Invisible dog fence

[ISULifer]

Hey guys,

I'm looking for any advice on installing an underground dog fence. I installed one at my mom's place in the country a few years ago, and it works fine. However, since she's out in the country with no close neighbors, people walking by, or worse, people walking dogs, there's not a lot of reason for her dogs to try to escape. I worry that since I live in town there will be too much temptation for my dog to respect the boundary.

My dog is 85lbs and 18 months old.

Does anyone have any pros or cons of trying an underground fence in town?

As far as logistics, I think I'm good since I've installed one before...I'm going to upgrade the wire to 18 gauge to make it a little more durable. Any other suggestions?

Thanks!!!!!!!

 

[1100011CS]

If you train the dog properly it won't matter what the temptation is. But, I know sometimes that doesn't happen (myself included) so I enclosed the back yard and just let my dogs stay back there. I don't really even need the collars anymore. They know the boundaries and won't cross them. My youngest dog is a fetching junkie. But, she won't cross the boundary if you throw the ball over it. That's my litmus test

BTW - if you didn't use one the first time you installed an underground fence, edgers work great for burying the wire.

 

[CycloneJames]

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of invisible fence. When I'm walking my dog I always hate when you see another dog out by itself. Some are well trained and will just sit and watch, but many times the dogs will be barking like crazy just at the edge of the fenceline. I've never had a dog cross the line, but I'm sure its happened before. Plus, my dog gets all excited by seeing another dog so close and wants to play.

Another thing to keep in mind is if you plan on having other dogs at your house. We have other family dogs come over quite a bit, and the invisible fence obviously does nothing for the other dogs. I like having a real fence so we can let them all run around and play without having to worry about it.

 

[erikbj]

I have the invisible fence in my front yard and my two German Shorthair pointers never go close to it. It is the best money i spent. They chase birds and what other little furry animals come into the yard, but they have never tested it. Again i think it comes back to the training, i trained them at probably 12 weeks old and it probably hurt a lot when they got shocked. Not sure how much pain a 85 pound dog can take and it may be a different story.

 

[ss]

i live in the country but have alot of horse traffic as i live close too the amish. i also have a german shepherd and a pitbull mix, neither one mess with the underground fence.

 

[ISULifer]

Personally, I'm not a huge fan of invisible fence. When I'm walking my dog I always hate when you see another dog out by itself. Some are well trained and will just sit and watch, but many times the dogs will be barking like crazy just at the edge of the fenceline. I've never had a dog cross the line, but I'm sure its happened before. Plus, my dog gets all excited by seeing another dog so close and wants to play.

Another thing to keep in mind is if you plan on having other dogs at your house. We have other family dogs come over quite a bit, and the invisible fence obviously does nothing for the other dogs. I like having a real fence so we can let them all run around and play without having to worry about it.

I actually agree with you on both comments...
I'm not installing it so she can be outside alone, I just want her to be able to be with me when I'm outside. Part of the problem with a fence is that it's not possible to fence in both the front and back yard with a physical barrier fence. I could restrict her to the backyard, but again, I'd like her to be able to be with me wherever I am outside. And also, I am looking at fencing in the backyard at some point, but I don't want to do a basic chain link, I'd like it to look more appealing and just don't have the cash to fence in a half acre right now the way I want it done. So that is the plan down the road...but I need to get something going for her right now so she can run and let off some steam.

 

[CYclist]

We have the easy version, the box that you plug in, in your house, and then set it to number of feet you want to dog to be able to venture from that spot. We live in the country and our dog tested the limits on day1 that we had the thing. Since then, when the collar beeps, she knows she is at the 'end of her rope' and she never goes further.

 

[ISULifer]

I have the invisible fence in my front yard and my two German Shorthair pointers never go close to it. It is the best money i spent. They chase birds and what other little furry animals come into the yard, but they have never tested it. Again i think it comes back to the training, i trained them at probably 12 weeks old and it probably hurt a lot when they got shocked. Not sure how much pain a 85 pound dog can take and it may be a different story.

What brand did you go with?

 

[drmwevr08]

How do you know you dont already have one?

 

[erikbj]

What brand did you go with?

The invisible fence brand....they installed and provide everything and did initial training with the dog. Worth the extra money knowing it is done right and the correct shock level is set.

 

[ISULifer]

How do you know you dont already have one?

Like in the ground already?

I bought the house from a woman who was 101, the house was built in 1900 and had never been sold before, just passed down in the family. As far as the neighbors tell me, this is the first dog to live on the property

 

[cytech]

We have the easy version, the box that you plug in, in your house, and then set it to number of feet you want to dog to be able to venture from that spot. We live in the country and our dog tested the limits on day1 that we had the thing. Since then, when the collar beeps, she knows she is at the 'end of her rope' and she never goes further.

Amazon.com: PetSafe Wireless Pet Containment System, PIF-300: Kitchen & Dining

We bought this when our in ground one stopped working. So much easier and works just as good.

 

[ISULifer]

Like in the ground already?

I bought the house from a woman who was 101, the house was built in 1900 and had never been sold before, just passed down in the family. As far as the neighbors tell me, this is the first dog to live on the property

And also, I'm never that lucky.

