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Your experience with (buried) electric dog fencing

8K views 44 replies 22 participants last post by  Failbhe 
#1 ·
We have a Collie mix who is a "runner"- given the opportunity (an open door, an open gate), she is gone, and there is nothing you can do to break through to her to get her to stop her running off at top speed. And she likes to play in traffic. We've had her about 4 years and this sort of escape has happened 2-3 times. The only way we got her back is that she is well-tagged, and nice people happened to find her eventually and call us to go get her.

We've always lived in town, but we just recently purchased a 5 acre, more rural, property. We would love to make most of the property accessible to her and are thinking that the buried electric fence/collar might be the way to go. I would love to hear your experience with how well it actually works, if you recommend professional installation, how to make sure it's maintained correctly, etc. Also, this may sound silly, but she has the typical Collie "mane" around her neck, so I'm not sure she'd even feel the electric pulse through all that fur?

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
 
#3 ·
I have one and they a be a big pain in the butt. If you do get one have it installed by a professional that way if you get a break in the wire they can find it cause we had that happen and I had to pull up 1 acre of wire to find a break. They do work good for keeping dogs in and if your dog has thick fur just shave under his neck where the collar makes contact with the skin. This is the one I have.
PetSafe Stubborn Dog Radio Fence | PetSafe Dog Fence
 
#4 ·
Thanks, Jacks. That's the kind of feedback I was looking for. Have you ever seen training/behavior modification that can take the "run" out of a "runner"? We would be willing to invest in something like that but aren't sure it would work?
 
#13 · (Edited)
Obedience training.

  1. Buy a long-line for your dog. 25-50 feet should be sufficient. 100 is also good. Nothing less than 25. never use a flexi lead.
  2. Put the dog on an appropriately fitting buckle collar. Never use a prong or pinch collar for this. Slip (choke) chains are okay for bigger dogs, but you may want to try the buckle first.
  3. Grab hold of the end very firmly, using leather gloves.
  4. Have someone else open the door.
  5. HOLD YOUR GROUND.
Let your dog bolt out of the door. When he reaches the end of the long line, if you held your ground well enough and he built up momentum he will get a correction he has never experienced. Don't be surprised if he yelps. If he lands over backwards, even better.

Look at him with disdain and say, Serves you Right.

Drag his butt back in the house, repeat the process.

Bet by the 3rd time he starts slowing down before he feels the tension in the lead. After he begins anticipating that distance, reel him in by shortening the long-line. Repeated enough times, he will expect the correction within 12 feet of the door.

If you are not strong enough to hold your ground (think of the force of him running) enlist the help of someone else.

I have done this with a 28 lb English cocker. He decided to start pulling this nonsence out the front door. Open door, out he goes, down the street to sniff stuff. The first time he yelped and landed on his hip. The second time he yelped but did not flip (he was slowing down) the third time he chose to not leave the porch.

Other obedience would be to teach the Recall using the long-line. Go outside with your dog allow him to leave your side. Call. If he doesn't turn and come to you, drag him to you. Happily. But, you have control, make him listen. If he does anything, so much as turn his head to you, PRAISE. Get him to respect that when you say "Come" you mean now.


Digital aids would include a remote zapper collar. Hunters use these to teach their gun dogs to stay within distance.

I've been training dogs for the show ring and home obedience for over 15 years. This is my first horse.

Everyone talks about getting their horse to respect them no matter what. But, this is a classic example of a dog that has no respect for a person. I bet if your horse chose to do something so disrespectful, you would nip that in the bud.

I am definitely not criticizing, just musing over this in general. I was the poster asking about my horse lipping me and how cute. If my dog mouthed me he would feel the level of NO I meant.

Hmmmm. there is a psychological reason, just need to define it.
 
#5 ·
I had a border collie that was exactly like that. We tried one of those fences, and it didn't even phase her. A dog enclosure is really more worth the money (given she doesn't also jump a mile in the air like my Lacey did :lol:)
 
#6 ·
I have one, use it along with a stubborn dog collar and it is ok, Still is 100%. especially for sheppard and collie type breeds. They seem to run through them. The work ok as a suppliment to an actual fence. Keeps the dog from digging. Any metal near the wire will creat a dead zone, T post, car, pieceof roofing, anything metal laying on the ground near wire. I had a sheppard that would patrol the perimeter, find the dead zone and get out. I als had a beagle that learned how to stand close enough for the collar to beap but not shock, he'd stand there until the battery run dead then leave. Best bet is to put up a fence.
 
