Invisible Fences – Good or Bad? | Jo Jacques
We have several small dogs, they are used to fencing in our large, great yard. We will soon be moving to a new place, same town, but will want to be investigating Invisible Fencing.
Our dog is not with a puppy but 4 years old, so we are curious how older dogs can adapt to this. How long does it take for the dogs to become familiar, and how trustworthy is it.
Any info you have is useful as we do our research to consider this. Our dogs have had free run of their large fenced yard.thanks,
Invisible Reader of DogBoston
Hi Invisible,
You have hit on a subject I’ve done a LOT of research on, as I’ve had many clients who’ve used these.
It is very popular right now, especially with the large subdivisions that have gone up — mostly because it’s relatively inexpensive. While it does have its good points — it doesn’t detract from your property, it’s inexpensive for large areas, and you don’t need to take your dog out on a leash.
But, the bad points FAR outweigh the good with these devices, I’m afraid.
Let’s look at the physical aspects first:
1) they don’t stop anything from coming INTO your yard to take or hurt your dogs.
2) they are susceptible to damage from electrical storms.
3) the collar units have a very high rate of malfunction, especially in this area of the country — malfunctions that can (and have) caused the collars to shock (yes, shock — these are SHOCK devices, remember) their dog repeatedly, causing physical (and emotional) damage to the dog.
That leads us into the behavioral problems with Invisible Fencing (IF) — an area that I see a LOT. Small dogs, especially, seem to have more issues, due to the fragile nature of their neurological systems — sometimes, the neurological damage is lasting to these little guys.
1) Since dogs take the entire environment into consideration when learning, they really don’t know where the pain is coming from so they see what’s around them. If joggers run past, or you have children in the yard, or if YOU’RE in the yard when they receive a shock, they are very likely to redirect to that stimulus and develop deep-seated fear responses that are incredibly difficult to remove. Even if no one is outside, I’ve worked with dogs that refuse to go out in their back yards to eliminate after receiving a shock.
2) You never know just how much shock the dog is getting at any given time. Not to mention, dogs — like people — are all different, and have different pain thresholds. The more sensitive a dog is to the shock, the more likely the dog is to develop redirected pain aggression — there are quite a few lawsuits (the IF folks don’t like to tell you about those) regarding previously wonderful family pets (like goldens) attacking the family’s kids when outdoors with the fencing. And, you can’t tell how sensitive your dog is before you use the collar, or even while you are using it in most cases — dogs, as a species, do not show pain as we think they would. In the wild, an animal showing pain is usually attacked as being weak.
3) When it comes to training with the fence, most dogs very first experience being leash-walked by a stranger is when the installer puts the leash on and takes your dog out for training. Research has shown that this training can have a serious lasting effect on a dog — a huge percentage of these dogs develop an intense fear of strangers while on leash, culminating in aggression issues, requiring hours upon hours of remediation and in a lot of cases, medication to keep the dog from attacking others while on walks. You end up with a HUGE emotional and legal liability.
There is plenty of scientific and legal research out there showing the dangers of these fences. As well, many well-known veterinary behaviorists, such as Dr. Karen Overall and Dr. Ian Dunbar, have come out against their use. These devices are banned in many countries as being inhumane; many feel they will be banned here, too. I, for one, won’t be upset if they are.
I hope they *are* banned as inhumane here in the states! In addition to documented behavioral problems on the rise, there are studies that show that electric fences have caused serious physical issues like siezures and heart problems.
There is also the more simple and equally tragic problem of a dog that, despite the pain a squirrel, cat, or dog – unhindered by your dog’s “fence”- out of his yard, charging across the barrier so fast that, while the shock still gets him, it happens too fast to deter escape. He’s corrected for chasing whatever his target had been, turns around, and tried to get back into the yard.
He is shocked with every attempt, and at normal speeds that shock IS going to stop him from crossing that barrier… back into his yard!
It’s a tragic scenario, but one that happens all too often, especially in situations where professional training to the fence was forgone.
In my opinion, the health risks, behavioral problems, and equipment faults far outweigh any convenience aspects of these contraptions.
If nothing else stops you from using an e-fence, let me give you another really good reason – it won’t keep either thieves or coyotes away from your dog!!!
