Invisible fence - YorkieTalk.com Forums

Leigh22 · 06-25-2009, 04:47 PM

We're thinking about getting an invisible fence:

1.We can't have a real fence in our neighborhood. I want him to be able to run around and play without a leash.

2.I'm not worried about something trying to get him. We live on a golf course in midland South Carolina. The only things that come in our yard are rabbits and newbie golfers.

3. Most dogs can get across standard size fences but this can cause accidents where a dog is punctured by a chain link or scraped on a wooden fence top.

4.Electronic systems may short out during a lightening strike or more usually as a result of careless digging around the perimeter.

5. Sometimes they will go beyond the barrier, once they are on the wrong side of the fence the dog is less likely to return home voluntarily. But he would not be left unattended, so if he runs across the barrier I can run after him immediately.

6. The shocking. I swear before I would put his shock collar on him, I would put it on myself. I would try every setting just in case. I don't want to deliberately hurt my dog, but my understanding is that the shock is more of an annoyance.

I do want opinions; the good, the bad and the ugly. I want to get as much information as possible before I make the decision to get one.

k9trainer · 06-25-2009, 04:54 PM

Your dog is a yorkshire terrier. He WILL chase rabbits and golphers. A invisible fence will NOT stop this when the dog has it in its mind to chase. They forget about the schock they will get. Because dogs dont rationalize. If he does chase a rabbit out of the yard, it WILL prevent him from coming back into the yard, because it will Zap them coming back in too. And if hes not chasing he will remember that. And will avoid it.

And im sorry, but chasing him when he gets to the other side will acomplish nothing. He will run from you, if hes going after an animal. And if you chase him, he might think its a game and play "keep away" with you. thats frustrating. So, if you dont worry about catching him if he gets outside the fence, he must have solid recall then.. right?.. And if he has 100% SOLID recall, Why the need for the fence?..

dennabelle · 06-25-2009, 05:19 PM

I have the Petsafe wireless on my big dog (chow shepherd mix) and it works awesome for him. I got this because he wanted to chase cows, horses, cars, and whatever else moved. I figured if I didnt do something he would be dead. But it has several settings and it does SHOCK and it does HURT. Been there and tested it myself. And it is on collar and it hits on their neck. I would not try this for a yorkie for I havent seen any real small collars at that. The collar that came with it is for a bigger dog. Now my ex-mother-in-law does have one on her small schnauzer. He first had a hard time lugging it around (they are a bit heavy) but he is fine now. It will definitely keep them in yard, but can't see putting one on a small dog.

Leigh22 · 06-26-2009, 10:56 AM

Thank you.
So that's out. Our next option was to get some fencing and make a pen for him in our side yard. I just wanted to give him as much room to play in as we could.

DiamondsMom · 06-26-2009, 11:15 AM

I have the invisible fence on my boxer but would never put it on a yorkie. They are just too little in my humble opinion. You could get a 10x10 or 10x20 dog kennel for less money and it's portable if you move.

dennabelle · 06-26-2009, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiamondsMom

I have the invisible fence on my boxer but would never put it on a yorkie. They are just too little in my humble opinion. You could get a 10x10 or 10x20 dog kennel for less money and it's portable if you move.

I agree, especially with all the problems yorkies could have with their little necks and throats. I just have a harness on Bells, no collar.

yorkiepaws · 06-26-2009, 04:02 PM

I personally would vote against the electric fence. I know my dog very well and I know she would risk the shock just to get at what she wanted to get at. She is very willful. And my other main concern would be theft. I have heard too many stories lately about Yorkies being stolen. Just a chance I would not want to take.

pieper.melissa · 06-27-2009, 11:52 PM

My fiance and I recently went through the same dilemma as you. We spent about a month debating on whether to put in an invisible fence. We eventually decided to go with an invisible fence instead of a traditional above ground. We have a small yard, our dogs are NEVER unattended outside, they tangle me with their leashes multiple times a day, and I wanted them to enjoy their yard as much as possible. We had the fence installed approximately three weeks ago and I'm glad we did. Both of our dogs are pure bred yorkies, one is 5lbs and the other is 8lbs. I was sooooo worried about putting the collar on my smaller yorkie especially. However, I was pleasantly surprised once we began training her to use the fence properly. My biggest complaint with the fence is that it will shock them when they try to run back. Thus far, we have not had any major issues, my younger pup has taken to the fence quite well and knows her boundaries. At first, whenever she would hear the chirping from her collar as a warning she would look for bugs. Now she just hops back into the "safe" part of the yard. My other dog is less than thrilled with the fence but that's because she thinks she is the boss. She acts the same with her no bark citronella collar, she acts as if both collars break her spirit. She has a great deal of attitude and I believe her issue is ego related only. At first she did not want to be in the yard but now they roam around relatively freely, with my supervision of course. We have even gotten to the point where they can roam around the garage and on the driveway and when I tell them to stay close they stay within seeing distance. Although the training manual tells you to not say anything when they get close to the line, I tell both mine "be careful". They seem to understand the command and back up immediately. We are still supervising my older pup with breaking her boundaries. The first day we allowed her off leash for supervision she ran through the fence and didn't get shocked. We soon discovered the boundary setting was too low, we adjusted the setting forgetting that it would make the collar less effective. Since we readjusted the boundary control we have had no problems. Overall I would highly recommend the fence. Also, if you are concerned with the level of shock they get, its only a static shock. I would never do anything to hurt my babies they are much too important to me. I have no children (yet) so they are more or less my kids. My youngest pup is my baby, she will scream bloody murder even if you come up behind and scare her and even she didn't yipe. I would definitely do plenty of research, as we did, and make the decision that's right for you. Good luck!