#10 ·
I think it depends on the dog. With my hound it actually worked great but with my collie, he did not understand it and it terrified him and yes, we did do the proper introduction. My collie is not a runner though and does not like to leave our property.

(we never burried it and husband drove over it w/ the tractor so it's currently not working)

My hound is smart though and he does know that if he runs really fast, the shock only lasts a second so if he will run right through it if he decides he wants too...
 
#11 ·
There is a simple and cheaper solution before you invest in the complete underground wire.

PetSafe offers a wireless electronic control unit. It is $299? $249? You can purchase online or at PetSmart. It comes with one electric collar.

It works the same way, but creates a circular dome. One unit can give your dog a good distance from the house. I lived in a rental house without fencing and used that for my two dogs. Once I left that house, I moved the unit to my camper and instead of tying my dogs at campgrounds next to the trailer, I have their collars on them and an electric zone.

The premise is no wires to bury. You set the unit up in the house and identify the overall area you want your dogs to have. There are 20 distance settings. And the shape is always round.

I also like these collars because they allow you to set the level of "NO" to the dog. From noise only to a pretty good kick in the pants.

Bad things about all electronic fencing.

As farmpony84 mentioned, a fast dog can get past the fence with barely a nip. But, a slow dog coming back home will get a gangbuster nip (nip being the technical term for the impulse).

Training on smart dogs is less than 4 weeks. Dull dogs or dogs with high pain threshold, more than 4. You have to put flags out, these are the visual queues for your dogs. And, during the training phase, you must always place the dog on a leash to train. During the training phase, every trip outside must include you with you dog on the leash. No shortcuts.

Some dogs are impervious to fencing. The costs to install inground wires can cost upward of $1k. If you are unsure if your dog will respond well to the fencing, the wireless solution is very affordable. Once your dog has trained to it, you can expand to the underground (which gives you a wider area AND you can create contour (square, oblong) perimeters. And then sell the wireless on eBay if you can't repurpose it.
 
#12 ·
I used the petsafe dome, the issue I ran into was that I had it mounted outside to give the area I wanted and when it got wet, it croaked on me...
 
#15 ·
I am soaking up all this great feedback and so appreciative you all took the time to share your experience.

Sam, I think you are totally right that obedience training is a must. We got her as our second dog from a pet adoption clinic, to be a companion for our very shy, extremely submissive Lab mix. He is the kind of dog that runs directly home if his collar slips off (literally); she is the kind that is friendly, outgoing, distracted, and in her own world. We are very vigilant about open doors and gates, but we've had problems when friends come over and stand at the door with it wide open- both times she got out, it was because someone was standing at the door and she shot out before anyone could get her.

I think your analogy to demanding respect from a horse is accurate. I can 100% admit we have not invested time in training her to stop the running; we didn't know how. I can imagine the obedience training steps you outlined above, but am also friendly with a professional dog trainer at the barn so may just do this right with a trainer from the beginning.

After reading all these stories, I think deep down I will always be concerned that any sort of electric or wireless fence is not really going to hold her in, and I need to be confident that if I tell her to "come," she will.

Lots to think about! Thanks again.
 
#17 ·
I am soaking up all this great feedback and so appreciative you all took the time to share your experience.

Sam, I think you are totally right that obedience training is a must. We got her as our second dog from a pet adoption clinic, to be a companion for our very shy, extremely submissive Lab mix. He is the kind of dog that runs directly home if his collar slips off (literally); she is the kind that is friendly, outgoing, distracted, and in her own world. We are very vigilant about open doors and gates, but we've had problems when friends come over and stand at the door with it wide open- both times she got out, it was because someone was standing at the door and she shot out before anyone could get her.

I think your analogy to demanding respect from a horse is accurate. I can 100% admit we have not invested time in training her to stop the running; we didn't know how. I can imagine the obedience training steps you outlined above, but am also friendly with a professional dog trainer at the barn so may just do this right with a trainer from the beginning.

After reading all these stories, I think deep down I will always be concerned that any sort of electric or wireless fence is not really going to hold her in, and I need to be confident that if I tell her to "come," she will.

Lots to think about! Thanks again.
Great news!!! I'm glad you have a professional within your circle. There are as many different dog training philosophies as there are horse training philosophies. And what works for one dog may not work for another. Your trainer will have a much better go at reading your dog's sensitivity and awareness and applying techniques that will cause your dog to react and learn the quickest.
 
