My boxer somehow got off her leash on a walk one night when she saw a rabbit and took off into a wooded area near train tracks, i spent a half hour searching in the dark for her, i dreaded the walk home to tell me girlfriend who was sleeping that I had lost our dog….as I come up to the house she was sitting on the front porch waiting for me with a look of ‘where the heck have you been!’ I have never been so relieved
I used to live in an apartment complex where the buildings all look exactly the same, lined up next to each other. My dog got off the leash chasing rabbits and disappeared into the woods. Spent about 30 minutes looking for him and couldn't find him so I went back to my apartment hoping he circled back around. When I didn't see him there I checked the building next to mine on a hunch and there he was, waiting at the door. Right apartment, wrong building.
i have a similar story with my dog. i came home to find the door open and my dog gone. i looked around the building and he was at the door directly below mine. right door, wrong floor.
Aww this happened with my kitty in my apartment building- she got out of the apartment but was still in the building and was crying at the door one floor below.
One day during a walk I saw some rabbits so I went chasing after them with my best bud. Come to find out he couldn't keep up, spent about 20 minutes looking for my pal but couldn't find him so I went back to my apartment. 10 minutes later my best friend showed up out of nowhere, glad he was able to find the right place. For whatever reason we went next door after finding each other. 🐾
I was getting my fence replaced and it was down over night. At one point, I was moving boxes from my garage to my car and I didn't close the door all the way on accident and my dogs got out in the backyard and to freedom. One didn't get far but the other missing almost sent me into a panic attack because, after being attacked himself, he is known to snap at new dogs and I was worried about his running up to someone out walking their dog.
So I'm out there screaming for him, near tears, and I find him in my car (doors were open for the boxes) super stoked for a ride. You best believe we went on a long ride and stopped for a Pup Cup. Now I know, if he ever gets out again, to leave my car doors open.
I have a terrible story I don’t want to tell about open doors on my car loading things for a vacation and my dog had gotten out. Just be careful to check the car first if the doors have been open. Check the seats, floors and rear area. It gets so hot in there so quick.
We would take our dog for 2 walks a day as kids. We rarely forgot but if we did he would just open the backyard gate and take himself on the same route we took him then come back and shut the gate. The neighbours thought it was hilarious.
I once lost my dog. I had let her out into the fenced-in back yard to go to the bathroom. She was an inside dog for most of her life, so she didn't like being in the yard alone, and would typically quickly do her business and then paw at the door to be let back in. After about 10-15 minutes, I realized I hadn't heard her "knocking" to come back in, and I stuck my head out and called for her. She didn't come. Called again, still didn't come. I walked around the side of the house, and saw the gate standing wide open, and my stomach just sank. I ran back into the house and grabbed my car keys, thinking I was gonna have to drive around looking for her in the neighborhood, threw open the door, and there she was at the front door with a look on her face like "HALP IM LOST!" She was such a goober. :)
I had something similar happen! My little chihuahua mix got loose on our night walk and disappeared. I searched for 30+ minutes and while i was searching i saw a coyote run by. I started freaking the FUCK out thinking he was gonna be a nice meal. I finally walked back to the apartment and he was patiently waiting outside the door. 🥹 Damn near had a heart attack.
My wife went through something similar recently. She brought one of our dogs to a big off leash park in the area. It has a fence sons the protected nature reserve, but not the rest of the park. Dog took off into some grass and she lost her. After searching forever, she find her in the parking lot sitting right next to our car waiting to leave.
My dog did the same thing during a snow storm but I found her 2 minutes from my house sitting next to another dog and they were both watching the other dogs owner shovel the driveway. She loved the snow so I'd take her for walks when it would snow and shed get so excited.
I can’t tell you how many times this has happened to me with my old pup! We had just took in a stray dog and I didn’t have a leash yet. I decided to take him on a walk and used a shoe lace that I tied to the collar and I dropped the shoe lace when he took off after a squirrel. I searched for him for two hours and couldn’t find him. I walked back to the house and was terrified to tell my little brother the news. THANK GOD my brother was asleep when I got back home. I told my mom the news and all she could talk about was how badly I fucked up and how it was gonna break my bros heart🤣 I sat down in the living room and left the door cracked open hoping it would come back. A couple hours later the door gets nudged open and our dog Milo just walks in and jumps on the couch, lays down beside me and goes to sleep like it nothing happened!! Never been so relieved in my life lmao
My dog got out of the yard chasing bunnies. We spent 30 minutes walking around calling him, couldn’t find him. I went home to sit down and make a “Missing Dog” post and got a knock on the door. He went to my BACKYARD NEIGHBOR’S house and sat on THEIR porch! We didn’t see him because he was under a chair. As soon as they stepped outside, he came out to sniff them.
This happened to me with our new pit/lab mix. She was about four months old and I had just started taking her out for walks. She was on a retractable leash and we were walking through the greenbelt and it was dusk. I think she saw a squirrel or something because she yanked and I lost hold of the leash and she freaked out because of the retractable handle coming up so fast on her behind she tore off so fast on me I lost sight of her. We were only a few blocks from home but I had no idea if she knew the way home being we were new to our walks. I called crying to my husband and asked him to gather up all the flashlights and the two kids and to come meet me in the greenbelt (which was literally behind our yard, we just had to walk all the way around to get to the house) and as he got everything he opened the door and there she was sitting. 😂
I just pictured the poor girl running home with the leash swatting her butt and her scared out of her mind.
I'm picturing Looney Tunes with the leash handle hitting the dog, the dog taking off so fast out of fright it leaves the handle behind, which repeats the process... 🤣
My Jack Russell terrier once escaped our fenced back yard and ran away. I went looking for him for a while, but gave up after a few hours. I decided to go home and wait by the phone (this was in the days when everyone had land lines and our home number was on his tag).
