escape artist

Question
I have a wonderful little girl named GiGi. I rescued GiGi several years ago when I found her half dead in a field. It took some time but she has become (for the most part) a wonderful dog. I do have a few problems with her tho that i am unsure how to solve.
We used to live in a house where she had free roam of the house and yard. I would go to work about 10 hours a day and return home with no problems what so ever.
I m oved about 8 months ago to a new home for whcih GiGi still had free roam of the house and yard. However a new problem has arrised. She now will use any method she can find to escape. She doesnt go far but I am afraid she will get hit by a car. If a window is left open, she will go thru the screen and jump out, if she is in the yard she will climb over the fence. How can I break her of this habit? I have tried leaving and coming back at different times to show her that i am not leaving her but nothing seems to work. The minute I leave she begins to bark and gets frantic.
She has also developed a new aggresion towards other dogs. In fact my father in law walked his dachsunds to our yard and GiGi bit one of the throught the fence. GiGi is by no means viscious but I am afraid this other new trait could lead to her demise and I could not live with that.
Any suggestions to help her would be greatly apprecaitaed!

Answer
Hi,

this is common for pitbulls, as they are 2 smart and athletic. They will find ways to get out. Whether it means clearing high fences or digging their way out.

There maybe ways however to keep her in the house. If you really want her to stop, and she isnt spayed, then i suggest you spay her. Unless you plan on breeding the girl. Also you may want to pretend like you are gone, and the moment she escapes say no and scold her in some way. You could also put her in a crate for about 15min as a form of punishment. Next, you could keep her in the yard with a tie out, however give her some toys as she might get bored and tear stuff apart. Also what you could do is tire her out before you go. Perhaps a long walk or something take lots of energy. Other methods might be to stick something in a kong toy like a treat or peanut butter. That might keep her busy for a while.
There is one extreme that I have seen that works, but as i said it is extremely rare. However, many pits are known to love it. Tie a rope off a branch and let your dog hang on it. Apparently some pits(as they are so stubborn) will hang of it for a while. There is a dog here in Vancouver, who has been on tv as he hangs on this rope outside a barber shop for about 5hours a day. Obviously it might not work for your dog, but you could try. Nevertheless it is a good passtime or energy consumer for your dog.

Also if she isnt spayed, check to see if she is in heat or not. Sometimes the dogs change when in heat.

Good luck
Bye