After years of trying to stop her fur baby - Telsa the clever canine escape artist from running away, this pawrent finally finds a curious way to bring and end to his attempts to make a run for it, says: ‘This is the first time I've won’

Author image for Laurent Shinar
Laurent Shinar • Writer and Editor
Jan 24, 2026 3:00 PM EST

More than a few pupper pawrents have the misfortune of owning a dog that loves to escape. Constantly looking for a gap in the door or in their pawrents attention to give them the slip. This story tells the tale of a doggo who finally met his match and his pawrent who got to enjoy a small win.

When you name you puppy Telsa, you have to wonder if you have made a desperate mistake. Much like that one episode of Rick and Morty taught us, you might want to be careful with what you wish for when it comes to canine intelligence. Because past a certain point a canine can become far too smart for its own good and everyone else's, and that is very much the case with Tesla.

As his pawrent puts it he is a master escape artist and loves the thrill of the chase more than anything. And while this part of his pawsonality is certainly a tiresome one it is laso what brought about this story and the story of how and why one of this doggo's were totally stopped in its tracks. And while you might not call it a full win, we can see why his pawrent chose to. Because sometimes you have to take what you can get. 

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    ו" go back inside and about ten minutes later | hear whimpering at the door."
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    My dog is very intelligent. I named him Tesla because he had a white streak on his forehead that looked a little like a
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    lightening bolt, but he ended up growing into his name. He's curious, quick to learn, and picks up subtle cues; he learned how to roll over in one
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    training session. Unfortunately, he's not play motivated and is only slightly food motivated, so this means he's only going to obey when he feels like.
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  • Oh lordy that is a dangerous combination. Super smart and without any hooman related attachments such as food or play. This pupper is more prepared to live on his own, pay rent and rule the stock market than be someone’s dog child if you ask us. After all the fundamentals of the hooman doggo relationship lie in the we give food, they hang around us deal. Without that what are we doing? What do we have to offer? Well, we can offer the play aspect, but as Tesla’s pawrent put it, he is not play motivated either…

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    I have no idea what kind of breed he is, I picked up the little ber from a pop- up shelter. I can only guess that he's part terrier, part drain
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    clog, part muppet. I was told that he was found with his littermates running through the fields of Missouri.
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    Apparently, he was the hardest one to catch. That hasn't changed. He also loves to escape. It's Tesla's favorite thing. I've
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    let him run free in an enclosed dog park before and he will mostly just sit by my feet and look bored. But when he escapes, you can see
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    the joy and glory in his eyes. He doesn't look like it, but he's surprisingly fast: he streamlines his body and breaks into a full on gallop. If he doesn't want you to
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    catch him then you're not going to. He's pretty much impossible to catch unless you corner him somehow or he finds another dog.
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    He's also a jerk about it. There have been times where I've chased him for a full hour, lost sight of him, and dejected went home only to find him waiting
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  • Yeah that sounds about right for an ultra smart doggo. He knows that he cannot fully run away and live an independent life as much as he might be cognitively capable of doing so. After all, social security numbers are not issued to dogs. So what is he left with? What kind of enjoyment and challenge can he find in life? Yeah, pretending to run away, the thrill of the chase. We get it, it is a glorious battle of wits and at the end of it there is a victor, which will almost always be him considering he is much better at this game than most hoomans. 

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    impatiently at the back door. Tesla isn't the kind of dog that tries to rush out the door all the time. Oh no, he
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    bides his time. He waits until you've let your guard down and aren't paying attention. If he's fenced in, he'll walk along the fence
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    looking for a weak spot and if there is one, he will find it. I've tried everything to get him to come to me: in-depth training, never
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    getting angry when he gets out, running in the opposite direction (this only works half the time), etc. He'll only come if he wants to come.
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    Today I wasn't paying attention. While I was hold the door open and coaxing my other blind dog inside, Tesla slipped out. He
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    stood for a moment, looked at me, and seemed surprised that it had worked. And then he bolted, galloping victoriously through
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    the yard. This time, I didn't chase him. Where I live it's currently 95 degrees outside and at 100% humidity. Call it a hunch, call it laziness, but I just
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    didn't have it in me. today. He kept looking back to see if I was chasing him, but instead I just watched him for a minute before going back inside.
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    Cheezburger Image 10598843136
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    The thing about Tesla is that he is very hairy. He has long coarse black hair with a thick, black undercoat. He sheds like a beast year round despite
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    being brushed out 2x/week. What ever breeds are knocking around in him I suspect weren't meant to be in the hot, muggy south.
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    I go back inside and about ten minutes later I hear whimpering at the door. There is Tesla, looking absolutely defeated. He walks inside and makes it
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    about ten feet before throwing his body onto the cool ceramic floor. I patted his head, gave him some fresh water, and a little
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    food. This is the first time I've won, but I figured I'd be a gracious winner.
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after escape run clever artist reddit story canine years attempt first time fur baby running pawrents tesla dog story curious stop trying away win
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