How to Stop Your Dog From Door Dashing?

Does your dog see an open door as an invitation to take off on an adventure of a lifetime? Having a door darting dog can be a scary and stressful thing, especially if they ignore you when you try to call them back. It’s terrifying to imagine what could happen if they run into a busy road, or get lost in the great outdoors. Fortunately, there are simple things you can do to prevent door dashing behavior and great training cues you can teach your dog to stop door dashing.

If these behaviors occur, it may cause a lot of undesirable consequences, so owners of dogs should take care to avoid the problem of dogs rushing at the door. So, why do dogs have such behaviors, and how do we stop them when they have such behaviors?

Let's analyze why dogs rush out when they open the door. Your dog might door dash for a variety of reasons: lack of physical and mental exercise, their prey drive kicks in when they see a squirrel run by, or they want to go explore the big wide world. Intact male dogs have an instinctual drive to roam. Some dog breeds are predisposed to want to wander, such as Hounds or Hound mixes — they just want to follow their nose! Nordic breeds, like Siberian Huskies, are bred as working dogs who can run all day; they tend to be much more independent and want to go off on their own adventures. But any dog, no matter their breed, might have the inclination to dash out the door if the opportunity arises.

Doorways are exciting places! It’s where we come in after being gone all day at work, it’s where they have to be to go outside for a walk or a game of fetch, guests enter through your door when they come to visit; going through doorways predicts lots of good things for your dog. Rushing through an open door is extremely self-rewarding, so if your dog is successful, they are more likely to do it again and again.

It may also be because the dog suffers from separation anxiety. If you open the door, the dog will run out, and even look back at you, showing a reluctant state. In this case, they are afraid of separating from their owner. If the dog has a great reaction to opening the door, it means that the dog may be suffering from separation anxiety, and the owner should spend more time with them and arrange an environment that allows the dog to feel at ease.

Dogs that dart out the door are more likely to be hit by cars if they wander into roadways, can get lost, or get into trouble with local wildlife or even other dogs. (We hope it never happens to you, but if your dog does dart out the door and become lost, use this customizable Lost Pet Poster Template to post around your neighborhood.) To keep your dog safe, it’s important that you address your dog’s door dashing behavior before the unthinkable happens.

If the dog is in estrus, they always want to run out to find the dog of the opposite sex. This situation is also very common when they are in season. At the same time, the chances of your dog get lost would increase largely during this period. You should avoid this situation as much as possible. If it happens, consider sterilization.

In addition, when a dog is in season, the nutrition in the body is easy to lose. Therefore, the owner should provide the dog with sufficient dog food and pay attention to the nutritional supply to prevent malnutrition. It is recommended to choose fresh meat grains with fresh meat as the main material, low in salt and low in oil. High-quality dog food are rich in protein and calcium, rich in nutrients, and usually matched with some fruits and vegetables to make the nutrition more balanced.

In order words, a dog who slips through an open door every chance he gets. This is frustrating for the human and dangerous for the dog, who romps around having a marvelous time just beyond his owner’s reach, or worse, takes off at a dead run for parts unknown.You can stop your dog from having this habit by doing the following simple things. Use the following tips or tricks to make your doorway a peaceful place, which is good for dogs and people.

1. Set up Barriers

Separating the door area from your dog with some fences so that when the door is opened, the dog cannot dash out, but this is only applicable to those dogs who can be stopped by those obstacles. If your dog will jump over such obstacles, or bite them, then don't use this method.

2. Fasten the Traction Rope

Dogs are very sensitive animals. When you want to go out, if they find that you are wearing clothes and shoes, they will know that you are going out. They will be more excited at this time and be ready to rush out at any time.. Therefore, before you are ready to go out, you must bring your dog a leash before opening the door. When you go home, you must first close the door and then untie the leash.

3. Invisible Boundary Training at Doorways

This is a fantastic behavior to teach a dog that likes to door dash; your dog learns to not cross the boundary unless given permission, which means they would stay inside whether or not you are physically present. While it may seem like a daunting task, this behavior is all about reinforcing your dog's choice to stay behind the boundary line. Plus, you can use this training for more than just your door. My dog has learned to stay out of my kitchen using an invisible border. Teach your dog to stay in the back of your car while you open the hatch or side door, teach them to stay out of the dining area, or out of a particular garden bed — the options are endless!

4. Space Isolation

Teaching your dog to go to their bed on cue (or "go to place," or "go to mat") is useful for a variety of situations beyond just door dashing. It's great for keeping your dog from jumping on guests, preventing them from being underfoot in the kitchen while cooking, and settling in their designated spot gives them something to do other than beg at the table while you're eating dinner. You can substitute a crate or other kind of "place" for an actual dog bed, like a yoga mat or rubber-backed bath mat that is easy to bring with you to lots of different places. Set yourself up for success!

5. Take Safety Precautions

Your first step is setting up the environment to prevent your dog from ever being successful in bolting out the door. Dog gates are an excellent management tool to make sure your dog doesn’t have access to the doorway. Block access to the entryway of your home by the front door and all other doorways that your dog might escape through, such as the door into the garage, or the back sliding door. If you opt not to use or are unable to install space management tools like gates, make sure your dog is on a leash under your control, crated, in their puppy zone, or in a different room with the door closed whenever you open the door.

In addition to the above several methods, the fundamental training of dogs is also essential. When you start training your dogs from an early age, then, it would be much easier to develop good habits. If you want to cultivate your doggy with the good practice of not rushing out casually while keeping calm, you can try the following training method.

First, let the dog sit at the door and keep still. If your dog behaves pretty well, remember to reward it with some treats in time. When the dog can sit at the door and hold still, you can increase the difficulty over time gradually. You can touch the doorknob with your hands or pick up the traction rope, and at the same time, ask the dog to stay still and reward for doing well.

Then it is time to increase the difficulty again. The next step is to open the door slightly; if the dog moves, remember to close the door in time; repeated training like this, until the dog understands that only when he stays still, the owner will open the door and go out to play.

In general, dogs are incredibly brilliant and easy to train. As long as the owner has enough patience, they can learn it in basically no time.

It is inevitable for dogs to rush out of the door suddenly at times. If those like this suddenly appear, you may be caught off guard, and consequently, some unexpected results will occur. Therefore, it is indispensable to understand some effective methods to prevent things unwanted from happening. The methods mentioned above can be said to be exceptionally effective.  Hopefully, this article is informative and helpful on your journey in dog parenting and education.