communities of Pleasant Hills and Jefferson Hills, enough information was provided for Camo’s safe recovery. This family was very fortunate, however, not every family in this situation gets a second chance.

Dog Training Can Save Lives

The importance of teaching your dog not to dash out the door and a reliable ‘Recall’ is not only nice to have, but could save your pet’s life. In no way are we shaming Camo’s owners, we realize he was newly adopted, and they did not yet have time to begin training. We’re excited to start working with Camo and his owners so this doesn’t happen again!

We cannot stress enough the importance of formal obedience training, with professional dog trainers to enhance your life with your dog. If you are just one open door away from this nightmare happening to you, please contact us for help!