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Shelter Dog Problems
Hi everyone,
I have only been a part of this community for a few days and I love it!
Recently, I’ve started going to the animal shelter to help walk dogs. This is so much fun and I learn so much every time I go. My main problem is getting the dog on the lead before they bolt out the door and past me. They want to escape and I’m afraid they’ll get away and cause problems. I would love any ideas you can give me as to ways I can approach differently or anything. I want to make sure that I’m safe and the dogs are safe as well week .
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21 Replies
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Hello, Hope!
I’ve worked in many different shelters and daycares and have found it is easiest for me to put the loop in the door way right where you open the door. If the door has a latch, I would use it as a way to keep the door from opening even when the unlocked. That way when the dog leaps forward you can quickly close the door if needed. Hope this as been helpful. And don’t be embarrassed, accidents happen all the time! I have accidentally let a dog loose a few times, too!
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The shelter uses slip leads and one time the lead got so loose the dog got away outside. My friend had to go get him. I was trying to untangle the lead and it went too slack. Any ideas for making sure the dog doesn’t get hurt from having it too right but not to the point where it can get out? Thank you so much for your response!
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It is often tricky to get used to how the lead works…I was shown several times before I got it.
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Is it possible to enter the kennel yourself and leash up the dog first? Maybe you can even play some attention games with them in their kennel after their walk, potentially practicing leashing and unleashing when they are more settled? Spending time in the kennel with the dogs can be nearly as important as the time you spend with them outside.
Thank you for thinking of the dogs’ safety @Shadow!
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I think the doors are weird so I’m not sure if I can get out if I go in. I try to go in if I have someone with me who can let me out, but if we’re going for our own dogs, it could be harder.
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Yikes – that seems very challenging! Have you checked in with veteran volunteers or your volunteer coordinator for success? One of the shelters where I worked had doors that latched from the outside. When volunteers/staff went into the kennel with the dog, they had to carry a sturdy pen or pencil to flip that latch because fingers could not reach the latch from the inside! Far too many shelters were really not built with an understanding of how sheltering works.
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I work at a doggie daycare, and the catching the little dogs on a slip lead is the hardest thing for me. I usually end up catching them by their hips and then fixing it right after, but sometimes, they slip out entirely! As mentioned before, accidents do happen even if you’ve been doing it for months. The advice I’m giving below is based on my experience at my job. I know most of the dogs there, but keep in mind to move at the dog’s pace. If he is showing signs of discomfort with your approach or presence, maybe grab someone who knows the dog better to get him leashed for you. Safety first!
At my job, the doors open inwards (towards the enclosure) and outwards (towards the hallway). If your place has that option, too, maybe try opening inwards to the point that you can get your hand and slip lead loop in but not to that the dog and run out. If you have to open outwards, try keeping the door from opening too widely by having your foot there and stand to where you’re not seeming like you’re trapping the dog/ looming over him but are body blocking him inside his kennel.
Also, if you have your slip lead untangled and ready to go before you open the door, that might help. I find that sometimes they’re ready to go, and others, they’re twisted like they got put into a vortex.
Additionally, in the CATCH curriculum, I remember seeing a video where David showed us how to use a slip lead and how to fashion it into a harness if you’re worried about the dog pulling too hard. I don’t remember what phase it’s in. Maybe the equipment phase (Phase 5)? I’ll look and see and edit once I find it.
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It wouldn’t let me edit it, but the video is called “CATCH Trainer’s Take: Instant Harness” on Youtube. It’s not part of the curriculum. I misspoke.
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Here it is! Thanks, Malia, for bringing it up!
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Thank you for posting this video @catherine! It so clearly shows the how and the why of slip-leash harnessing.
The horizontal hold at the beginning (to keep the loop wide) is one that I use but never thought to describe when I was demonstrating; it was simply how my hand auto-positioned itself. Seeing someone else explain it this way reminded me how important videos are to understanding what we do and how we can teach others!
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Thank you so much for answering! Unfortunately, the doors open outward always. But I’m thinking all those ideas are great ones. I think at a shelter it’s more of an issue if a dog gets away because there’s more of a risk for territorial, fearful, and aggressive behavior from everyone else. That’s what I’m most scared of, that dogs would be able to start something through the cage bars.
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If the dog knows sit have it sit (with lead around wrist and treat in hand) give treat and slip lead over head. Practice with well behaved dog a few times.
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Thank you! I appreciate the advice. I’m not sure how well the dogs are trained. I think it depends, and I get the feeling the staff doesn’t have time/is overworked.
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Great topic, Hope! One thing that can really help is foot-blocking the doorway until all is ready. Check out this photo from a CATCH in-person workshop at St. Hubert’s. See how Daniel’s foot is keeping the door shut while he organizes his slip line to be ready and unlocks the door? Using your foot can be a great way to keep that door shut, only opening it a few inches at a time. You can toss treats to the back of the kennel while you stick your hand & slipline inside the door with it open just a few inches (enough for your arm) while also blocking it from opening any further with your foot. This way, the dog is leashed BEFORE you open the door entirely. Then, keep the line slightly taut while you slide the “keeper” down the length of the lead to hold it in place. If the leash doesn’t have a keeper on it, that’s a real problem. Slip lines are not training leads and without a keeper, they must be kept taut in order to maintain attachment to the dog, as you unfortunately discovered. If you are taking the dog out to train, perhaps see if it’s possible to use a flat buckle collar and snap-on lead. Otherwise, you won’t make much progress on leash manners, at least.