There has been at least one instance of a dog being killed by a coyote in its own yard in downtown Peabody, so if you have a plot that’s a bit more rural, you know they are out there lurking beyond the trees. Don’t take the chance! And, if you have a purebred or so called designer dog, the thieves know how much you paid for it, and are only too happy to sell it on CL or somewhere else to the first bidder. Please, people, don’t leave your dogs outdoors unattended, microchip ID them, and don’t shock them, either to contain or “train” them.
Please don’t spend your hard earned money on one of these fences. I will tell you from personal experience, they do not work. I had a black lab and because he had such thick hair, he did not feel the shock. One day, he ran through the fence and got hit by a car. I would not recommend this fence to anyone.
I had a friend that owned 2 coon dogs. He had the highest fence that he was allowed to put up – 8 feet. The dogs managed to climb over the fence. His neighbors were complaining because on more than one occassion, his neighbors nearly hit the dogs with their cars. My friend installed an invisible fence and it stopped the dogs from climbing over getting out of their backyard.
I had another friend whose dog was able to climb their 8 foot tall wooden fence. They solved the problem by putting a long leash on him. Problem was solved until he broke the leash. As a temporary fix, they attached the dog to a rope. Unfortunately, the rope was longer than the leash and on a stormy night, the dog climbed over the fence, but was not able to reach the ground on the other side. It was strangled to death.
General comments about any situation is just plain wrong. Before deciding on anything involving a dog, the individual dog should be taken into consideration. It’s just like the feeding instructions on the back of a bag of dog food – just because you follow the instructions doesn’t mean your dog won’t become overweight or undernourished. You have to consider the dog.
Zealousness is juct plain wrong.
We would not suggest an invisible fence. We just had ours installed 2 weeks earlier. Our Jessie was frightened to go out in the yard and became very timid. Last week she decided to run through the line, got shocked and proceeded to run to the main road. She was hit and killed by a car. I regret getting this product as it did the opposite of what was advertised-Keep our dog safe.
Please consider this before buying this device, we wish we had!
I had the IF installed at my house before I purchased it. I have a 9 year old poodle and I thought it would be good for her to have the run of the yard off leash. The first week of training wasn’t bad and she associated the beeping with turning around and getting rewarded. However when the IF folks came back and changed the setting to “containment” she got several very bad shocks. She is now afraid to go out of the house. I am being very patient with her and bribing her with cheese to have her once again associate going outside in the yard as a good thing. When I inquired of the IF folks about the pain and explained that I did not want to hurt my dog, I was assured that it would be a very gentle correction. However, seeing her leap in the air and screech in pain made me sick to my stomach. I now have a long road to build trust back. If you can, get a real fence or walk the dog on leash. It’s much more humane.
I am quite amazed at the comments many people have written concerning the invisible fence. I have had very few problems as it has worked quite well for me and my dog.
I have a 4 year old lab. Though he is kept in a pen while we are at work I always let him out to run while we are at home. Even though our property is large he would usually end up going up the road to the neighbors and causing problems. He also loved to chase cars and would pounce from the bushes at the side of the road in front of oncoming vehicles. After he had his foot mashed under a car tire I decided something had to be done. I had exausted myself trying to break him of the “chase anything that moves” instinct so well engrained in labs. Building a fence was too expensive. A friend put me on to the invisible fence. After installing it my dog had a 5 acre area to roam freely in. I carefully followed the instructions for training my dog using the boundary markers and within less than 2 weeks I could leave him unattended in the yard without having to worry. After some time I was even able to remove the collar for days at a time without him crossing the boundary.
For those experiencing problems, this system works but the proper training is essential. My system has never shocked my dog when it was not supposed to. In fact, none of my friends that use this have ever experienced that type of problem either.
For dogs with thick or course hair like mine, an extra set of longer probes was enclosed with the package.
My dog is rather large so I do not worry much about other animals coming in the yard. If you have a smaller breed then perhaps keeping them in a pen when you are not at home and only releasing them into the fence area when they can be observed is the answer.
I am almost certain this product saved my dog’s life.
The invisible fence was a big help to me and my dog. She was constantly chasing cars and I was unable to get her to stop. I wanted to put up a regular fence but it just cost too much. I knew that if I didn’t do something it would be only a matter of time before I found her dead in the road. I put in the fence, did the proper training, and have never looked back. After 3 years my dog is happy and safe. Most of the time I can even leave the collar off and she still stays in the yard.