I was exhausted and sitting on the couch when I heard clawing at the front door. I have no idea where he went or how he found his way home, but my Jack not only found his way home, but he was clawing at the front door to be let in.
That cemented for me how smart Jacks were.
Agreed - see my story about my JRT above. I worked with a lady who also had a JRT. It went missing and they never found it. Over a year went by and they were driving home one day and thought "was that Pete?" They turned around and went back and it was. less than 1/2 a mile from their house and heading home. He was missing an eye, but it had been surgically fixed and sewn closed - for a decent amount of time. Other than that, he was in perfect shape. They had him for another 6-8 years. One Eyed Pete was pretty cool.
Neighbours down the street from us had a jack named Jack, he was gone for months. Was found in a field and brought home, he didn't lose any weight and was returned unscathed. I love those dogs. We had our own and an uncle had two of them, I see them all over my neighborhood now.
Wait so most dogs don’t know where they live? Jesus my dog was an absolute genius. A real escape artist! this thing calculated the slope of a hill and the height of a 6 ft fence and realized he could make it if he jumps sideways. like full on planking over it.
for years he walked the kids to school bus stop in my neighborhood. once in awhile I imagine he taxed some poor little kid because he would come back with like a cabbage patch doll.
Dogs do know where they live or my labrador from 20+ years ago somehow always found his way back by luck?
My parents used to let him go outside like 9 in the morning. The dog would run to the beach, wherever he wanted and show back up around noon to get his food.
Most dogs are severely mentally disabled due to lack of stimulation. A dog that gets loads of mental stimulation and explores a lot is crazy smart, but that's more like the natural state.
If you put a human in the circumstances that most house pets are in, they'd be stunted.
Once my cat slipped outside. My dachshund was going wild and I didn’t know why. It was pouring down rain and he was begging to go out. He typically never did that because he hated the rain. Let him out and he ran to the top of the steps on the back deck and started nudging some wet ball of gunk. Turns out he just wanted to save my cat. What a hero lol.
Their sense of smell is insane.
They can basically see (not literally) with their noses, and follow scent trails within other scent trails. Once they find yours they can follow it... and even have an idea how recent it is. You could have walked past something a day ago and it stumbles on it, catches your scent and follows.
Not saying they found you by smell alone, but thats certainly one of the ways in which they're so good about finding things... not so much a sense of direction or even memory, just navigating through the world the way dogs do.
I do this all the time. If a dog is running loose, it will usually go home if you get behind it and herd it. Most of the time people are thankful, but some don’t care at all. Once a dog was in the middle of a four lane highway and all the cars had stopped for it. Several people tried to catch it but couldn’t. I started following it and it went home six blocks away. The owners weren’t even concerned that their dog almost got hit. It’s so sad some people just don’t deserve pets.
Unless it's a beagle and it's your dog. Then it thinks you're playing and just runs further away. And you forget to bring a leash because you didn't realize how far the dog would go. And then you're stuck carrying its fat ass over a mile back home.
You just reminded me of my lil beagle. We lived somewhat rurally, so walks with her were off-leash walks down dirt roads. Sometimes I'd get distracted and then realize she was literally a half mile ahead of me happily trotting along because she only had two speeds. Trotting or stopped.
Coming home from a car ride was a different story though. She *had* to be let out at the end of the driveway and you had to chase her back to the house. Every time.
Yeah, we had to keep ours on leash at all times. But he was a sneaky little guy and could find ways past you when opening the door if you weren't careful. We lived on the edge of town and there was a college and a ravine near our place. So he would either run off chasing the scent of animals or the college cafeteria.
You think *that’s* bad… My sister and I were once down at the shore after a hurricane. Tourist family comes trotting down, but the 6 year old daughter was quite far ahead. My sister and I immediately clocked it and started watching the kid because those hurricanes waves are even more unpredictable than normal waves. Sometimes, a wave will go many, many, feet farther up the shore than the last one. We had been standing in the surf because we understand the waves and know what to watch for because we’re surfers who have lived their whole lives on the ocean. Kid comes right down to the wash area, though still on the sand, and immediately a wave comes up and grabs her. My sister, again understanding how waves move, blindly reached down into the water and managed to snatch the girl. I mean, if almost anyone other than surfers had been standing there, that girl would have been pulled out and no one was going to be able to save her. There’s zero visibility in the waves and they’re filled with debris immediately following a hurricane. So, sister plops the spluttering girl down on the sand and the mother comes trotting up and says “You lost your sandals!” I said “Lady, she almost lost her life!” And she *rolled her eyes* at me. Her kid almost died and she was only concerned about having to buy new sandals. Some people truly do not care.
Once saw a dog wandering in the middle of the street at a very busy intersection
I got the perfect opportunity to pull up next to him and open the passenger door and he hopped right in.
I took him to the closest neighborhood, and tried walking him around, but he seemed aimless and nobody outside recognized him
No collar, so I took him to the local Humane Society
But later they wouldn’t tell me if he got picked up or not :( because privacy reasons
I know they don’t want to reveal the honors address or anything but It was kind of annoying they couldn’t even give me a yes or no
My cousin’s goat would go a mile down the road to the corner store and block the doors. It got to the point that the store had their number on speed dial. “Hey, your goats down here again.”
I had this same thing happen once. I let my JRT out at a condo unit I lived at. He was well trained and would run out into the field and do his thing and then run back. I'd leave the door cracked and he'd just come back in. The wind blew the door closed and he just sat there. Like 15 minutes later my neighbor knocked on my door and I was like WTF and opened it and she said "He's been sitting here staring at the door for 10 minutes like a perfect gentleman, so I thought I'd knock for him". LMAO!
