Brittany Runs off, get GPS collar?

[98s1lightning]

My boy Rudy is 9 years old, always been a "flight risk" took off in the woods as a pup once and scared the heck out of me. Couldn't find him.

He's had the wireless collar, radius around house, a savior to this dogs life. Idk what I would do without it.
Haven't had the collar lately it quit on me. He's "trained"/afraid of his yard boundaries.....

Caught him running off a few weeks back.

Play with him in yard all good. Listens to most all commands. Sits and lays with me.
Usually he's tied up to a long line on a tree to keep him safe.

Working on a 10'x10' kennel now, not great for running but good for safety.

I live in a populated area. About an 80 acre farm but outside those boundaries its a busy place. I dont like it. Always worry he's gonna get whacked by a car or lost.
Well the other day I let him out, go get my coffee, walk out he's GONE.

Luckily a neighbor took him in and I got him back.

He had made it through neighboring house lots and over roads in less than 10 minutes. A miracle he didnt get hurt or killed.

I treat this dog like the most extreme flight risk whenever I walk him from my truck on the road, I can't let him loose ANYWHERE without a leash. He will head for water or whatever scent he wants.

You get his dog inside and he can follow every command to get a treat.

The Brittany are a tough breed to harness the energy!
He's 9 and I haven't got to hunt him.

I know he can do it, but if he runs out of sight up North in Maine, it may me the last time I see him.
He's for sure at risk of getting lost or quilled by porcupine, meet a coyote, or maybe even the bears idk.

I've got my family even more convinced not to turn your back on him now. Kids really believe why I'm so worried and strict about his whereabouts and house doors, after that episode.

I have a training collar, he HATES and is TERRIFIED of beeping now. Hates it. Any beep in the house sets him off.

The GPS locating collar I don't have. They are expensive to me.
I know they won't cure the problem. But I got a chance of finding him.
I also believe the "problem" is the dogs nature and I doubt it can be tamed. He's a hunter and wants to follow that nose wherever it takes him.
Not enough free wilderness for him to roam in the yard.
I figure than dog needs about 50 acres a day to run. Highly unrealistic to contain him in that size area here though. Too easy for him to dip out.
Maybe a massive fenced in area, also unrealistic for me now.

 

[98s1lightning]

 

[98s1lightning]

Hes a good pup and the most loving dog I ever met. Smart too.

But when he's got his mind set. Forget it man.

 

[98s1lightning]

I done good enough to keep him 9 years tho, got to remind myself of the positive achievements and memories. Still going!

 

[Ckleeves]

It might be kinda late in the game to break him of running wild like that. He's running because he knows he can get away with it. I think I would have a e-collar on him all the time so he can forget he has it on and then he gets once chance to return when called before getting nicked. None of my Brit's get more then 50 yards from me unless I allow them to range while hunting and I can either tone them (if we are hunting and they have a e-collar on) or call and they are right back by my side.

We took in an English pointer who was about 6 when we got him and he was kinda like that. Gate would open and he was off to the races. Took some serious work to break him of it but finally was able to.

A GPS collar will certainly make finding him easier. You might be able to find an older Astro system for pretty cheap now that most guys have moved to the Alpha. Join some of the hound hunting forums and post a WTB add and you might be surprised how cheap you can find one or check fleabay.

 

[98s1lightning]

Cool man thanks a bunch

 

[LkeAF]

Disclaimer: I used to own an Invisible Fence dealership. Sounds like you'd be a candidate for an Invisible Fence GPS based system. There's another one on the market called Halo, but I've not heard good reviews and I know for a fact that it will not do many of the things they claim it will (GPS systems are not suitable for tight residential areas like they claim). Invisible Fence systems are expensive, but they are the best on the market. Professionally installed and maintained, and the training methodology is very sound and effective. There's a nationwide network of dealers, so if you went to their website and input your zip code, it should steer you toward your local dealer.
Other option would be a wired system (not GPS). For a Brittany I would recommend going with their Boundary Plus technology, which can put signal through @ 2500' of wire, which is a decent sized area.
As I said, Invisible Fence brand systems are not cheap. I was a customer before I bought the dealership and I remember the initial sticker shock. However, it was probably the best investment I ever made in my pet's safety. As a dealer, I would (no jokingly) tell people that the best sales pitch I could ever have would be to let you test run a system for a month and then give you the estimate. I could move the decimal place one spot to the right and you wouldn't blink an eye....

 

[LRNut]

I wonder if a snake "shock" collar would work.

BTW, GPS collars don't work around Israel right now - my wife is in Jordan right now and the Israeli government is scrambling GPS signals - her iPhone says she is in Egypt. She is about 40 miles from Israel.

 

[birddog 68]

He's running because he knows he can get away with it. I think I would have a e-collar on him all the time

This is what I would do.
No repercussions when he decides to bolt so why wouldn't he go as he pleases?
Going to take time to train him to stay close but if you use the E collar properly and are consistent he will understand that you are the one in control and not him.

 

[cajun]

The invisible fence works well with proper training. I had a sport dog model. Installed myself with edger you don't need a big trench. My sons dog stayed with us for a year and when he came back even a year later without the collar on he would not cross the line.

 

[Berrnard]

not sure if youre looking for a gps collar.
i was looking, and when i do i tend to go down a rabbits hole
the Fi won out for me. it IS a proprietary collar but quality wise and performance won out. and if you add up the cost the cost for service and collar it is neck and neck with competitors. i got mine on BF, so it was even cheaper with 6mo service
and it has survived my aussie CDs for the last 5 months.
i looked at the fi, whistle and tractive. i think the tractive took 2nd with me, but it was so dang bulky. i know my dogs wouldve tried to rip it off whenever they could.

 

[cajun]

One thing about the gps collars they do have a range depending on terrain. I know we had a tracking dog with one on looking for a wounded deer and the handler was getting nervous because he lost contact with the dog at one point. Most of the guys here use the garmin.

 

[cajun]

Another thing I see folks do us put an airtag on the dogs collar.

 

[Berrnard]

One thing about the gps collars they do have a range depending on terrain. I know we had a tracking dog with one on looking for a wounded deer and the handler was getting nervous because he lost contact with the dog at one point. Most of the guys here use the garmin.

what im talking about use gps via cell service. as long as you have good service coverage in the areas you go, you will not lose signal. Fi uses att towers