pieper.melissa · 06-27-2009, 11:55 PM

I forgot to mention that another reason we chose the invisible fence was due to our homeowners association. They are very strict on the type of fencing allowed and kennels were included. If you do make a pen for your pup make sure the fencing you pick does not violate any terms with your homeowners. Some are more strict than others.

pieper.melissa · 06-28-2009, 12:09 AM

I forgot to mention that another reason we chose the invisible fence was due to our homeowners association. They are very strict on the type of fencing allowed and kennels were included. If you do make a pen for your pup make sure the fencing you pick does not violate any terms with your homeowners. Some are more strict than others.

YorkieMother · 06-29-2009, 09:13 AM

Some dogs do just fine on these fences.
Some bust right through.
Some get burns.
Some gain a great fear of anything that beeps.
Some do just fine.

These things are a roll of the dice and one I would not be comfortable with.

But they are your dogs and it is your choice.

Jl

Leigh22 · 06-29-2009, 07:25 PM

So my mother went out and bought fencing without telling anyone what she was doing. She opposed the invisible fence. Anyhooters, we have it up and I'll have to post some pictures for you guys.
Thanks for all the input, but there's no arguing with mom.

06-25-2009, 04:47 PM	#1
Leigh22 Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2009 Location: Sumter, SC Posts: 120	Invisible fence We're thinking about getting an invisible fence: 1.We can't have a real fence in our neighborhood. I want him to be able to run around and play without a leash. 2.I'm not worried about something trying to get him. We live on a golf course in midland South Carolina. The only things that come in our yard are rabbits and newbie golfers. 3. Most dogs can get across standard size fences but this can cause accidents where a dog is punctured by a chain link or scraped on a wooden fence top. 4.Electronic systems may short out during a lightening strike or more usually as a result of careless digging around the perimeter. 5. Sometimes they will go beyond the barrier, once they are on the wrong side of the fence the dog is less likely to return home voluntarily. But he would not be left unattended, so if he runs across the barrier I can run after him immediately. 6. The shocking. I swear before I would put his shock collar on him, I would put it on myself. I would try every setting just in case. I don't want to deliberately hurt my dog, but my understanding is that the shock is more of an annoyance. I do want opinions; the good, the bad and the ugly. I want to get as much information as possible before I make the decision to get one. __________________ "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face."

06-25-2009, 04:54 PM	#2
k9trainer Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: canada Posts: 116	Your dog is a yorkshire terrier. He WILL chase rabbits and golphers. A invisible fence will NOT stop this when the dog has it in its mind to chase. They forget about the schock they will get. Because dogs dont rationalize. If he does chase a rabbit out of the yard, it WILL prevent him from coming back into the yard, because it will Zap them coming back in too. And if hes not chasing he will remember that. And will avoid it. And im sorry, but chasing him when he gets to the other side will acomplish nothing. He will run from you, if hes going after an animal. And if you chase him, he might think its a game and play "keep away" with you. thats frustrating. So, if you dont worry about catching him if he gets outside the fence, he must have solid recall then.. right?.. And if he has 100% SOLID recall, Why the need for the fence?.. Last edited by k9trainer; 06-25-2009 at 04:57 PM.

06-26-2009, 10:56 AM	#4
Leigh22 Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2009 Location: Sumter, SC Posts: 120	Thank you. So that's out. Our next option was to get some fencing and make a pen for him in our side yard. I just wanted to give him as much room to play in as we could. __________________ "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face."

