Dogs down rabbit holes

[nigelschristmasham]

My dp and I just spent two panicked hours trying to dig our jack Russell out of a rabbit hole with our bare hands, in the middle of a down pour. Thankfully she is fine, if covered in scratches and a bit in shock. I am currently having a stiff drink because I was terrified that we would never see her again. She has never been down a hole before and I hope this will have put her off doing so in future (through she is a lunatic so we will be being extra careful going forwards)
We could hear her whimpering, and a rabbit going mad, under ground but it took us ages to dig down to her (too far from anywhere to even go and get a shovel).
I was wondering-what would people do in this situation if they were unable to dig the dog out themselves? Would the fire brigade or RSPCA attend or are you on your own with it?

I don't own a terrier but I use a Julius K9 harness which has a handle on its back, might be useful to pull her back? Also you need a long line so you can pull her out again. Luckily my big daft Akita wouldn't fit down a rabbit hole!

Our friends JRT disappeared under a beach hut near us.... we couldn't get to her or dig due to the hut. Just had to wait it out - three hours......

That's a good tip Thankyou shambolic, will do that.
I've just ordered her a 100 m long line to come tomorrow. She will hate it but I'd sooner that than go through yesterday again!
It must have affected her somehow as she usually sleeps buried under the cover or the blanket on her bed. She kept her face out at all times last night and very cuddly today.

National farmers union insurance used to do emergency cover for digging your dog out. I have an elderly patterdale who is bloody fast when she wants to be and still have to keep her on a lead most of the time if there’s holes, birds, rabbits, small dogs, pushchairs, bikes, runners, the list goes on. She does understand recall but the reward just doesn’t compete with the chase.

There’s a saying, “you can’t train the terrier out of the terrier!”

I know. I think I was lulled into a false send of security with our first JRT who is not terrier like at all and very biddable (and a bit of a coward so wouldn't dare go down a hole, or get his feet wet, or say boo to a spider even) . But our hole dweller is JRT to the core, except on the tiny side physically (but typically believes she is a huge Dog and acts like it).
The long line has just arrived. She is going to hate it
And I am going to spend the next two hours untangling her from trees in the wood aren't I?

How terrifying for you, bloody dogs. ☹ the long line sounds like a good idea. Although I look like an idiot talking to the dog when he goes the opposite way around a tree or similar.
'Dog, I'm not walking around the tree to You, you have to come to me
Dog sniffs own arse
'Sakes Dog, do as your told'
Dog carries on sniffing own arse
'Fine I'll come to you, but this is the last time'
It's never the last time😂😂

My cousins puppy ran off (usually behaved, good recall) and never came back. They think it went down a hole as they were on a fell, but couldn't find the hole/hear the dog. They searched for days 😶

Definitely the right thing to do with getting a longline. Once met a couple whose dog had gone down a rabbit hole never to be seen again. Must have been horrible for you, hope she doesn’t manage a repeat episode thanks to the longline!

The long line was a bit of a nightmare. Lots of untangling to be done. But still better than digging a frightened pup out of a hole so...I perhaps went too long with it at 100 meters

Fire brigade us for emergencies not dog rescue!

Unfortunately this is why my two terriers are rarely off lead. I'm sure they'd love to be but have had too many near misses in the past with dogs vanishing in holes and see too many lost posters to feel confident letting my two off. Our old JRT once legged it into the forest after a deer and we searched for hours. My dad made one last ditched walk through the woods and happened to find her stuck to a tree by her collar. Shudder to think of he hadn't found her 😳

Is there a benefit to using a long line over a retractable lead? I know they're good for training but having never used one would imagine they'd be a faff on a walk. I use long extendable leads with both my terriers for our off road walks (short leads for pavement) and they work well.

I just got the long line because it was longer than the longest extendable lead I saw. But it was a total faff so expandable lead it will be next. Will keep the long line however as when it's warmer she can be tethered to a tree in our communal orchard thingy, and play with the other dog whilst I work (I work from home a lot and sit in the orchard when it's hot enough) but there is no gate to it and it's near to the lane, so it was always a bit of a test of nerves for me. 100 m of lead will allow her to run around fine without giving me a heart attack every time she gets near the edge of the road.
Guess it would also be good for range if you were exercising the Dog in a park or a field or something, but near any trees they can get tangled around it wasn't ideal