Fence Advice

[Notes]

We have 2 dogs and are considering fencing in our back yard.
Thought about chain-link, but concerned that they might jump over or dig under it.
Do the "invisible" fences work?
If so, is it worth it to have it installed (expensive) rather than doing it myself?
The brand I've been considering is "Dog Guard".
Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks.

 

[Charliesmommy]

I think it all depends on the dog. I got invisible fence for Charlie because I thought he would easily jump chainlink. Turns out invisible fence did not work for him. He ran right through it no matter what setting it was on. I even shaved the part of his neck where the collar went - didn't matter. So, I ended up getting chainlink after all and have had no problems.

 

[yellowdog5]

Yes there are dogs who will "crash" the invisible fence, but it works really well for other dogs. Charliesmommy is right, it all depends on the dog.

 

[Maxy24]

I'm not a fan of them. I could never say with all honesty that if my dog saw another dog or cat or squirrel darting through the yard and out of the fence zone that he would not just run straight through, Unless of course you turned it up so it inflicted extreme pain which I find cruel. Plus if your dog does break through in a case where his prey drive kicked in and he tries to come back in once he's done he won't be able to. Then there is the concern of what can get in. Someone could see your dog, walk in your yard, take off the collar and steal your dog. Or if there are real jerks in your area they could just undo the collar so he will run away. Other dogs can get in your yard too and many dogs are not friendly or carry disease. Also wild animals can get in. I think a good high wooden fence is best. If the electric fence works then that's fine but I would never spend that much money to install a fence that might not work. I would never leave your dog outside unattended with any fence for a long period of time invisible or not. So supervision is key. You can install wooden fences so that they go under ground a ways and are as tall as you like. Ultimately the decision is yours though.

And the reason I saw wooden is that some dogs climb the chain link and with some dogs they will barrier bark since they can see what is going on beyond their borders.

 

[otch1]

Hi Notes... again, it depends on the dog. I find that many owners have problems with the "do it yourself' installation of invisible fencing because it lacks the crucial training that's neccesary for several weeks, prior to letting your dog off lead behind fence boundaries. This is a very important part of conditioning the dog to respond approriately. If you had to go with this type of fencing, Although it is very expensive, I would reccommend the original company "Invisible Fencing", otherwise, 6 ft. chainlink is much less costly. If you want a more solid visual for the dogs you can add the privacy strips that run thru the links. Good luck!

 

[Doberluv]

Oh, if you can afford it, I'd go with the chain link...6'. Some places, they don't allow that tall in the fence line that goes along the road way. But everywhere else you can. Be sure to have them put in a tension wire on the bottom. You could really go all out and put a concrete curb along the edge. But that would indeed get pricey, depending on the size of your yard. Other than that, supervision at first and maybe give them a sand box with treats and toys to encourage them to dig there. (?)

I agree about the underground e-fencing....I don't feel like it's fool proof enough, even in the best of circumstances.

 

[DanL]

We have 4' chain link. Gunnar could easily jump it but he doesn't. He doesn't equate jumping a fence with jumping a hurdle (yet! ) He doesn't even put his paws up on it.

The problem I have with invisible fencing is that it won't keep anything else OUT of your yard. Strange dogs, cats, other critters. Especially in the case of strange dogs coming in your yard, your dog could be at a disadvantage if it can't escape when it needs to.

 

[FoxyWench]

i HATE invisible fencing for many reasons:
* a friend had invisible fencing, it didnt stop a large stray dog entering her yard and killing her young shepard.
* Ive seen dogs as small as chihuahuas run through the invisible fence during a high drive moemnt without a second glance. however these dogs that break through the invisifencing often do not want to return home because they know that comming back in will hurt and well now they dont have the moment of drive to ignore the pain.
* Ive known of dogs stolen because invisible fencing is just as easy to walk on over remove the dogs collar and walk off with the dog.
* and ive seen strong willed dogs run right into traffic, straight through an invisible fence after a squirren and get hit by a car.

my other problem is ive personally put the collar on myself on lowest setting and felt the shock, its not plesent but even on high seting any dog in the middle of a strong drive moment (ie a manic squirrel or cat chaser) wont even feel that intial shock as they cross the barrier, but they sure as hell wont want to cross the barrier to come home. ive seen many dogs with invisible fence collars wandering (round here its a big fad because "people dont like the look of fences") there all cases where theyve chased something or someone right out of the yard and are you gonna go home if you know as soon as you cross that line your gonna get zapped?

i feel much more secure putting a chainlink fance up, and if your realy worried about escapage, spend a little extra and dig a trench burry chicken wire about 3 ft down and splayed inward then burry it and attatch to a pricivy fence, on top of the privicy fence attatch more chicken wire spayed inward towards the yard to the top. its the set up i have for a couple of my rehab pens for cyotes who tend to climb and dig.

ive found a 6 ft fence of any kind will keep MOST dogs in (some dogs can climb chainlink) for those with climbers grow fast growing vines up the fencing to "block" foot holes.