Escape artist

Over the past week, an unfortunate pattern has developed.  Scout, the Great Pyrenees LGD who watched over the goats and chickens learned about freedom.  The first time it happened was over Memorial weekend when I was away visiting my parents overnight.  Somehow, he (and possibly the goats) got the gate open and escaped.  Our next door neighbor found 5 goats, a dog and a donkey walking down the road.  Thank goodness for good neighbors.  He managed to get them all back up the hill and into the fence.  I owe him for that one. 

The gate was triple latched with a metal clasp, a hook, and a wire at the bottom.  The next day, he was out again. This time the goats and donkey stayed inside.  We wired up the gate even tighter, thinking that would do the trick.  The next day, I was there working in the yard when my other neighbor drove into the driveway.  She said a big white dog she had never seen before was in her yard and it might be mine.  I went to see, and sure enough, it was Scout.  This time I had to load him up in the gator to get him home.  This gentle giant of a 120+ pound boy will not lead on a leash, so I lifted him up one end at a time onto the gator seat, and held his head while I drove.  I decided to try putting him in the fenced area with the Ram and the other dog, Bailey.  It seemed like a good idea at the time. 

By that evening, he was out again.  He managed to break the wire ties that were holding the top of the gate closed and squeezed. The bottom of the gate was held by a metal clasp, so he had to squeeze through the small gap.  He was went back with the goats for the night. 

The next morning, he came running down the drive to greet me.  The gate was closed tight, but there was evidence of white fur on the top of the fence where he climbed over.

I found a small piece of fencing and tied it tot he corner where he got out, thinking that would do the trick.

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Today, he was out again.  This time he climbed over the fence in a different spot.  I took him back up the hill and put him in with the sheep. 

This was a much larger area, and he seemed quite content at first.  I thought maybe he was getting out because he was bored and didn't have enough room to roam in the small goat yard.  The sheep area is much larger with a lot of room to explore, and with 23 sheep to watch over, I thought this should keep him busy.  This fence is partially enclosed with goat panel, and has added sections of grassy areas with electrified temporary fencing called polywire. 

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This evening, while cooking out over a the fire, a big white ghostly figure appeared looking for a handout.  I don't know how he did it yet, but he was out again.  It seems that no matter what we do, he finds a new way to escape. 

Tonight he is back in with the ram and the other dog.  Their fence is completely enclosed with goat panel, and there are no obvious areas where he could climb over it.  The gate was secured tightly with metal clips from top to bottom.  We'll see what happens tomorrow.  At this point, I'm getting desperate.  Besides building an 8 foot fence, I don't know what else to do to keep him in.  If anyone has ideas, I'd love to hear them. 

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