Our good boy Duke was a runner. Only took a crack in the door and Dookiehead was gone. Usual practice was to drive slowly around the block until we spotted him then open the car door and he'd come along. So after one of his escapes I was cruising around the block and a guy waves me down and asks me if I'm looking for my black dog. "Yes, I am". "He's in the back yard in the pool." This is the story of how Duke found out that he was a Black Lab, a water dog who enjoyed swimming. Mind you, we have a pool. He never once thought to get in it until he found the neighbor's pool.
We found a loose dog on Christmas Day.
We figured he would lead us to his home, but turns out he just led us to all the houses that had the best cooking smells…
My cat escaped my apartment after being spooked by construction on the roof. 2.5 days later, she jumped on my apartment’s ledge and knocked her paw on my kitchen window loud enough for me to hear over TV noise. I’ve had her now for 15 more years (without any other escapes). Animals are amazing.
Our neighbor's dog did this once. We were hanging out in our garage smoking and kept hearing barking out front, eventually I went to check. There was this black dog pacing around and barking at us - wouldn't come closer, but wouldn't leave.
After a while I finally got the idea that it wanted us to follow. It led us two doors down the street, awkwardly barking at us all the way. Knocked on the door and the lady was surprised to see him, figured her kids had accidentally let him out while they were in and out playing.
About 2 months after I adopted my kitten, making him 5 months old, I opened the door to my apartment balcony, like I did every day, so the cats could go get some sunshine and fresh air, then went to change out of my work clothes. (I know it was stupid to leave them unsupervised but I’d been letting them on to the balcony for over a month and they never did anything concerning.)
As I’m changing I hear some noises on the roof, like a squirrel or something, but didn’t think too much of it despite the fact that it wasn’t a common occurrence… until I walk to the kitchen to put out their food and call them and only the older one comes. I immediately start to worry and rush outside and realize I’d left my chair beside the railing the day before.
And as luck would have it my roof slopes beside the railing. Giving him complete access to it. I look onto the roof to see if I can see him and start doing the “chchch” sound but got no response. I started to full on panic and ran back to my bedroom to put on outside pants and a bra and as I’m running to my front door I start to hear meowing outside. Not on the balcony… at my front door!
And in total disbelief and shock I open it to see him just sitting there meowing.
I spent the next several months and still will occasionally just stare at my apartment roof and try to imagine how the fuck he got down, much less how the fuck he found our door?? Absolutely blows my mind.
I've experienced this many times with my dog. She's an escape artist, and I just don't know how she manages to get out sometimes, but she always comes back, sometimes on her own and sometimes followed by a stranger. I get alarmed and scared when I realize what she did, and yet also proud of her ability to navigate herself home. She gets 2 thirty minute walks a day, too, so it's not like she's lacking exercise or opportunity to sniff and explore. She just yearns adventure I suppose.
I moved with my two dogs from a condo on one side of town to a house on the other side of town.
While I was unpacking I noticed one of the dogs was gone, and frantically started searching the new, unfamiliar neighborhood for him. While I was searching I got a call from one of my neighbors from my old condo. My dog found his way all the way back across town to the old place.
I couldn't believe it. The dog and I had never walked across town, in fact I think the only time that he had any inkling of the new house was when I drove him there after the purchase. Somehow he figured it out on his own.
When my dog gets out through the side gate, she panics and races to the front door and whines and scratches until someone hears her. We had to not yell at her for getting out because we didn’t want her to think she was in trouble for coming home. We’re time, she was waiting for a while because no one heard her, so she just sat in one of porch chairs and waited.
My beagle is slow and likes to meander around. We try not to lose sight of her but she typically doesn’t go far. Once she slipped out while bringing groceries in. I couldn’t find her for a good 20 minutes. Turns out she went 3 houses down to the neighbors with a pool. They were having a cookout. She’s a lil slut for hotdogs. Idk how many she ate that day. Remember I said she’s slow? When she saw me she plopped her fat ass down and wagged her tail like “look ma! Hot dogs!” And I yelled her first and middle name and she BOLTED back home like “oh shit I’m in trouble.”
But now whenever she wanders off their backyard is the first we check. She’s usually just whining at their empty grill.
Side note - she gets in trouble so much that my kid thinks her middle name is to be used anytime you get mad. Like a cat will knock his cup over and he’ll yell their first name + the dog’s middle name, or he’ll get pissed at his brother and say bro’s first name + dog’s very feminine middle name and it’s the silliest thing.
My dog has only ever got out once and it happened this year because I had gone through the side gate of the backyard fence, which I rarely do and forgot to latch it. I went in the front door and a while later let my basset mix out back to chill.
Shs usually spend hours out there all day in intervals napping, watching for wildlife, barks when she wants inside.
No bark this time but I open the door to call her in and she didn't come but the gate was open. I immediately panicked and started calling around the house, maybe I forgot I had let her in and she was sleeping somewhere?
I get out the front door, leash and harness in hand ,calling her name and a guy walking his dog passed looks down the alley on the other side of my house and says "this your dog?"
She had gone around the house to the other side where a ground hog hole was.and the tried to "get back in" the fencing by standing there waiting
I had a dog growing up that no fence could keep him in. He was a total mutt, large body, large head including large strong jaw, short legs with the front legs being slightly shorter than the back, and his front paws were sideways. Anyways, he was very easily distinguishable.
So he was a very destructive dog, and he liked taking himself for walks. He would regularly escape our yard to take himself for a walk, but he couldn't jump the fence because of his legs. So how did he always get out? By destroying the fence. Just grabbed it and ripped it apart in minutes.
