The Catalburun is one of the rarest sights in the dog world — a Turkish pointer recognised by its uniquely split nose, bred for scenting work in the hunting country around Tarsus. At home he is typically quiet, loyal, and undemanding. Away from home, in his mind, is where the smells are. Keeping a Catalburun safe and secure is therefore a scent problem: make the garden complete enough, and its boundary solid enough at the level his nose reads, that the world outside stays a place he visits with you rather than alone.
Start Where His Nose Lives: Ground Level
A Catalburun experiences your fence from the bottom up. Scent pours under gates, through hedge bases, and along the soil line, and a hunting dog follows scent the way you would follow a sound — without deciding to misbehave. Inspect the boundary at knee height and below: daylight under the gate, gaps where panels meet posts, soft earth at corners, the thin base of a hedge that looks dense from standing height. Dig mesh into vulnerable stretches, pave or gravel the gate line, and plant or fence off the hedge base. This breed is not a famous climber or a frantic digger, but a persistent nose plus one soft corner equals a dog in the fields by morning.
Gates and Doors: The Human Element
Most Catalburun escapes, like most pointer escapes, will happen through openings people control. Fit gates with latches that close positively — test with a firm shake — and consider a self-closing hinge on the gate everyone uses, since the gate left swinging is an invitation printed in scent. At the front door, put him behind a second barrier before it opens for deliveries and guests; a dog who adores his family greets arrivals warmly and can be out on the step and following a trail before anyone registers his absence. In vehicles, the lead goes on before any door opens, especially anywhere the air smells of game.
Satisfy the Hunter at Home
Security is half hardware, half contentment. A Catalburun whose scenting gifts are used daily — tracking games across the garden, hidden retrieves, scatter feeding in long grass, varied country walks — has a full life inside the boundary. An under-worked hunting dog, by contrast, catalogues every smell drifting over the fence with professional interest. Train and refresh the two behaviours that function as living locks: a recall that has been rewarded heavily in low-distraction settings, and a settled wait at gates and doors. Practise both when life is boring, so they exist on the exciting day when a gate stands open and the fields are calling.
Identification for a Breed Few Will Recognise
If he does get out, expect finders to be puzzled — almost nobody will know what he is, and his split nose may even be mistaken for an injury. Help them help him: a collar tag with your number in clear print, a microchip record you keep current, and good recent photographs, including one that shows his nose and markings plainly, so a finder's description matches your lost report at the shelter.
First Steps If He Follows a Trail Out
Begin where scent is richest: hedgerows, ditch lines, field margins, and his usual walking routes, moving quietly, calling in your normal tones, and stopping often to listen — a working pointer ranges silently and may be closer than you think. Leave the home gate open with his bedding and something strongly familiar-scented by it, since scent-led dogs navigate home by nose when the excitement fades. Notify vets, shelters, and neighbours with the photographs. KinsLe's Lost Pet Alert System widens that effort instantly with a free alert to nearby Circle of Love members, and anyone who finds your Catalburun can message you directly through his profile.