tied up or free?

Question
Hi there! I am a 24 year old Spanish girl and I live in a lovely little Greek island. I have a male Golden Retriever just six months old. He is the love of my life, sweet, clever, obedient. I have a really big garden and I always have him free in there with the house door open should he like to come in. However, yesterday he run away for the first time altough he came back in 20 minutes. I got mad and hit him (which I strongly regret now). This morning, when I woke up my boyfriend had tied him up, I went to free him to play in the garden and he tried to leave again. Afterwards I tied him up again for punishment. What can I do for him to learn not to leave alone? In the island not everyone loves dogs as much as I do and many of them are poisoned every year, so it is not safe for him to wander alone. On the other hand, I want to have a happy dog I hate having him imprisoned with a rope. I cannot walk him all day long either. Thanks for helping me.

Answer
Hi Leticia!

I would recommend putting up a fence so your dog can't run away.Until a fence is put up, you should leave your dog inside and get your boyfriend to bring him for 20-minute walks everyday so he still has exercise. It is very important to get a fence because you dog can be poisoned, get hit by a car, abused by townspeople, attacked by other animals, stolen or lost. As for punishment, your dog needs to know who's boss. Let him know by giving him a firm "No!"
If this doens't work, I would recommend putting him in obedience classes.Tieing him on a rope or punching him will only encourage him to run away faster and become aggressive, disobedient and destructive. I would recommend getting a tall wood fence as he cannot jump it. Also, make sure you do not get an electrical fence because that is animal abuse and is inhumane.

I hope this has been helpful! Sending wagging tails your way!
Nicole.D