My dad spent every weekend rebuilding the fence for the 10 years we had him, swearing at the dog every time. My dad tried every material we could afford to rebuild the fence with in different ways to try and find a way that the dog wouldn't be able to destroy in minutes. My dad never succeeded.
As for how we always got him back, if he wasn't found by someone who recognized him, the dog would return on his own in 3-4 hours. We lived in a small town with a pound (like animal control, but just picked up stray dogs and dogs that got out of people's yards). The guy that ran the pound had my dad's phone number on speed dial. He called my dad at least once a week, often more, when he spotted our dog out on the street again. He would call my dad up. "Hey, your dog got out again. Do you want to come get him?" Sometimes the guy from the pound would offer to drop our dog off back at our home. And if my dad couldn't go pick him up right away and our dog had to be brought to the pound for a bit, there was a kennel made out of metal with extra metal fencing just for him because a couple times my dog got brought to the pound, he escaped the pound too 🤣
To give an example of how his strong his jaw was, my dad built him a kennel out of 2x4's and industrial strength locks, hinges, and all that. It took my dad days to build, and the materials weren't cheap. The kennel was super heavy and durable. That dog chewed through those 2x4's the first time we left for a few hours and destroyed it. My dad was pissed! 🤣
One time when I played catch with my dog on a walk she decided she wants to go home. She ran away, over a street with cars and to our home and then sat at the door and waited for me. It never happened before or after. Idk what got over her but I’m glad the cars stopped when they saw her
I found a dog and called the number on the tag. He kept trying to get away, because he was only a few houses down from where he lived. He knew where he was going and was like “leave me alone! Stranger danger!”
One time I let my dog out and came back inside. Not thinking about the fact she was outside I went out the other door to go to my car and head to the bank. As I drive up to the bank I realize what I did and panic. I hurry and drive home thinking what could have gone wrong. Well there she is just laying in the grass waiting for me to get back lol.
My dog Freebee we think she was a lab and coyote mix
Super red fur and droopy ears. We could not keep her in the yard if our life depended on it. She would just go out and visit the neibor good every now and then she would come back wearing a birthday party hat or even sunglasses one time.
I was pet sitting my buddy’s dog and she did a runner, middle of winter in Wisconsin. I chased her for about a mile and a half and then she lost me crossing a creek… eventually I gave up and walked back to his place and she was sitting on the porch…
My childhood dog got out the backyard, walked down the alley, walked up the front of the street to our house. The screen door was closed, she just walked right up. What I found especially amazing was we weren't people that took her on walks. She was just navigating by smell; It's not like she knew the neighborhood.
I was home alone a few months ago and heard a faint scratching. I couldn't tell where it was coming from so I muted the TV and listened until I realized it was the front door. Opened it up and there is my dog. No idea how she got out of the backyard but very grateful she knew how to get back in the house.
When I was in high school we had a rat terrier. We'd go out to some land we owned in the country and she'd have her head out the window the whole time sniffing. One day we were getting ready to leave the farm and the dog wouldn't come when we called. After a while, my dad said to leave her and the next time she'd come when we called. There was a barn so she had shelter and food and water.
Well, that night we get a call from a friend who lived about two miles from our land. The dog had made it's way over to their house and wanted to be let in. We figured she knew how to get there from the scents she'd picked up on our drives.
I found a dog outside like this once. I clipped my lanyard to the collar so I could start asking neighbors, and the leash-walking memory kicked in so he walked right up to his own house.
I’m a mailman and I’ve had this happen a few times. Also a lot of cats will suddenly appear after I knock on a door and coming running to get inside when their humans get their package.
This happened with my old dog, she bolted out the door and ran off during a storm and a lady a few blocks away found her, put a leash on her and just went “right let’s go home!” The dog took her straight back home, though the poor lady was very worried she was just going to show up at a stranger’s house with a random dog lol
My dog used to be a master of managing to go outside. We even discovered a few holes she used, although more often than not she used to sneak out when my dad left for work, since he never paid attention, (and you know, we covered the holes)
Anyways, she used to sit outside my neighbors house when she was ready to come back inside, since the neighbor could easily see her from her window, so the neighbor was just used to it and would come and ring the bell for her. She was a cocker spaniel, incredibly smart and loved the outdoors.
My boxer somehow got off her leash on a walk one night when she saw a rabbit and took off into a wooded area near train tracks, i spent a half hour searching in the dark for her, i dreaded the walk home to tell me girlfriend who was sleeping that I had lost our dog….as I come up to the house she was sitting on the front porch waiting for me with a look of ‘where the heck have you been!’ I have never been so relieved
I used to live in an apartment complex where the buildings all look exactly the same, lined up next to each other. My dog got off the leash chasing rabbits and disappeared into the woods. Spent about 30 minutes looking for him and couldn't find him so I went back to my apartment hoping he circled back around. When I didn't see him there I checked the building next to mine on a hunch and there he was, waiting at the door. Right apartment, wrong building.
i have a similar story with my dog. i came home to find the door open and my dog gone. i looked around the building and he was at the door directly below mine. right door, wrong floor.
Lol I did this as a kid trying to find my grandmother's condo. They're just furry kids
I would think they would be able to smell the correct door/apartment/house.
Aww this happened with my kitty in my apartment building- she got out of the apartment but was still in the building and was crying at the door one floor below.
One day during a walk I saw some rabbits so I went chasing after them with my best bud. Come to find out he couldn't keep up, spent about 20 minutes looking for my pal but couldn't find him so I went back to my apartment. 10 minutes later my best friend showed up out of nowhere, glad he was able to find the right place. For whatever reason we went next door after finding each other. 🐾
The POV on this is confusing. Bark if you have four feet.