#16 ·
I agree with a lot of your points, Joe4d, but I don't agree with breeds connecting with runners. I believe it all comes down to proper puppy training.
We had a runner that a family gave us bc they thought he needed acreage to run. We couldn't keep him, a Boxer mix, contained, and that was when I had cattle fencing. He would take off for about 3 days, and come back only when hungry. We tried keeping him in the basement, but he chew on things and destroy my property. We tried enclosing him in chainlink panels, but he'd dig his way under to escape. We tried chaining him but he'd dig and work on the tree closeby (for shade and comfort for HIM.)
My German Shepherd/Collie mix, "Xena" -- for whom I got "Chuzzlewitt" for her company -- would play with him outside for about 10 minutes, until he found some break in the (aging) fencing and would take off at a dead run. When he would take off into the farm field, she would look at me as ask why her playmate wouldn't stay put. (WHAT do you say to your Good dog?!?!?) =/
Xena has passed on, and my dog, "Rose" is 1/4 Border Collie, and behaves like she is full blooded. She chases and hunts but, if you forget to let her in, she waits patiently on the cement steps--NEVER had to go find her...except...the time I left the SUV door open, and she jumped in the car without me knowing it. She won't bark and tell you she's trapped somewhere. I took me an hour that day last winter to finally find her, waiting patiently for a ride that wasn't going to happen. LOL
"Pygma," my Lab mix, is a Velcro dog and won't let me out of her sight. They BOTH are 1/4 GS. I prefer getting puppies so I don't have to fix a problem somebody else started.
 
#18 ·
It worked very well on my lab mix for a pretty long time. Where I made my mistake is I started leading him out of the fence. I had to really coax him to get him out...he was terrified of the fence. I did it twice and after that he would bolt through the fence in that exact place every time.

It really took a lot of training. It is by no means a quick and easy fix. Not only do you have to diligently take your dog out on a leash for weeks, but you also have to pay special attention to make sure that if your dog is close to the fence that you have the leash tight enough so that he goes the right way when he gets shocked. You are also not supposed to take the dog outside the fence until after they are fully trained.

If I had know then what I know now, I would have never taken him out of the fence even after the training period was up. I would have designed it so that I could drive into the fence and put him in my vehicle.
 
#19 ·
Don't like them because they are not reliable like other people have said, I've never used one because my dog is property trained and rarely ever leaves (his a pure border collie) unless someone tautens him to come over (my neighbors are jerks).

But a person down the road has a husky on one and the battery dies like once a month (or more) and you know about it because he comes over to play with Cruiser, I usually catch him with a rope and leave him tied to our step until they come pick him up.
 
#20 ·
the wireless ones are probably better, They work on a different system that I think gives them and advantage. The wire systems shock when you get close to the wire, the wireless system is the exact opposite, it shocks when you get away from the transmitter. So the dog can run through a short barrier. It starts shocking and keeps on shocking till it gets home, I like the idea of its portability for horse camping. I didnt like the very short range though. Id like my do to have access to a bigger area of pasture for predator control.
 
#21 ·
I don't like the electric fences. If a dog is determined they will just put their head down and run through the fence. Then when they do come home they are not as committed to getting back in the yard.

I've seen them work on some dogs but more often than not I've seen dogs run through them. I did see one owner put the collar on a longer strap and strap the electrodes to the underside of the dog like a flank strap on a bull. That stopped him pretty good.

I don't fully agree that all dogs can be trained out of the "running" issue. Some breeds are more prone to this but it doesn't mean they will run. Best thing you can do (short of spending a ton of money on training) is work on the respect thing in the house so he's not shooting out the door when it opens (my dogs would get a big ol' stop if headed for the door and it wouldn't feel good) and keep him on a leash when you were outside. The training tips on here are very good but they will take a lot of time and consistency on your part.
 
#22 ·
For my dog who is a Siberian Husky we have the radio fence but we have it as a Transmitter kinda thing (Wireless). The transmitter is plugged in (in our house) and he wears a collar, the transmitter sends out rays and has a boundary so when he comes close to it his collar beeps. He then knows to keep back. If he keeps going he will get a shock. Believe me he has a very thick coat and he can still feel the shock so it will work. We opted for the transmitter one as it can be moved from room to room and we can decide how much room in the garden he has etc. I personally think it is better and there is no need for installing it :) hope this helps. This can also be turned off if you have your dog out for the day etc. Check out this link :) Its what I use.

Wireless Fence - Wireless Fence - Containment - Petsafe Radio Fence Ltd, Ireland
 
#23 ·
hmm... this is cool to learn about all of these invisible fence and training ideas. I guess i can't really contribute since Cal is content with staying tied on his leash (old lunge line) or in an empty horse stall when we ride.. and he knows not to get near the horses, especially rio. (rio plays chicken...)
 