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Some great ideas. Agree with @catherine regarding the foot block and throwing treats into the kennel. I’ve used those techniques when possible at the shelter I volunteer at, NYACC. The foot block however is dependent on the kennel. Some of the kennels are above the ground so it is not possible but you can try to be creative and use other parts of your body to block the doorway.
As for walking into the kennels, that was not an option at NYACC. They had a strict rule not to go into kennels for safety reasons. They are a city shelter so there was a certain amount rules and procedures that could be bureaucratic and not always based on situations. Also, at the time I was walking the dogs there, which was more than 2 1/2 years ago now, they pretty much trained us to use the slip lead as it was designed to be used. They only made a short quick reference to making it into a harness in situations where the dog was an extreme puller. Once I got the dogs out of the kennel area I would make the slip lead into a harness. I found it very difficult to watch others walking the dogs where the lead was choking them. I think things may have changed a bit there now as when I reached out to them to help train the foster dogs they interviewed me and wanted to ensure that I only use positive reinforcement techniques.
With that said, my experience at the shelter was excellent. Prior to going into it, I had certain preconceptions since they are a city shelter that does practice euthanasia. I thought the dogs were probably not well taken care of and the conditions wouldn’t be so great. I only volunteered there because I felt they were the facility in NYC with the most need. I wanted to give those dogs what little happiness they could get while being there. To my surprise, the dogs were well taken care of. They had a lot of programs for them and were always looking for ways to enrich their time at the shelter. The staff were really dedicated and cared about the animals. From what I saw they did everything possible for the dogs and the other animals, even the hard cases, to avoid the need for euthanasia.
Not only did I learn a lot about working with dogs while I was there but my views changed regarding these “kill” shelters. It’s very easy to judge from the outside. I learned that things aren’t always clearcut. There are moral dilemmas when making hard decisions. Although, I would love a world where every dog’s life would be spared, as much as I hate to admit it, the reality is sometimes there isn’t much of a choice and sometimes it is the most humane option.
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The Sit to Leash skill can be a game changer @susanbuzzell and it is fairly easy to teach by luring! I would suggest teaching it outside of the kennel in a safe and relatively calm place before counting on it to work inside the kennel. If you and other volunteers might be able to teach this skill to the dogs while you work with them, it would likely be of great help to the staff as well as the dogs @Shadow.
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Thank you for your wise and compassionate reply @doggonespecial. Reading about your journey with NYACC through this uniquely challenging time was very heartening to me. Though you had preconceived notions that truly worried you, including often justifiable concerns about the welfare of the dogs at shelters, you stepped up anyhow. It seems to me that you brought an open mind, filled with literally life-changing knowledge, and a heart strong enough to care both for the dogs and the people at NYACC. I’m thrilled that the staff was able to involve you further as an educator.
Bravo to you for seeing where you could make a difference and learning along the way!
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I volunteer at my local county shelter as a dog walker. The dogs are rated level 1 and level 2 ( more difficult to walk). The dogs that are walkable get walked everyday by volunteers unless its too hot.
Some of the dogs are very afraid and don’t even want to leave their kennel, others are pushing on the door to get out. We have to go inside the kennel or room with the dog to collar and leash them.
The kennel doors are metal bars and open outwards and pretty small. We often will throw treats towards the back of the kennel and have learned to enter quickly using body blocking or the lead as a slip leash.
We can ask another volunteer to distract the dog while we enter or exit the kennel, or help with collaring.
I went to take a dog out for a walk and he pushed the door open and almost escaped !
The dog immediately jumped on me and tore off my fanny pack
The door swung open and I closed it quickly but then I got my shirt caught in the door , on the outside !
I had to yank my shirt and rip it to get it free hahaha
Luckily, after returning the dog to his kennel there was a volunteer nearby to assist me in getting out, we were taught to never turn our back on the dog when entering or exiting
The dog was ultimately the best leash walker staying right by my side and checking in with me the entire walk !
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When shelter volunteers are able to team up, work the same shift and give each other support with just these sorts of scenarios, everything can go so much smoother (for the volunteers and the dogs)!
We’ve all had those moments @juli – we learn and grow from them. Isn’t it odd how something that was so stressful at the time, because a funny story to share and help others learn? I’m glad your door-dasher turned into a willing-walker – thank you for helping them get there!
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These are all great tips! I hope you are all coming to the shelter dog topic HoundTable next month. We are going to have such a great discussion.
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This conversation reminds me that I used to teach a mini-lesson to all new dog walkers at the shelter that we called the Ins-and-Outs of Dog Walking. It was all about entering and exiting kennels and buildings, safely turning corners, enrichment time inside kennels with the dogs, where to walk dogs on the campus, and interacting with the public. Just like so many other dog training skills, these Ins-and-Outs can be awkward at first, but practicing them without a dog can be a helpful way to fine-tune your own mechanics for the skills.
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