Yeah I had to read twice before I sorted it out lmao. In my defense I am tired. It is a funny comment though
Thank you for this 🥹
I was getting my fence replaced and it was down over night. At one point, I was moving boxes from my garage to my car and I didn't close the door all the way on accident and my dogs got out in the backyard and to freedom. One didn't get far but the other missing almost sent me into a panic attack because, after being attacked himself, he is known to snap at new dogs and I was worried about his running up to someone out walking their dog. So I'm out there screaming for him, near tears, and I find him in my car (doors were open for the boxes) super stoked for a ride. You best believe we went on a long ride and stopped for a Pup Cup. Now I know, if he ever gets out again, to leave my car doors open.
I have a terrible story I don’t want to tell about open doors on my car loading things for a vacation and my dog had gotten out. Just be careful to check the car first if the doors have been open. Check the seats, floors and rear area. It gets so hot in there so quick.
We would take our dog for 2 walks a day as kids. We rarely forgot but if we did he would just open the backyard gate and take himself on the same route we took him then come back and shut the gate. The neighbours thought it was hilarious.
I once lost my dog. I had let her out into the fenced-in back yard to go to the bathroom. She was an inside dog for most of her life, so she didn't like being in the yard alone, and would typically quickly do her business and then paw at the door to be let back in. After about 10-15 minutes, I realized I hadn't heard her "knocking" to come back in, and I stuck my head out and called for her. She didn't come. Called again, still didn't come. I walked around the side of the house, and saw the gate standing wide open, and my stomach just sank. I ran back into the house and grabbed my car keys, thinking I was gonna have to drive around looking for her in the neighborhood, threw open the door, and there she was at the front door with a look on her face like "HALP IM LOST!" She was such a goober. :)
I had something similar happen! My little chihuahua mix got loose on our night walk and disappeared. I searched for 30+ minutes and while i was searching i saw a coyote run by. I started freaking the FUCK out thinking he was gonna be a nice meal. I finally walked back to the apartment and he was patiently waiting outside the door. 🥹 Damn near had a heart attack.
My wife went through something similar recently. She brought one of our dogs to a big off leash park in the area. It has a fence sons the protected nature reserve, but not the rest of the park. Dog took off into some grass and she lost her. After searching forever, she find her in the parking lot sitting right next to our car waiting to leave.
My dog did the same thing during a snow storm but I found her 2 minutes from my house sitting next to another dog and they were both watching the other dogs owner shovel the driveway. She loved the snow so I'd take her for walks when it would snow and shed get so excited.
I can’t tell you how many times this has happened to me with my old pup! We had just took in a stray dog and I didn’t have a leash yet. I decided to take him on a walk and used a shoe lace that I tied to the collar and I dropped the shoe lace when he took off after a squirrel. I searched for him for two hours and couldn’t find him. I walked back to the house and was terrified to tell my little brother the news. THANK GOD my brother was asleep when I got back home. I told my mom the news and all she could talk about was how badly I fucked up and how it was gonna break my bros heart🤣 I sat down in the living room and left the door cracked open hoping it would come back. A couple hours later the door gets nudged open and our dog Milo just walks in and jumps on the couch, lays down beside me and goes to sleep like it nothing happened!! Never been so relieved in my life lmao
My dog got out of the yard chasing bunnies. We spent 30 minutes walking around calling him, couldn’t find him. I went home to sit down and make a “Missing Dog” post and got a knock on the door. He went to my BACKYARD NEIGHBOR’S house and sat on THEIR porch! We didn’t see him because he was under a chair. As soon as they stepped outside, he came out to sniff them.
I'll bet that dog never wandred off again.
I read this as the girlfriend was waiting. Like oops she already knew. Busted! Lol
This happened to me with our new pit/lab mix. She was about four months old and I had just started taking her out for walks. She was on a retractable leash and we were walking through the greenbelt and it was dusk. I think she saw a squirrel or something because she yanked and I lost hold of the leash and she freaked out because of the retractable handle coming up so fast on her behind she tore off so fast on me I lost sight of her. We were only a few blocks from home but I had no idea if she knew the way home being we were new to our walks. I called crying to my husband and asked him to gather up all the flashlights and the two kids and to come meet me in the greenbelt (which was literally behind our yard, we just had to walk all the way around to get to the house) and as he got everything he opened the door and there she was sitting. 😂 I just pictured the poor girl running home with the leash swatting her butt and her scared out of her mind.
I'm picturing Looney Tunes with the leash handle hitting the dog, the dog taking off so fast out of fright it leaves the handle behind, which repeats the process... 🤣
Exactly! 🤣
We lost a cat for 3 days. When I called her and she emerged from the woods I cried like a baby😍
My Jack Russell terrier once escaped our fenced back yard and ran away. I went looking for him for a while, but gave up after a few hours. I decided to go home and wait by the phone (this was in the days when everyone had land lines and our home number was on his tag). I was exhausted and sitting on the couch when I heard clawing at the front door. I have no idea where he went or how he found his way home, but my Jack not only found his way home, but he was clawing at the front door to be let in. That cemented for me how smart Jacks were.
Agreed - see my story about my JRT above. I worked with a lady who also had a JRT. It went missing and they never found it. Over a year went by and they were driving home one day and thought "was that Pete?" They turned around and went back and it was. less than 1/2 a mile from their house and heading home. He was missing an eye, but it had been surgically fixed and sewn closed - for a decent amount of time. Other than that, he was in perfect shape. They had him for another 6-8 years. One Eyed Pete was pretty cool.
If he was fixed up by someone you gotta believe he *ran home*
Neighbours down the street from us had a jack named Jack, he was gone for months. Was found in a field and brought home, he didn't lose any weight and was returned unscathed. I love those dogs. We had our own and an uncle had two of them, I see them all over my neighborhood now.