 

[GrindingAway]

We have an outdoor dog with an invisible fence and it works great. We live a little way out of town but in a subdivision with other dogs etc. You just have to watch to make sure batteries etc are good. We also had a collar go bad at least once. It takes a while, but eventually the dog will figure out he can get through and then you have to retrain.

Also if you are going to install a significant amount of fence rent one of these...

It's a conversion for a trencher/tiller that cuts the trench and installs the wire. I rented one for less that $50 if I remember right and had the wire in the ground for over 2 acres in a little more than an hour.

 

[mdclone]

Amazon.com: PetSafe Wireless Pet Containment System, PIF-300: Kitchen & Dining

We bought this when our in ground one stopped working. So much easier and works just as good.

What happens when the power goes out?

My experience with invisible fencing didn't go well unlike everyone else apparently. The only thing it did for my dog was to guarantee she wouldn't come back in the yard once she ran through the fence. The dog was kind of 'special' though and once it saw a rabbit nothing would stop it. When I would take her hunting I had a shock collar on her, but once she started after a rabbit it didn't do any good. She would yelp each time I shocked her, but she would just keep going no matter what.

 

[ISULifer]

We have an outdoor dog with an invisible fence and it works great. We live a little way out of town but in a subdivision with other dogs etc. You just have to watch to make sure batteries etc are good. We also had a collar go bad at least once. It takes a while, but eventually the dog will figure out he can get through and then you have to retrain.

Also if you are going to install a significant amount of fence rent one of these...

It's a conversion for a trencher/tiller that cuts the trench and installs the wire. I rented one for less that $50 if I remember right and had the wire in the ground for over 2 acres in a little more than an hour.

Wow, that looks awesome. Any idea where you rented it from?

 

[cytech]

What happens when the power goes out?

My experience with invisible fencing didn't go well unlike everyone else apparently. The only thing it did for my dog was to guarantee she wouldn't come back in the yard once she ran through the fence. The dog was kind of 'special' though and once it saw a rabbit nothing would stop it. When I would take her hunting I had a shock collar on her, but once she started after a rabbit it didn't do any good. She would yelp each time I shocked her, but she would just keep going no matter what.

The same thing that would happen if the power goes out and you have a in ground fence it won't work.

I have never seen a dog ignore the collar but anything can happen. The beeps are all it takes for my dog.

 

[GrindingAway]

Wow, that looks awesome. Any idea where you rented it from?

I got it from a small rental place in East Dubuque, IL. So unless you live in/near Dubuque that probably isn't the place for you. I'm sure other places have them. I called asking about renting an edger. The guy said "Sure what do you want it for?" I said "Intsalling Invisible Dog Fence". He said "How about our invisible dog fence machine?" I said "wtf is an invisible dog fence machine?"

I also just remembered after having problems with the Innotek collars failing early on (like I said he's an outside dog so it's out in the weather all the time so probably not exactly designed for that) there was a period of time where we had problems with him going through the fence and going after the neighbors dog. I think the problem was a bad collar, but we did upgrade to this system.

Petsafe PRF-275-19 Stubborn Electric Fence Dog Collar

It's got an adjustable setting. I used the highest setting for a couple days to retrain him after he got used to going through the old fence. Since then I set it in the middle. I'd start with this one though so you have the flexibility to adjust it. I tried both out on my forearm. The orginal Innotek collar was a little tingle and I could see a dog ignoring it. I can't imagine a dog ignoring the Stubborn Dog one set on the highest setting.

 

[1100011CS]

I got it from a small rental place in East Dubuque, IL. So unless you live in/near Dubuque that probably isn't the place for you. I'm sure other places have them. I called asking about renting an edger. The guy said "Sure what do you want it for?" I said "Intsalling Invisible Dog Fence". He said "How about our invisible dog fence machine?" I said "wtf is an invisible dog fence machine?"

I also just remembered after having problems with the Innotek collars failing early on (like I said he's an outside dog so it's out in the weather all the time so probably not exactly designed for that) there was a period of time where we had problems with him going through the fence and going after the neighbors dog. I think the problem was a bad collar, but we did upgrade to this system.

Petsafe PRF-275-19 Stubborn Electric Fence Dog Collar

It's got an adjustable setting. I used the highest setting for a couple days to retrain him after he got used to going through the old fence. Since then I set it in the middle. I'd start with this one though so you have the flexibility to adjust it. I tried both out on my forearm. The orginal Innotek collar was a little tingle and I could see a dog ignoring it. I can't imagine a dog ignoring the Stubborn Dog one set on the highest setting.

I've had a lot of problems with the Innotek collars too. I believe Petsafe bought Innotek (or vise versa) so I hope they improve the quality.

I have this one: UltraSmart Contain 'N' Train - Innotekâ„¢ Brand Official Website

The fencing system is really nice but the collars break really easy. Just make sure you buy from a licensed dealer so they'll replace them. I bought mine on ebay and they wouldn't replace the two original collars that quit working within the first few months. I bought one replacement from them and then that one quit working but they replaced it.

 

[nfrine]

Surprised this hasn't been asked yet...what does an invisible dog look like? I'm thinking about getting a new dog. Do you have pictures?

(Probably shouldn't need this for most of you... )