Not enough has been written about the BAD behavior these fences produce. My neighbor has a working dog – sheltie/border collie and an electric fence. The dog was BRED to herd animals, children, whatever. The dog cannot get beyond its “allowed space” so it barks constantly when it is outside. The neighbors are up in arms over the noise. It is only a question of time before something BAD happens to the dog. It is not the dog’s fault. It is the people applying electronic boundaries to dogs BRED to roam and HERD. Anyone considering one of these fences needs to first understand the proclivities of the breed of dog and whether it is suitable for CONTAINMENT via electronic shock.
My sister had two Bouvier de Flandres and now a Golden Retriever. All three of these dogs were trained in a positive way on an Electric Fence. They were able to contain their dogs in their yard without fear of the dogs roaming their neighborhood. Those who say it doesn’t keep other animals out of the yard…they are correct. None of her dogs had any trouble with fence training and never exhibited fear issues or nervousness with people or trainers. I honestly believe that all dogs are different just as people are. Therefore the owner of their own dogs should make a determination about their puppy before they decide when and how to train the dog on the fence. She used the Invisible Fence company and has been very pleased! They will train your pet on the fence for you but you are a part of that training.
I too am surprised at the comments on this forum. I am an advocate of invisible fences. What’s inhumane is the lack of positive training given to dogs moving to an invisisble fence containment system. You can’t just throw your dog out in the containment area and not expect bad results. I have had many dogs – methods of containment I used chained tied, fenced and invisible fence. After much success with invisible fence – I wouldn’t go back to the other method. Over past 6 years there hasn’t been unecessary shocking to our dog because he knows where the bounderies are and stops 3-6 before the boundry. In fact we test it on ourselves to ensure the battery is working. We have however had lightning short it out but not a problem, because our dog was trained on the boundaries and won’t cross them with or without his collar on.
Comment on the barking dog issue noted – my opinion is that dog would bark no matter what the containment method.
My experience with the underground system goes back to 1996. I applied to adpot a homeless dog being kept in a cage just big enough for him to lie down, and otherwise in a kennel … about 100 sq. ft. I offering 3 acres of fenced living space, the inside of my house when I am home, love and care, exercise on our 180 acre farm property, 3 miles of gravel road for long walks, a canine play friend, veteran’s care, high grade dog food, etc … but I am rejected because my invisible fence creates an unsuitable environment. So I abandon the idea of helping a dog in need, and contribute to the demand for puppies.
Go to the cites of these organizations and you will learn it isn’t unusual for them to hold an animal for years, NOT in a foster home, but caged. Some of these humane folks are working under some agenda other than what is in the animal’s best interests. I suppose though if I slept with my dog, took a shower with him every morning, and quit my job and got a tiny apartment so I could just sit around and hug all the time … it would be OK.
We just installed an IF as we have a fence but our German Shepherds would get so worked up when anyone walked by that they would jump on and it was starting to give. We figured the IF would keep the dogs from jumping on the fence. We didn’t want a piece of the fence knocked down and the dogs to get out and get hurt or hurt someone else. I completly regret it. Now they won’t go outside and play like they used to. They wont even go out to use the bathroom. I followed the directions on how to train the dogs for it and everything. Now I feel horrible and my heart is breaking because my dogs aren’t the same playful dogs they were before the fence. I know all dogs are different and some may do well with it. But I wouldn’t reccommend an IF to anyone!!!
I was not thrilled with the idea of an invisible fence because I too thought that teaching the dog through a shock was cruel. However, we recently adopted a grown dog through a rescue program. Her second day here, she barreled me down and ran out the door. I swear I never saw a dog run so fast in my life! It was then that I realized we could train her with a shock and keep her contained, or risk her getting out and being killed by a car. To me, the shock was the lesser of the two evils.
Our dog lives inside our home. We also have another older dog. Before we adopted out new dog, we never ever let our other dog outside unattended unless she was on a chain. We have always taken her out in the yard to run and play and she stays within the yard on her own accord (I wouldn’t trust her if we weren’t outside watching at all times) So our poor new dog is on a chain watching the other dog play.
The running away and not being able to run and play were the determining factors in having the fence installed. We payed a lot of money on our system so that it had the features we felt were best for us and the dog. This dog has trained quickly and easily and now runs and plays and sniffs and explores the yard. Of course, we don’t leave her unattended while she is out. The other issues stated in the above messages are exactly why we don’t.