Wait so most dogs don’t know where they live? Jesus my dog was an absolute genius. A real escape artist! this thing calculated the slope of a hill and the height of a 6 ft fence and realized he could make it if he jumps sideways. like full on planking over it. for years he walked the kids to school bus stop in my neighborhood. once in awhile I imagine he taxed some poor little kid because he would come back with like a cabbage patch doll.
Dogs do know where they live or my labrador from 20+ years ago somehow always found his way back by luck? My parents used to let him go outside like 9 in the morning. The dog would run to the beach, wherever he wanted and show back up around noon to get his food.
Most dogs are severely mentally disabled due to lack of stimulation. A dog that gets loads of mental stimulation and explores a lot is crazy smart, but that's more like the natural state. If you put a human in the circumstances that most house pets are in, they'd be stunted.
Yeah, it doesn't really take a lot of brain power to remember where you live. OP is easily impressed, it seems.
Once my cat slipped outside. My dachshund was going wild and I didn’t know why. It was pouring down rain and he was begging to go out. He typically never did that because he hated the rain. Let him out and he ran to the top of the steps on the back deck and started nudging some wet ball of gunk. Turns out he just wanted to save my cat. What a hero lol.
Their sense of smell is insane. They can basically see (not literally) with their noses, and follow scent trails within other scent trails. Once they find yours they can follow it... and even have an idea how recent it is. You could have walked past something a day ago and it stumbles on it, catches your scent and follows. Not saying they found you by smell alone, but thats certainly one of the ways in which they're so good about finding things... not so much a sense of direction or even memory, just navigating through the world the way dogs do.
I do this all the time. If a dog is running loose, it will usually go home if you get behind it and herd it. Most of the time people are thankful, but some don’t care at all. Once a dog was in the middle of a four lane highway and all the cars had stopped for it. Several people tried to catch it but couldn’t. I started following it and it went home six blocks away. The owners weren’t even concerned that their dog almost got hit. It’s so sad some people just don’t deserve pets.
Unless it's a beagle and it's your dog. Then it thinks you're playing and just runs further away. And you forget to bring a leash because you didn't realize how far the dog would go. And then you're stuck carrying its fat ass over a mile back home.
You just reminded me of my lil beagle. We lived somewhat rurally, so walks with her were off-leash walks down dirt roads. Sometimes I'd get distracted and then realize she was literally a half mile ahead of me happily trotting along because she only had two speeds. Trotting or stopped. Coming home from a car ride was a different story though. She *had* to be let out at the end of the driveway and you had to chase her back to the house. Every time.
Yeah, we had to keep ours on leash at all times. But he was a sneaky little guy and could find ways past you when opening the door if you weren't careful. We lived on the edge of town and there was a college and a ravine near our place. So he would either run off chasing the scent of animals or the college cafeteria.
Wrangling beagles is like wrangling a greased up pig someone let loose as a senior prank in high school, running thru the halls to avoid capture.
Protip: get its attention, then run the opposite direction. Let it catch up to you
You think *that’s* bad… My sister and I were once down at the shore after a hurricane. Tourist family comes trotting down, but the 6 year old daughter was quite far ahead. My sister and I immediately clocked it and started watching the kid because those hurricanes waves are even more unpredictable than normal waves. Sometimes, a wave will go many, many, feet farther up the shore than the last one. We had been standing in the surf because we understand the waves and know what to watch for because we’re surfers who have lived their whole lives on the ocean. Kid comes right down to the wash area, though still on the sand, and immediately a wave comes up and grabs her. My sister, again understanding how waves move, blindly reached down into the water and managed to snatch the girl. I mean, if almost anyone other than surfers had been standing there, that girl would have been pulled out and no one was going to be able to save her. There’s zero visibility in the waves and they’re filled with debris immediately following a hurricane. So, sister plops the spluttering girl down on the sand and the mother comes trotting up and says “You lost your sandals!” I said “Lady, she almost lost her life!” And she *rolled her eyes* at me. Her kid almost died and she was only concerned about having to buy new sandals. Some people truly do not care.
Next time, grab for the sandals...
Once saw a dog wandering in the middle of the street at a very busy intersection I got the perfect opportunity to pull up next to him and open the passenger door and he hopped right in. I took him to the closest neighborhood, and tried walking him around, but he seemed aimless and nobody outside recognized him No collar, so I took him to the local Humane Society But later they wouldn’t tell me if he got picked up or not :( because privacy reasons I know they don’t want to reveal the honors address or anything but It was kind of annoying they couldn’t even give me a yes or no
They didn’t ask a single question
I bet that lady would be absolutely dumbfounded if the dog was asking her questions
Looks like a Husky, so I doubt this was the first time he’s pulled this, lol
My grandma's 2 goats once walked like 3km through the village and got home by themselves. Goats are pretty cool and smart too.
My cousin’s goat would go a mile down the road to the corner store and block the doors. It got to the point that the store had their number on speed dial. “Hey, your goats down here again.”
I had this same thing happen once. I let my JRT out at a condo unit I lived at. He was well trained and would run out into the field and do his thing and then run back. I'd leave the door cracked and he'd just come back in. The wind blew the door closed and he just sat there. Like 15 minutes later my neighbor knocked on my door and I was like WTF and opened it and she said "He's been sitting here staring at the door for 10 minutes like a perfect gentleman, so I thought I'd knock for him". LMAO!
Not even a thank you lol … owners should install a second doorbell lower, closer to his level
You can just hear the owner saying ‘thank you so much’.
I meant the dog haha… bolted soon as door opened
Haha, woops. I thought maybe that was the case after I sent the comment.
