Otis, Moses and Luna got out…

[Basenjimamma]

..today though our back gate and was running our neighborhood for about an hour, before I got home.
Our neighbors tried to get them to come up to them so they could capture them, but no luck..
When I pulled into our garage and started pulling the garage door down, Otis came running and literally jumped up into my arms, he was so excited to see me..( good feeling indeed).
Moses and Luna( my daughter's schnauzer/yorkie mix) were nowhere to be seen..
So I start running down our street, several blocks and way down at the end this giant moose (Moses) sees and hears me calling their names..Luna is running behind him for dear life, doing everything to keep up with him..
I sat down in the grass at a ditch and kept on calling them and they came straight up to me so happy to see me..
I know this might not be a big whoop to a lab owner or schnauzer owner or any other regular dog, but for me, owning not only a basenji but also a podengo grande, this was huge..I was convinced they were gone for good, with their noses taking them afar.

..Just wanted to share how proud I am of Otis and Moses (and Luna too..) because of them knowing where they lived and coming when called.

The gate..was unlocked a few days ago, and was wedged so badly because of heavy rains that it was impossible to open..or lock for that matter…not today..

[Nemo]

I'm so glad you got them back safe and sound. I'm always paranoid that that gate is open, even when I know it's locked.

Edit: And it is a wonderful thing that they came to you. One of Zoni's sisters is out there somewhere (I hope) and her owner has seen her but she has been too scared to come up to him. Sad.

[sharronhurlbut]

Glad they are all home safe and sound!

[Basenjimamma]

Yes, I am so happy they actually came back, I had anticipated the worst..and after they got home they just fell to the floor and conked out, absolutely exhausted..didn't even bother me in the kitchen when I was cooking..and they are still acting real mellow and subdued.
I hope it scared them a little, so they stay put if it ever happens again..god forbid.

[nobarkus]

Oh wow, that was lucky! So glad to hear the great news Petra. My last 2 Basenjis used to get once in a while for 3-4 hours and when I got home there they were hanging out in the front yard. Now Buddy got out once and got nicked by a car and ran scared for 2 miles. I was lucky to get him back in 1 piece.

[Andrew]

Congrats!!!! What a great feeling of RELIEF that they all actually returned to you so quickly!

[thunderbird8588]

Phew i'm so glad they are all ok Petra, fancy Otis being the first back. We are thinking of Padlocking our gate when we get our pup and asking people to use the front door. At the moment people come in the gate and through the side door, i'm worried visitors will leave it open.
My last Basenji ran off and got run over, when i moved he managed to get through the bars on my gate whilst i was at work. I didn't know he was out untill i drove past the front of my house, i was going to continue to the shop but saw a flash of Brown on my doorstep. I did a double take and there was Benji just sat waiting for me to come home .

[wizard]

I never leave Gossy in the yard when I'm not home (except maybe when I walk down to the mailbox) and yet I'm still paranoid that she'll get out by accident. I always make sure the gate is closed before I even open the door to the yard. I've had to go after escaped basenjis in the past and it is a scary feeling.

[Basenjimamma]

So true..I check those gates daily, but I have not been able to close or open that door due to it being so swollen from all the rain…

Yes, I praised Otis up and down last night, telling him how proud of him I am for him coming home..of course Moses and Luna got the same..Gate is locked down and a big stump is wedged behind it, not because I don't think the door will hold, but because I am scared, since they all now know that is the way out..

[Anette]

Oh thank god they got back! It's terrible when the pull a stunt like that.

My giant has done the same thing - whent through the porchgate (And I was home, poor gate - it was totaly ruined) And gone she was. She came happely running back after about 15 minutes. And just the other day she opend the front door and went out looking for me and Kasko (I was taking him for a walk alone). Luckely she just went looking for us and came bouncing when I called.

[crystalncody]

I'm so glad they are all ok! I know that feeling, where you are sure the worst has happened.

Last month, Cody got out for over two hours, but came back inside the fence while we were all still looking for him. He was just running around in the back yard like nothing ever happened. Where the fence meets the side of our house, there is a gap at the bottom where the siding comes out further than the brick base. We cut a board to fit and wedge between the fence and the base. The day before, there was a wind storm that loosened it enough that he could move it. Now we have another board cut longer, 1/2 buried, and wedged in place, and a 4x4 buried in front of it and another behind it. Possibly overkill on the 4x4s, but I don't want to take any chances either. Also, when he learned to open the gate latch, we made something out of net and rope to keep him from opening it. My dad jokes that our back yard is sealed tighter than Ft. Knox just to keep a small dog inside.

[Barklessdog]

Your so lucky, that is my biggest fear is them getting loose & getting hit by a car.

[Basenjimamma]

Otis did get hit by a car when he was barely 5 months old..went flying through the air and landed like a sack of potatoes..We rushed him to the vet and he ended up being Ok, pulmonary contusion and very scared, but Ok..Vet said it is a wonder he was a puppy, very limber and thinks that is why he didn't break any legs or else.
So yes, next time we won't be so lucky, we can not have a next time.

Not the gate is locked as it usually is, and I will not let anybody open it again when it is wet and swollen, because that makes it impossible to lock..

[Barklessdog]

A couple of years ago my neighbor calls me & tells me my dog is loose in his back yard. I look outside the gate was left open!

I panicked, put the phone down, ran over to his yard, the dog was nowhere to be seen, I run back to the phone and the dog is standing right behind me in the kitchen !

He snuck back!

[Basenjimamma]

such smart dogs..

[Shaye's Mom]

Your stories about them coming back are great to read - I live in fear of mine escaping and just running off forever - so glad Otis knows where his mommy is!

[Patty]

I'm so pleased that all ended well. We have always worried that somebody will leave our gates open and this has happened once or twice particularly when the family lived at home. We now have a double gate system with warnings on both gates which works very well. Occasianally somebody doesn't quite latch the inner gate but no worry if the outer one is closed.

[nobarkus]

I put a pad lock on my gate.

[nobarkus]

@Barklessdog:

A couple of years ago my neighbor calls me & tells me my dog is loose in his back yard. I look outside the gate was left open!

I panicked, put the phone down, ran over to his yard, the dog was nowhere to be seen, I run back to the phone and the dog is standing right behind me in the kitchen !

He snuck back!

Sorry I have to laugh at this one.:D

OK, many years ago in 1980 I moved into a house with my first Basenji Nipper with 2 other guys. One day the landlady, who lived next door called me at work (45 minute to 1 hour drive away) that Nipper had got out of the yard and was just sitting in the driveway. I got home at the end of the day and that dog was just sitting there waiting for me, she didn't move out of that driveway. Amazing dog she was!

[GenJMar]

my two got out one day through a rain swollen gate chasing a squirrel. It was before work and I was home. I realized it within minutes of them getting out. I closed and locked the gate, then went walking around the neighborhood calling for them. I had made a full circuit, starting to panic, I was going to start again from my house where I found both my guys standing on the front steps hugged up against the front door with a miserable look on their faces, please let us in its RAINING out here. I just opened the door and they ran back inside.