I don’t think this system works for all dogs. It is going to depend on the dogs breed and personality. I would not even think of putting a the collar on my older dog. She is too emotional and it would probably devastate her!
Judgement and the dogs quality of life are key in deciding if the fence is right for your dog and you too.
I have had great success with the electric fence. I have a foxhound and she needs a lot of exercise. There is no way I could take her on enough walks to satisfy her, but with the electric fence she gets run of the yard. We trained her ourselves on the fence so there was no fear of strangers walking her problem as referenced above. Also, as another poster mentioned, we don’t even need the collar, she won’t go near the border. I feel as though the benefits of having her enjoy the ability to run at full speed without a leash on a daily basis outweighs the negative og her needing to go through the training/initial shock.
I would never ever ever buy anything like this for my dog and I hope these fences are banned. Inflicting pain on dogs as a form of restriction or training is a horrible and counterproductive method. These invisible fences are just as bad as shock collars. Why don’t you just smack your dog on the head every time he/she does something to tick you off since we are talking about pain here? If you want to abuse your dog to the point of emotional damage then this is the right product for you. However, it’s inhumane. Please, I suggest you just buy a regular fence. Still, I will never understand how anyone could use or advocate these torture devices.
To those who say the fence is inhumane. The “pain inflicted” by the collar is miniscule. I tested it on myself before placing the collar on my dog. I would compare the sensation to a static shock after someone walks across a carpet and touches you. This system is not counterproductive. Hitting an animal is. If you hit a dog to train it then he will associate the pain with you and not the behavior that you are attempting to correct. With the fence system the dog learns that those little flags you placed out marking the boundary is where they need to stop. Very little correction is needed. In fact, the battery in my dog’s collar has been dead for months now and it still has not ventured outside the boundary. He happily runs around his 5 acre area and I don’t have to worry about him getting hit by cars. Try pricing enough conventional dog proof fence to cover that much area and make a comparison with the price of the invisible fence.
What a wonderful product this is! I no longer have to worry about my dogs hurting themselves or someone else. I can let them out of the house now so that they may enjoy the freedom of the outdoors. Before the fence their outside time was limited. The neighborhood we live in is not very dog friendly due to cars and certain neighbors. With the fence, my dogs stay where they are safe. They now can spend hours running through our yard without any problems.
The response/answer preceeding these comments is clearly written by someone that has a biased opinion or has not tried the e fence. In my opinion the good aspects outweigh the bad. Some of the problems mentioned are:
1.The ability for other animals to enter the yard and harm your dog. Do pet owner’s normally leave their animals unattended? If so that is neglect in its self.
2. Electrical storm damage. A simple surge protector that most people use to protect a computer ot other electronic device solves that problem.
3. High rate of malfunction? I have been through multiple collars for multiple dogs and have never had a malfunction that caused the collar to “repeatedly” shock the dog wearing it.
As for the remainder of the response, If the dog is trained correctly using the perimiter flags then he will know exactly when and where he may recieve the corrective shock. Many collars have settings so that the owner can set the amount of shock. This is a constant and I have checked it on myself before putting it on my dog. Do the training youself, it is your pet after all.
I agree that one should consider many factors–age and breed of dog, male or female (spayed/neutered), value of dog, how close you are to busy streets, etc. When our neutered female Aussie Shepherd mix was about a year old, we moved to a suburban area with split rail fencing. We spent a good deal of time VISUAL training her with flags (which we left on a long time) and with the Invisible Fence Company of the Sierra. We have 1 1/4 acres and had the fence wire stop way up the driveway. At our previous house she took a lot of walks with us, but we had not much yard, no fencing at all due to association rules–and so we built a long dog run with a roof to keep her safe, however, she was never in it more than 2-3 hours as someone was always home.
Dogs require a great deal of company and socialization–that is how they adapted to living with humans. You should read the dog behavior studies they are doing at Duke University–fascinating.
No fence will supplant that, nor keep a dog in who wants to roam. With people working long hours away from home, this can be an issue, so dogsitters, doggie day care, etc., can help–or just a nice walk when you get home.