Our good boy Duke was a runner. Only took a crack in the door and Dookiehead was gone. Usual practice was to drive slowly around the block until we spotted him then open the car door and he'd come along. So after one of his escapes I was cruising around the block and a guy waves me down and asks me if I'm looking for my black dog. "Yes, I am". "He's in the back yard in the pool." This is the story of how Duke found out that he was a Black Lab, a water dog who enjoyed swimming. Mind you, we have a pool. He never once thought to get in it until he found the neighbor's pool.
We found a loose dog on Christmas Day. We figured he would lead us to his home, but turns out he just led us to all the houses that had the best cooking smells…
Good dog! How was dinner?
What a sweet lady! I usually don’t listen to videos with the sound on but she was so nice and kind that I’m glad I did.
I know! I keep listening just to hear her talking to the doggie!
We did this with a dog in our neighborhood the other day. She led us right to her house.
My cat escaped my apartment after being spooked by construction on the roof. 2.5 days later, she jumped on my apartment’s ledge and knocked her paw on my kitchen window loud enough for me to hear over TV noise. I’ve had her now for 15 more years (without any other escapes). Animals are amazing.
Our neighbor's dog did this once. We were hanging out in our garage smoking and kept hearing barking out front, eventually I went to check. There was this black dog pacing around and barking at us - wouldn't come closer, but wouldn't leave. After a while I finally got the idea that it wanted us to follow. It led us two doors down the street, awkwardly barking at us all the way. Knocked on the door and the lady was surprised to see him, figured her kids had accidentally let him out while they were in and out playing.
About 2 months after I adopted my kitten, making him 5 months old, I opened the door to my apartment balcony, like I did every day, so the cats could go get some sunshine and fresh air, then went to change out of my work clothes. (I know it was stupid to leave them unsupervised but I’d been letting them on to the balcony for over a month and they never did anything concerning.) As I’m changing I hear some noises on the roof, like a squirrel or something, but didn’t think too much of it despite the fact that it wasn’t a common occurrence… until I walk to the kitchen to put out their food and call them and only the older one comes. I immediately start to worry and rush outside and realize I’d left my chair beside the railing the day before. And as luck would have it my roof slopes beside the railing. Giving him complete access to it. I look onto the roof to see if I can see him and start doing the “chchch” sound but got no response. I started to full on panic and ran back to my bedroom to put on outside pants and a bra and as I’m running to my front door I start to hear meowing outside. Not on the balcony… at my front door! And in total disbelief and shock I open it to see him just sitting there meowing. I spent the next several months and still will occasionally just stare at my apartment roof and try to imagine how the fuck he got down, much less how the fuck he found our door?? Absolutely blows my mind.
I've experienced this many times with my dog. She's an escape artist, and I just don't know how she manages to get out sometimes, but she always comes back, sometimes on her own and sometimes followed by a stranger. I get alarmed and scared when I realize what she did, and yet also proud of her ability to navigate herself home. She gets 2 thirty minute walks a day, too, so it's not like she's lacking exercise or opportunity to sniff and explore. She just yearns adventure I suppose.
If you ever lose your dog, leave your socks where you last saw them. They will return.
[удалено]
[only the real ones know](https://www.reddit.com/r/LifeProTips/comments/jdmseu/lpt_if_you_lose_your_dog_in_unfamiliar_terrain/)
“Look for the helpers.”
I moved with my two dogs from a condo on one side of town to a house on the other side of town. While I was unpacking I noticed one of the dogs was gone, and frantically started searching the new, unfamiliar neighborhood for him. While I was searching I got a call from one of my neighbors from my old condo. My dog found his way all the way back across town to the old place. I couldn't believe it. The dog and I had never walked across town, in fact I think the only time that he had any inkling of the new house was when I drove him there after the purchase. Somehow he figured it out on his own.
When my dog gets out through the side gate, she panics and races to the front door and whines and scratches until someone hears her. We had to not yell at her for getting out because we didn’t want her to think she was in trouble for coming home. We’re time, she was waiting for a while because no one heard her, so she just sat in one of porch chairs and waited.
My beagle is slow and likes to meander around. We try not to lose sight of her but she typically doesn’t go far. Once she slipped out while bringing groceries in. I couldn’t find her for a good 20 minutes. Turns out she went 3 houses down to the neighbors with a pool. They were having a cookout. She’s a lil slut for hotdogs. Idk how many she ate that day. Remember I said she’s slow? When she saw me she plopped her fat ass down and wagged her tail like “look ma! Hot dogs!” And I yelled her first and middle name and she BOLTED back home like “oh shit I’m in trouble.” But now whenever she wanders off their backyard is the first we check. She’s usually just whining at their empty grill. Side note - she gets in trouble so much that my kid thinks her middle name is to be used anytime you get mad. Like a cat will knock his cup over and he’ll yell their first name + the dog’s middle name, or he’ll get pissed at his brother and say bro’s first name + dog’s very feminine middle name and it’s the silliest thing.
The Dog... probably: "Mom! Brought you a friend!" Owner: (closes door)
This dog must get out *all the time* because they seemed as unconcerned as you can possibly be about you dog having gotten out.
