Anyone here using Invisible Fence? Does it work?

[Jimmy9190]

Mrs. Jimmy and I are considering getting a Golden Retriever. Our HOA does not allow the installation of a standard chain link or wooden fence, but they do allow the use of Invisible Fence. The Invisible Fence web site has some promising info but I need real details on it. If anyone here uses or has used it, how good or bad is it? Does it really work to keep the dog in the yard? Did you have any problems with it? I appreciate any info you might have. Thanks.

 

[Alex_V]

My wife and in-laws use it and it's effective. When it's functioning correctly our dog refuses to go past it. If the underground wire gets broken the transmitter will flash alerting you to a problem, but once all their/our dogs learn the boundary they don't immediately run across it and off into the next county when it goes in-op. And their system (not terribly high-featured) allows you to adjust the collar's shock strength so a dog that freaks at the very idea of it doesn't get lit up when they take a step too far. The hound mix, on the other hand, needs it turned all the way up to keep him in.

 

[xshoex]

Family member has it. Works for 2 smaller dogs

 

[Mr Nice]

My brother has it for his 2 dogs and it works very well.

I could not imagine living in a place and HOA said no fences.

 

[69GTX]

I've seen several neighbors use this and their dogs respected the boundaries. There was one exception though. That house had a pair of aggressive labs that broke through that boundary a couple of times to chase down people and/or their dogs being walked. As I recall at least one of those resulted in a bite. It's not fool-proof, though pretty effective.

 

[Gebo]

I had the Invisible Fence brand for 5 years. It worked but I had yearly repairs at about $125 per trip. I finally got tired of this and called a competitor, Dog Watch. They came out and fixed all the spots where the Invisible Fence had had problems in the past. They showed me the parts they used to make repairs and their parts were far superior in how they were made. Their connectors were very different and much more heavy duty.

In conclusion, after Dog Watch came out and installed their system (we continued to use the Invisible Fence wiring) I have had NO repairs in 16 years. They have replaced 2 of my dog collars under warranty...Lifetime warranty.

For where I live, Invisible Fence is very inferior to Dog Watch. I wasted a lot of money with getting the "same" repairs done every year. No repairs with Dog Watch.

 

[spasm3]

They work well if you take the time to train the dog. If you just throw the collars on and hope it works, it may, or it may not.

You need to walk the dog on a leash up to the flags, and as his collar beeps, pull him back to the house. Keep doing this around the perimeter. Then your train them that the sound comes before the shock, again on a leash. Let them hear the sound, step out and when they receive a shock, immediatly take them back to the front door for a treat. You want them to learn which way to run when they get a correction, otherwise they just run, outside the fence and can't get back in. You have to do this several days then watch and be with them off leash when they get a correction, run back to the front door with them for a treat. The learned responce is to respect the sound, and to condition the habit of which way to run when shocked.

I installed a petsafe fence, it seems to work well. Every couple of years i do seem to have to swap a control module out( they refurbish them).
My brother in law has the Invisible Fence brand , and he has to have them replace the fence controller to every so often.

I think is because we have so many tall trees around us , and lighting runs in on them through the earth, when a close tree is struck.

 

[JimPghPA]

My brothers neighbor has it and it works. We had a party at my brothers house including his back yard and that neighbors dog was out but would not leave its property. That dog wanted to be with the people at the party but respected the invisible fence. I think one of the things that is important is how smart the dog is. A smart dog like a Golden Retriever probably would quickly learn the limits imposed by the invisible fence.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

We've had a radio "invisible" fence for almost 30 years. At our old place for 10, and here since we built for about 20.

It all boils down to how much time you're willing to spend in training. We currently have two beagles, a breed that is notorious for putting their nose to the ground and ignoring boundaries. It took a couple weeks of daily training, along with a couple/three months of collar training, and they never, ever leave the boundaries of the fence. At this point we rarely ever use the collars, they simply don't go out of the yard even without the collars.

We're also very careful to never show them that without the collars they could leave the property-any time we take them out front it's through the garage and not outside around the garage.

I rented a trencher and put the cable in myself. We purchased the Sport Dog controller and collars, and have had zero problems with it in 20 years. I don't remember the brand we had at the prior house, but it wasn't the Invisible Fence brand because they didn't have a great reputation for durability. Installation is extremely simple and it works extremely well if you're willing to put in the time and effort to train the dog with it. Just installing the invisible fence and turning the dog loose will not work.

 

[Jimmy9190]

Thanks very much for the info. It will be a few months at least before we actually get a dog, we are working with a local breeder and their next litter is already sold. We probably will not have a dog until September but it gives us time to sort out the fence requirements. We will definitely look into the other brands as well.

 

[bioburner]

Got my Golden from the local shelter. She had just turned one year old. Exercise is the way to keep most dogs happy

 

[eljefino]

My dog learned to run through it quickly and that the pain would end soon.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Not recommended where high people-traffic occurs, Especially those nearby walking dogs constantly.

 

[Shannow]

Originally Posted By: eljefino
My dog learned to run through it quickly and that the pain would end soon.

LOL, that was with my Elkhound and the Citronella collar for barking.

Neighbours reported no improvement...I took a morning off, and drove off as usual, parked around the corner and waited to see.

Akasha barked and barked and barked, until the collar ran out of puff...then did her own thing all day.

 

[svhanc]

It will work well for a Golden Retriever. They are pleaser dogs anyway.
Just make sure you spend the time to acclimate the dog to the boundaries.
I had a more hyper mixed breed dog that wouldn't stay contained. She learned to lie down next to the fence where the collar would beep but it wasn't shocking her yet. She would wait until the collar battery died and then head out. She would sometimes also just run through it and you would hear her yelp when it shocked her.
Eventually I had a chain link fence with an electric wire on top and the invisible fence 3' inside that perimeter. Even with that, if she got it in her mind she would still go. You just heard multiple yelps.

 

[loneryder]

They work but hard headed, head strong dogs will take the shock to run after something. If your Golden is a gentle easy going dog, he should ben fine.

 

[Stregone]

I would never use these things unsupervised. If the dog chases a cat or squirrel across the line they will get shocked when they try to return. Also, it doesn't stop people (or stray dogs, or wildlife) from coming into your yard and doing something to your dog. Both of these aren't a big deal if you are there, but if you are inside taking a shower or something it is a big problem.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Did not work for one of my Golden Retrievers. His desire to be with us overcame any discomfort incurred while running through the fence. He was an idiot of a dog but smart enough to know that he had a lot more velocity running down hill through the fence vs running through it along a section of level ground.