06-26-2009, 04:02 PM	#7
yorkiepaws Owned by "Lil Rat" Donating Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Maryland Posts: 1,055	I personally would vote against the electric fence. I know my dog very well and I know she would risk the shock just to get at what she wanted to get at. She is very willful. And my other main concern would be theft. I have heard too many stories lately about Yorkies being stolen. Just a chance I would not want to take. __________________ Mommy to Himalaya and Kitty

06-27-2009, 11:52 PM	#8
pieper.melissa Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: MO Posts: 35	My fiance and I recently went through the same dilemma as you. We spent about a month debating on whether to put in an invisible fence. We eventually decided to go with an invisible fence instead of a traditional above ground. We have a small yard, our dogs are NEVER unattended outside, they tangle me with their leashes multiple times a day, and I wanted them to enjoy their yard as much as possible. We had the fence installed approximately three weeks ago and I'm glad we did. Both of our dogs are pure bred yorkies, one is 5lbs and the other is 8lbs. I was sooooo worried about putting the collar on my smaller yorkie especially. However, I was pleasantly surprised once we began training her to use the fence properly. My biggest complaint with the fence is that it will shock them when they try to run back. Thus far, we have not had any major issues, my younger pup has taken to the fence quite well and knows her boundaries. At first, whenever she would hear the chirping from her collar as a warning she would look for bugs. Now she just hops back into the "safe" part of the yard. My other dog is less than thrilled with the fence but that's because she thinks she is the boss. She acts the same with her no bark citronella collar, she acts as if both collars break her spirit. She has a great deal of attitude and I believe her issue is ego related only. At first she did not want to be in the yard but now they roam around relatively freely, with my supervision of course. We have even gotten to the point where they can roam around the garage and on the driveway and when I tell them to stay close they stay within seeing distance. Although the training manual tells you to not say anything when they get close to the line, I tell both mine "be careful". They seem to understand the command and back up immediately. We are still supervising my older pup with breaking her boundaries. The first day we allowed her off leash for supervision she ran through the fence and didn't get shocked. We soon discovered the boundary setting was too low, we adjusted the setting forgetting that it would make the collar less effective. Since we readjusted the boundary control we have had no problems. Overall I would highly recommend the fence. Also, if you are concerned with the level of shock they get, its only a static shock. I would never do anything to hurt my babies they are much too important to me. I have no children (yet) so they are more or less my kids. My youngest pup is my baby, she will scream bloody murder even if you come up behind and scare her and even she didn't yipe. I would definitely do plenty of research, as we did, and make the decision that's right for you. Good luck! __________________ Roxy's Mommy

06-25-2009, 05:19 PM	#3
dennabelle Yorkie Yakker Join Date: May 2009 Location: Ellenboro, NC USA Posts: 40	I have the Petsafe wireless on my big dog (chow shepherd mix) and it works awesome for him. I got this because he wanted to chase cows, horses, cars, and whatever else moved. I figured if I didnt do something he would be dead. But it has several settings and it does SHOCK and it does HURT. Been there and tested it myself. And it is on collar and it hits on their neck. I would not try this for a yorkie for I havent seen any real small collars at that. The collar that came with it is for a bigger dog. Now my ex-mother-in-law does have one on her small schnauzer. He first had a hard time lugging it around (they are a bit heavy) but he is fine now. It will definitely keep them in yard, but can't see putting one on a small dog.

06-26-2009, 11:15 AM	#5
DiamondsMom Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Dayton, OH USA Posts: 34	I have the invisible fence on my boxer but would never put it on a yorkie. They are just too little in my humble opinion. You could get a 10x10 or 10x20 dog kennel for less money and it's portable if you move.

06-27-2009, 11:55 PM	#9
pieper.melissa Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: MO Posts: 35	I forgot to mention that another reason we chose the invisible fence was due to our homeowners association. They are very strict on the type of fencing allowed and kennels were included. If you do make a pen for your pup make sure the fencing you pick does not violate any terms with your homeowners. Some are more strict than others. __________________ Roxy's Mommy

06-28-2009, 12:09 AM	#10
pieper.melissa Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: MO Posts: 35	I forgot to mention that another reason we chose the invisible fence was due to our homeowners association. They are very strict on the type of fencing allowed and kennels were included. If you do make a pen for your pup make sure the fencing you pick does not violate any terms with your homeowners. Some are more strict than others. __________________ Roxy's Mommy

06-29-2009, 09:13 AM	#11
YorkieMother YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: North Posts: 1,030	Some dogs do just fine on these fences. Some bust right through. Some get burns. Some gain a great fear of anything that beeps. Some do just fine. These things are a roll of the dice and one I would not be comfortable with. But they are your dogs and it is your choice. Jl __________________ "The truth about an animal is far more beautiful than all the myths woven about it." Konrad Loranz

06-29-2009, 07:25 PM	#12
Leigh22 Donating Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2009 Location: Sumter, SC Posts: 120	So my mother went out and bought fencing without telling anyone what she was doing. She opposed the invisible fence. Anyhooters, we have it up and I'll have to post some pictures for you guys. Thanks for all the input, but there's no arguing with mom. __________________ "There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face."