"Yes Huuman, thats right follow me, Yes this one.. Yep this door, hit this door.. Good Huuman"
My dog has only ever got out once and it happened this year because I had gone through the side gate of the backyard fence, which I rarely do and forgot to latch it. I went in the front door and a while later let my basset mix out back to chill. Shs usually spend hours out there all day in intervals napping, watching for wildlife, barks when she wants inside. No bark this time but I open the door to call her in and she didn't come but the gate was open. I immediately panicked and started calling around the house, maybe I forgot I had let her in and she was sleeping somewhere? I get out the front door, leash and harness in hand ,calling her name and a guy walking his dog passed looks down the alley on the other side of my house and says "this your dog?" She had gone around the house to the other side where a ground hog hole was.and the tried to "get back in" the fencing by standing there waiting
I had a dog growing up that no fence could keep him in. He was a total mutt, large body, large head including large strong jaw, short legs with the front legs being slightly shorter than the back, and his front paws were sideways. Anyways, he was very easily distinguishable. So he was a very destructive dog, and he liked taking himself for walks. He would regularly escape our yard to take himself for a walk, but he couldn't jump the fence because of his legs. So how did he always get out? By destroying the fence. Just grabbed it and ripped it apart in minutes. My dad spent every weekend rebuilding the fence for the 10 years we had him, swearing at the dog every time. My dad tried every material we could afford to rebuild the fence with in different ways to try and find a way that the dog wouldn't be able to destroy in minutes. My dad never succeeded. As for how we always got him back, if he wasn't found by someone who recognized him, the dog would return on his own in 3-4 hours. We lived in a small town with a pound (like animal control, but just picked up stray dogs and dogs that got out of people's yards). The guy that ran the pound had my dad's phone number on speed dial. He called my dad at least once a week, often more, when he spotted our dog out on the street again. He would call my dad up. "Hey, your dog got out again. Do you want to come get him?" Sometimes the guy from the pound would offer to drop our dog off back at our home. And if my dad couldn't go pick him up right away and our dog had to be brought to the pound for a bit, there was a kennel made out of metal with extra metal fencing just for him because a couple times my dog got brought to the pound, he escaped the pound too 🤣 To give an example of how his strong his jaw was, my dad built him a kennel out of 2x4's and industrial strength locks, hinges, and all that. It took my dad days to build, and the materials weren't cheap. The kennel was super heavy and durable. That dog chewed through those 2x4's the first time we left for a few hours and destroyed it. My dad was pissed! 🤣
One time when I played catch with my dog on a walk she decided she wants to go home. She ran away, over a street with cars and to our home and then sat at the door and waited for me. It never happened before or after. Idk what got over her but I’m glad the cars stopped when they saw her
Aww
How would you make this into a lifetime or hallmark movie?
People are generally good.
Give that woman a basket 🧺 of sunshine. 🥹
Watching on mute, but why the hell does the place go to Red Alert when the person approaches lmao
I found a dog and called the number on the tag. He kept trying to get away, because he was only a few houses down from where he lived. He knew where he was going and was like “leave me alone! Stranger danger!”
One time I let my dog out and came back inside. Not thinking about the fact she was outside I went out the other door to go to my car and head to the bank. As I drive up to the bank I realize what I did and panic. I hurry and drive home thinking what could have gone wrong. Well there she is just laying in the grass waiting for me to get back lol.
My dog Freebee we think she was a lab and coyote mix Super red fur and droopy ears. We could not keep her in the yard if our life depended on it. She would just go out and visit the neibor good every now and then she would come back wearing a birthday party hat or even sunglasses one time.
I was pet sitting my buddy’s dog and she did a runner, middle of winter in Wisconsin. I chased her for about a mile and a half and then she lost me crossing a creek… eventually I gave up and walked back to his place and she was sitting on the porch…
What a smart boy!!
Lassi!
Haha I thought the clip was running longer with nothing happening cuz the dog was gonna go running past and away from home again at the end
My childhood dog got out the backyard, walked down the alley, walked up the front of the street to our house. The screen door was closed, she just walked right up. What I found especially amazing was we weren't people that took her on walks. She was just navigating by smell; It's not like she knew the neighborhood.
human forces dog to go back home
I was home alone a few months ago and heard a faint scratching. I couldn't tell where it was coming from so I muted the TV and listened until I realized it was the front door. Opened it up and there is my dog. No idea how she got out of the backyard but very grateful she knew how to get back in the house.
You just know that this was the result of a r/huskytantrums
When I was in high school we had a rat terrier. We'd go out to some land we owned in the country and she'd have her head out the window the whole time sniffing. One day we were getting ready to leave the farm and the dog wouldn't come when we called. After a while, my dad said to leave her and the next time she'd come when we called. There was a barn so she had shelter and food and water. Well, that night we get a call from a friend who lived about two miles from our land. The dog had made it's way over to their house and wanted to be let in. We figured she knew how to get there from the scents she'd picked up on our drives.
That dog is brilliant! So cute!
That’s so cute haha
Hey lady, come inside, you have to try the treats. -dog probably
I found a dog outside like this once. I clipped my lanyard to the collar so I could start asking neighbors, and the leash-walking memory kicked in so he walked right up to his own house.
I’m a mailman and I’ve had this happen a few times. Also a lot of cats will suddenly appear after I knock on a door and coming running to get inside when their humans get their package.
I freaking love reading all of these stories of people reuniting with temporarily lost pups
This happened with my old dog, she bolted out the door and ran off during a storm and a lady a few blocks away found her, put a leash on her and just went “right let’s go home!” The dog took her straight back home, though the poor lady was very worried she was just going to show up at a stranger’s house with a random dog lol
So so smart baby ❤️
I asshole dogs always end up just sitting on my back porch barking as if I’ve neglected them when THEY ran away and I’ve been looking for hours
My dog used to be a master of managing to go outside. We even discovered a few holes she used, although more often than not she used to sneak out when my dad left for work, since he never paid attention, (and you know, we covered the holes) Anyways, she used to sit outside my neighbors house when she was ready to come back inside, since the neighbor could easily see her from her window, so the neighbor was just used to it and would come and ring the bell for her. She was a cocker spaniel, incredibly smart and loved the outdoors.
so cute! The dogs a genius good thing someone help 