#24 ·
My dog attacks horses. Difficult situation considering we live on 10 acres and the horses are on the property! The radio fence is the best thing I ever did. We got the stubborn dog one from Petsafe. I have it set on a level 2. Level 1 is just a beep, which she learned to run through, so I set it to level 2 which is a mild shock and stops her every time.

Initially I did set it to a level 4 which is a pretty strong shock, so she learned very quickly that crossing the boundary meant pain. I don't have to have the collar on her full time but the neighbours have a pitbull visiting at the moment and he comes over... I don't want to risk him leading her away because as I said she is a hunter and her and a pitbull in a pack together would be a recipe for disaster. I love pitbulls and this one is such a sweet fellow, but they DO have the attack instinct, and a fighting dog and a hunting dog together in a pack will do damage.

She also used to be a runner, real bad. You opened the door, she was gone. Moving to the acres mostly fixed the problem but she still wandered. Getting the dog fence has totally stopped the wandering, and as long as the horses aren't in the house paddock, it has also stopped the chasing and attacking.

I wouldn't recommend the dog fence for a long haired dog, because the contact points on the collar can't reach the skin through thick fur, so you would have to totally shave the neck because the collar DOES turn (half the time my dog has her collar half way up the side of her neck, and I always put it on straight). If you don't mind a long haired dog with a shaved neck, then go for it.

I only use the one collar that came with the fence but I've been thinking about getting a bark collar for my BC cross because she has that awful high-pitched yip that so many working-bred borders have.
 
#26 ·
I don't think electric anything is the way to go. The fences aren't trustworthy - once the dog is past the fence, it doesn't shock them any more, and they can just run off. As for collars... Well, you try one on and see how bad it hurts! Not to mention that for the fences, if anything goes wrong, you have to tear up everything to find out what happened.

Try a dog run, or normal fencing I would say. Both are more humane and pretty much guaranteed to work!
 
#27 ·
Shoebox, yes the collar hurts (my dog yikes if she gets a boot, she's not stupid enough to keep going back for more), but the dog has the CHOICE. You are not running it down and beating the crap out of it. It can choose to go into the boundary zap area and get a boot, OR it can choose to stay away and avoid the zap.

I recently turned my fence up a level as she had learned that the zap didn't last long. The stronger boot has stopped her from trying. The benefit of the stronger boot is that the pain stays with them for a little longer (ever been really booted by a hotwire? it bloody HURTS for a long time) so they're less likely to then try to run through it again.

My fence HAS gone offline before, but the collar has never malfunctioned.
 
#28 ·
We actually have both, the underground and wireless fence. Our husky x is a runner and at first, we tried a page wire fence. She dug under it in about two seconds flat. Then we added the underground fence. It helped... a little. She learned that if she ran really fast, she barely got shocked at all, so if the gate was ever open (the fence goes around our whole yard, it's not just a dog run) she'd bolt through. Also, we had a lot of problems with the wire breaking on us. We initially preferred the underground to the wireless because we were hoping that eventually we'd be able to fence in our whole five acre lot and give her free run of the whole thing, but after failure after failure and knowing that our neighbours wouldn't give a second thought to shooting her if she was on their property, we tried the wireless. It's not perfect (she does that thing where she'll stand where it beeps but not shocks and runs the battery in her collar dead) but it's definitely worked the best out of everything we've tried.

Now she's getting a little more mellow with age (she's eight now - we noticed a big change in her behavior over the last year or two; she's not acting 'old' per se but just a lot more easy going).

Another thing about the wireless that I like, is I can unplug it and take it anywhere with me. I've taken up to visit my parents several times, and even with a new situation she figures it out pretty quick where she's allowed to go.
 
#30 ·
Failbhe mine doesn't do that, it zaps if they stay in the beep area for too long as well as if they go into the zap area.

My collar is on one of my other dogs at the moment, but the dog it was bought for doesn't actually need it any more as long as the fence is on. I think she can hear/sense the radio waves or something? If I turn it off she's straight out but if it's on no problem.
 
#31 ·
Failbhe mine doesn't do that, it zaps if they stay in the beep area for too long as well as if they go into the zap area.
I'm assuming that's what she was doing, that battery was running dead far more often than I'd think otherwise... though this is the dog that I'm pretty certain does quantum physics as soon as my back is turned. :-p

She has definitely calmed down a lot now that she's a little older, she's obviously not testing it as much as she used to. But as soon as that battery is dead she's still running out where she's not supposed to be so I don't think I can ever just turn it off.

In our case, I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that when we first moved here she could run wherever she wanted, and then we put up a fence. I think if she'd been taught to respect the fence right from the start it would have been more effective.
 
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