My dog's getting out, need some electric fence advice.

[concretejungle]

Title pretty much tells the story. Tonight i spent an hour walking around through woods and neighborhoods shouting for my damn dog......who had gotten out. Found out he had jumped right over the top of the 4 foot fence. So i'm thinking i may just run one electrical line positioned on rods attached to the fence posts about 6 to 8 inches above the top of the fence. That way next time he jumps up to the top of the fence he'll get shocked. I want one that is very weak, beause he's a pretty timid dog for the most part and learns pretty quick.

I need some suggestions on where to get this type of fence. I looked at petsmart and other pet stores but they carry the "invisible fencing" type stuff where you bury the cable and put a collar on him.

 

[Mace]

Fleet farm or other farm like place..

I had a lab that they did not bother tho..

 

[mattlock]

They do work and I think your plan is fine. However, keep in mind that if he guns it and jumps out again he will learn the lesson as he sails over the fence. Now he will know it is "hot", but he will be fenced out of your yard. I think you want to let him figure it out while supervisng him. I would get the invisible fencing type. Use the setting with the warning beep that tells your dog he is getting too close to the fence. Even the dumbest dogs figure out the relationship between that beep and having their neck jolted.

 

[concretejungle]

I don't want one that's invisible though, i want a very low power one like you would find running around a cow pasture. Just a very thin line, with orange flagging tied to it every 10 feet or so. THat way he will jump up and figure out real quick that the top of the fence is hot.

 

[mattlock]

Are you trying to train him or antagonize him? I don't see what the beef is with the invisible fence. Do you live in the country? I would be a little worried about neighbor kids getting zapped, then you will finally get to meet their parents. Won't it be fun? Do you think your dog will disregard the collar, or are you just worried about having to remember to take it off.

 

[concretejungle]

I don't like the invisible fence idea for two reasons, one i have to bury the cable which means it's either in front of the fence or behind the fence. That'll take forever, plus it's a rental house. Second, with it being either in front of the fence or behind that means that one way if he gets too close to the fence he'll get zapped; or on the other hand, he won't get zapped until after he's cleared the fence and is on his way. I feel if i have the line running along top of the fence, he'll get popped a few times but only if he jumps up to the top of the fence, i'll warn peeople alnd put a sign up, but in the long run he'll get the idea and i can cut it off.

 

[CruisinGA]

We had a wireless invisible one. It beeped with rapid succession as the dog got closer to the boundary. The dog would be continually shocked until she came back inside the boundary. Much better than the one-time shock of most buried wire ones.

The only problem was that is only can make a circle, you can control the size. Just put the unit in the center of your lot(inside the house for us) and walk around with flags and a collar and mark the boundary so you can train the dog. Worked great for our beagle. ~$100 at Home Depot.

 

[IDave]

We use the Innotech Invisible fence, and I am here to tell you (in my experience with all of one 75 lb dog) it is very good. As you can see from his pictures, he is a thick-furred beast.

We use the wire system, not the broadcast. You don't have to bury it, except where you walk or drive frequently. Just lay it on the ground and the pasture grass will bury it in a season or two. We flagged it, lead him around and did the training the way the video says. Had a few breakthroughs until we shaved his neck where the electrodes fit, and then turned the power up to full. 2 more breakthroughs and he was done crossing it.

He goes out in the car (safety zone)(Don't forget to take the collar off when you do that, or he'll fear the car), or when we tell him OK (always use the same path. I think consistancy is the main trick to training.

Even though we don't see him do it, we know he tests it, because if the line breaks (trespassing snowmobiler) or the collar battery dies he'll figure it out in about 2 or 3 days.

Otherwise, though, he doesn't cross it. And for the most part, for a day or so, if we leave the collar off he respects the boundaries, too. Other dogs going by, as close as 15 feet, or even coming across the boundary to play, deer, elk, squirrels, whatever, he respects the boundary.

I expanded the area in the 3rd season, so he took a while and relearned the boundaries gradually. Am I sold? Yes. So much better than the chain. (Do I have stock? No.) And I swear, like a kid, he likes having boundaries and is more secure for having them!

 

[Junk]

land mines?

 

[IDave]

land mines?

If only they were legal.

 

[concretejungle]

Thanks for the info dave. I'll be putting something in motion this afternoon. I"m on my way to Lowes and Home depot to see what they have to offer.

 

[beaufort-fj60]

had a friend with similar problems, get two collars: put one shock collar around neck and one infront of back legs (electrodes on belly near balls area) worked like a champ on his lab

 

[concretejungle]

Here is what i got. I'll post a few pics when i'm finished. Friggin' hard headed dogs.

 

[Deep South Cruisers]

I always used a horse fence charger none of that pulse on and off crap, when you get hit it feels like your on fire

I only turned it on for a few days and after that my German Shepherds wouldn't cross a nylon string or anything that resembled a electric fence.

Smaller dogs = less ground = smaller shock but don't quote me on that if your rat terrier explodes the first time he gets in the juice

 

[Degnol]

I think consistancy is the main trick to training.

Training is the KEY to the thing. Setting shock levels is very important. My pointer is on the highest, one Brittany is on the lowest and the other Brit is on "tone only". During training you must make them believe that outside the yard is solid pain, not just a shock then you are free. Most don't properly train the dogs and that's where they have probs.
IDave, we have the Innotek system and I think it works great.


Ed

They burried enough cable to fence a half acre in about 30 minutes.

 

[hank14]

One problem with invisible fences and collars is they do not keep other dogs out. This is a big issue if you have a lot of strays around, and they should not be used in that situation. Other than that, they are very effective.

Since you already have an existing fence, I think either type would work fine.

 

[concretejungle]

Well, here's what i came up with on the fly. Bought these green plastic pole thingys and fastened them to the existing fence poles with zipties. Ran the wire through the plastic poles, around the fence and grounded it out with a piece of 5 ft. rebar hammered into the ground. I haven't hooked up the box yet since it's getting dark and i'll do it tomorrow.

 

[calamaridog]

Wow, now that is STYLE! I love the look But hey, at least you are trying

Problem is the breed. Retrievers love to run around unsupervised.

I have a dog who can easily jump a 6 foot block wall or wood fence. She just chooses not to. If I'm on the other side, and I tell her to, then she's over. If I leave for work for 18 hours, she's waiting for me when I get home.