Electric Fence Systems For Dogs

If you talk about a man’s best friend instead of a name, probably an animal pops up in your mind. The age-old cliché still holds today with our furry friends and their adorable mischief accompanying us at every step. However, dogs being uber energetic creatures, it is essential to walk or make them run regularly. But, walking your dog can be a nuisance, especially when exposed to an unknown environment that awakens its inner explorer.

dog looking over fence

Traditional Fences Are Outdated

Modern houses are a specimen of security and technology. From CCTVs to proximity sensors, the owners do not even sweat about their safety. Moreover, everybody prefers to have a clear view of their yard, which provides an essence of space and freshness. The culmination of all these perks has resulted in the Traditional Fences being phased out of people’s lives. Add to that the extra cost of maintaining it.




Electric Dog Fences, The Future

You’ll find that an electric dog fence is a solution to your problem if you’re constantly worrying about your dog’s safety every time you let your dog out in the yard. With one of these invisible boundary fences, you’ll soon have the peace of mind you deserve, allowing your dog the freedom to securely run and play in the yard without having to spend thousands of dollars on traditional fencing.

Electric Dog fence systems can be laid underground, above ground, or even mounted to an existing fence.  The portable electric dog fence allows you to save money before your next move if you rent. An electric dog fence is a safe, humane and effective training device that unlike traditional fences can be quickly erected to contain your canine friend.

Brittany Spaniel

Wired Vs Wireless

Before setting up with your first electric dog fence, it is essential to mark out the boundary within which you want to contain your dog. You can opt for a wired or wireless dog fence system. A wireless dog fence system is not as effective and as reliable as a wired system.  Statistics suggest wireless fences are 70% effective.  You cannot customize a wireless dog fence system to suit your yard; it can only make a circular boundary which isn’t suited to most yard layouts. A wireless unit is easy to install as no wire is required.

A wired electric dog fence includes an insulated copper wire that defines your fence boundary and can be customized to suit any yard layout. Your dog will be required to wear a lightweight receiver collar.  The wire will need to be connected to a transmitter box, forming a closed-loop for the system to work.

The transmitter box will send out a radio wave along the boundary wire picked up by your dog’s receiver collar as your dog approaches the invisible perimeter. Your dog can roam freely within the predefined boundary.  If your dog approaches the boundary wire known as the  ‘out of bounds’ area, your dog will receive a warning tone, vibration, and correction ( static shock).

If your dog continues to edge forward towards the ‘out of bounds’ area, they will continue to receive a correction until they return to the ‘safe’ area. The shock is a static correction that is similar to ‘rubbing your ruler on the carpet shock’ and is gentle, safe, and humane. Dogs do not like the sensation of static correction. Many use training flags included in your kit as a visual aid for their dog to see where the wire boundary is.

tibetan mastiff

How Does It Work?

The multi-stage approach of an electric dog fence system first attracts your dog’s attention with a warning tone, followed by a vibration, and lastly, a static correction as your dog approaches the boundary. If your dog continues to defy the boundary, some receiver collars will automatically increase the intensity of the progressive correction, whereas, in other receiver collars, you will need to manually adjust the intensity level of the shock to suit your dog’s temperament.

The electric dog fence system has been designed to safely and effectively train and contain your dog within a customized boundary putting an end to the digging, jumping, escaping, nuisance behavior, and complaints from angry neighbors.  Over time your dog will learn and understand their boundary, and you will find you no longer need to use the system to contain your dog.

Benefit Of Rechargeable Batteries

Another helpful feature is that most systems today use rechargeable batteries which can be a cost-effective alternative to alkaline batteries.

Indoor Restriction

Electric Dog Fence Systems have been designed for outdoor use only and cannot be used indoors.  As major electrical items, i.e., refrigerator, emit a frequency that can interfere with your dog’s collar receiver and cause the collar receiver to emit a warning tone and a vibration.

pekingese dog

Ethics of Electric Fence

Electric dog fences are not secured from their own set of criticism and debate. The dog is exposed to repeated static shock if they continue to defy the boundary zone, although mild,  to control its behavior. This can be called an aversive training device since fear motivates the dog to stay within the yard. Moreover, different dogs have various levels of pain tolerance, which is not considered at all.

This can make certain dogs submissive due to shock, or some dogs might not be fussed by the correction, nullifying the effect of the shock. However, this only emphasizes that these kinds of devices are a tool for your dog’s safety. It’s up to the dog owner to train their dogs to understand how the dog fence system works.  Dogs are brilliant and similar to humans, who learn through association.

Summing Up

Electric Dog fence systems are a cost-effective, simple, and practical solution to train and contain your dog within a customized area, providing you with the peace of mind that your dog is kept safe and secure. Happy pet parents mean happy pets.

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