Angus jumped the fence again last night.

This has been an ongoing problem since he’s been an adult. It’s a five-foot fence, and I can’t afford to replace it with a taller one. Not that he couldn’t clear a taller one anyway; he sails over the current fence like it’s not even there. I have to keep him chained up in the back yard, except I let him off when I’m in the kitchen so he can have a break. He usually only leaves when I’m not paying attention to him.

Last night he snuck out even though I was right there in the front room. He usually comes right home when I call him, and then I let him have it. Haven’t been able to break him of it, and one of these days, he’s not going to come home. A black dog doesn’t have much chance on a dark road at night.

Last night, he didn’t come when I called. I drove the neighborhood and couldn’t find him. About a half hour after I noticed he was gone, he came slithering back in. He was soaking wet, so I figure he was either rolling in something, or was tied up with someone’s bitch and got the hose turned on him. He’s lucky he didn’t get shot.

I’ve tried everything to deal with this—I have a kennel that he just digs or jumps out of, and he’s broken more chains than I can count. I can’t keep him chained all the time. It’s not fair to the dog and I don’t want piles of dog shit all over my back porch.

I run him a mile or two every day, but that doesn’t seem to wear him out enough to keep him home. I think that has just kept him in the physical condition he needs to visit the pig farm a mile away.

So this morning, I bought a shock collar. I think it’s the only solution. I’ll have to lurk where he can’t see me and let him have it as he’s going over the fence. It will also come in handy for distance training. He gets a little too wound up when we’re working cattle, and this will let me reach out and get his attention. And I can finally do something about the chasing trucks thing at Cowboy’s.

I’ve wanted one for a while, but they’re so expensive. Last night was the last straw though. I figured I either had to dump some money into the problem, or let him get killed. He may piss me off to no end sometimes, but I don’t particularly want him dead.