I had no choice but to build a barricade for Rocky. He watched me piecemeal it together. I used sharp metal objects. Re-Bar. I used cactus. I used sideways ladders, glass, chains, rope, bamboo, and precariously balanced heavy furniture. I wondered what he was thinking. It was my very first time attempting to quarantine this breed of animal. I have built numerous barricades for dogs in the past. I’m a bit of a specialist. If you build a barricade for a lap dog, they will jump straight up in the air, over and over until they get a whiff of what is on the other side. If the ground provides, they may try to dig under the trap. They may also try to scratch the barricade down, risking their little teeny lives in the process. Pretty easy doings. Labs and retrievers will whine, bark, and do a little pacing during their initial time behind bars. There is no question that they will try to prop their front legs up and over the barricade and stand as erect as is possible. If part of the barricade gets loose and/or moves, it is likely to spook them into remission. Leave them with their Bippie(s) and you have no worries. Australian Shepherds will sit in the opposite corner as it is being built, and understand exactly what is going on. With one eye open, they will also pay close attention to how it is being constructed. If they determine ahead of time that their length of time behind the barricade is set to be longer than they care to tolerate, they are likely to wait until the Alpha is away and pick apart the barrier like a game of Jenga.
Rocky, the 40 lb Staffordshire Bull Terrier took an entirely different approach. I left the little fucker alone for one measly hour. When I got back to the hotel, not only was Rocky MIA, I couldn’t even find half of the items used to make up his booby trap. We’re gonna need a bigger