Our Aussie did very well the 12 years of her life (she died sadly, last October). She was played with and loved a lot, and I think that’s a factor. However,I think when you are gone, it is good to have a kennel or dog run to protect against coyotes, etc., or just leave your dog inside if s/he is good. Some dogs will simply have to be watched whether you put up physical barriers (our dog could jump a 10 foot fence and did it!, and probably not a great idea to just hope the invisible fence will contain a dog when you are not around to monitor.
I am very sad for those of you who have had dogs injured or killed when they got out of these fences–it happens with regular barrier fences, too.
Dog runs are kind of ugly, but done properly (ours goes from laundry room to doghouse attached to house to outside) can be a nice solution–but now for long hours.
We are getting a new puppy in April when he is 10 weeks old, and I will probably keep in in the dog run and inside outside (plus lots of walks) until he is a year, then see how he does with the invisible fence (only when I am home to supervise, however).
Best to all dog lovers out there!
Since I moved I have had indoor Invisible Fence for both of my Maltese. It causes a much better environment when we do not come home to poop and pee all over our new house. My dogs have not had any adverse effect from the system and seem very happy.
I understand both takes of the invisible fence. I found a stray dog with 8 puppies under an abandoned house. I could not get a rescue to take her because she was real aggressive. Animal Control was going to put her down. They darted her twice but she’d run too far under the house preventing them from getting to her. She would not go into traps. In the meantime, I made friends with her by giving her food daily.
I took her and her 8 puppies and moved to the country, 6.5 acres. The first week was great. She took to the place and seemed to come out of her shell. I adopted out 7 of the puppies and kept one for her companion, a daughter. BI had both Mother and Daughter spayed.
However, one problem, mother dog was real protective of our new home. Two of the nearest neighbors started complaining that she would run at them barking. One shot his gun at her and told me if she approached him again, he would kill her. She would chase cars on the road almost getting hit. It was dangerous.
Also, I have livestock & poultry that the two dogs were naturals at protecting so they kept the coyotes out, the raccoons out, fox out, etc. (I have not lost anything to a predator). So one of my purposes was to have the dogs outside to keep other things from coming in, which they did. Being a Shepherd mix, they are bigger & stronger than coyotes. They learned to work as a team.
I decided to try the IF. I had it put around my entire 6.5 acres. Being a stray, the mother dog was not very leash trained and I just had to wave one flag at her and she ran like I had hurt her. She got shocked once and that was it — she immediately associated the beep with the IF, and I have had no problems with her. I waited until her daughter was older before training her. I also waited to see if she would simply learn to stay in the 6.5 acres with no collar. Over time, her independence took over and she was out barking at the neighbors and scaring them as well. So she got a collar & training. She seemed to train easily but after a few months, she learned to be OK taking the shock and going through when she wanted to. I adjusted the levels & gave her a bigger collar.
Soon after adjusting the strength of the IF to try and contain the daughter dog, I came home to find her dead from being run over by a car. I found the collar smashed in the road and saw where whoever hit her had drug her. Since I wasn’t here, I do not know what happened. My guess is she ran through the IF and the shock was bigger than normal so she was afraid to come back through, ended up in the road and a low brow, inbred driver ran her over (not an accident)
My choices were limited, in that, I have a dangerous highway, outside dogs, the need to keep animals out by having dogs who must stay in or get shot or run over. Mother dog still obeys the IF completely.
The IF is not a solution for everyone and things CAN go wrong. I am pained by the daughter dog who was killed, but those of you who criticize must realize that this is but one option. It can work but it also may not work for all dogs. It depends. I have a little dog and a large (blind from birth) dog who live indoors and they never go out without me– The IF would not work for them because of some of the arguments above. But it has saved my Mother (former stray) dog’s life. It killed her daughter. Just though someone might benefit from hearing both sides in a full story.
I am a veterinarian in the Baltimore area. My dog was severly burned by the shock collar provided by invisible fence, SEVEN burn holes and an eight inch circular burn area on the skin. I was never informed by Invisible Fince of Baltimore that this could happen.I called the company and the owner was aware that this could happen but would not take responsibility for his defective product. People
NEVER use this product it causes pain and suffering to your dog if affected.I had it installed inside my chain link fence to keep one of my dogs in. I now am having railroad ties places on the outside of the chain link fence. My dogs will NEVER wear these collars again. I feel so guilty about not researching this product first!
Feel free to contact me with your stories, I am compiling a listof complaints.
Marian Siegel, VMD Owings Mills, Md