One of the most important things to learn about a Bearded Collie is they are not happy being confined to the backyard for hours at a time. If they have nothing to do or become bored, they will find their own excitement, which may mean escaping the yard. They are known escape artists, and when determined, they will make their way down the street or wherever else suits their fancy. Bearded Collies are not content to be left with nothing to do, and if you put them in the backyard for long periods, they will find a way to escape.

How do you prevent your escape artist from leaving the yard? What you will learn is not to leave a Beardie for long periods without work to do. He will become bored, and when he becomes bored, one of the things he will do is exercise his escape artist tactics and get out of the backyard to wander through the neighborhood. The easiest way to prevent this from happening is not to put him in the yard alone and without activities. Instead of putting the dog in the yard for his exercise time, go outside with him and plan some activities he enjoys. These dogs love the challenge of agility trials, so when they are very young puppies, enroll them in agility training, and learn how to work the different types of activities with your dog.

Some people may say the answer to preventing escape is to block all means such as building a fence too high for your dog to jump over or building some kind of barricade so he can't dig and crawl underneath, but the truth is, if he wants to escape, he is going to escape. The trick is not to erect a structure to prevent him from escaping, but to provide enough activity for him that he doesn't become bored. By nature, the Bearded Collie is a working dog, so he has to have something to do such as herding or watching the other animals in the house. They also need a great deal of exercise, and that is not something they can accomplish when confined to the back yard for a long time.

Bearded Collies love to play, so you can keep your dog occupied by playing with him outside while he exercises. Games such as fetching the ball or the stick, or chasing him around the yard are likely to give him plenty of exercise while he enjoys spending time with his human family. If you live on a farm, you can teach him to heard even if you don't have enough animals to necessitate it. Your dog will be working, and when he is working, he is happy.

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