My parents dog runs through the wireless fence pretty easily. I am not sure what to do. I assume there are at least 3 things to try.
Increase the voltage of the fence. My dad tried this once and it basically made the fence area so wide that the dog couldn’t walk around the yard anymore.
Get a stronger collar. I have heard they have collars that are more intense for dogs that don’t listen to it.
Behavioral modification. Find out what behaviors cause dogs to want to leave and try to find other ways to address that. I’m not sure if taking the dog to the park every weekend or so will satiate it’s desire to escape or not since it’ll get a chance to be in new areas with new dogs.
I don’t have it with me, so I can’t go into more detail, but there’s a pretty extensive section in Temple Grandin’s latest book Animals in Translation where she discusses that phenomenon. I think there were some suggestions offered, too. I know she does have a chapter on training at the end of the book.
Depending on the kind of wireless fence, you should be able to increase the width of the shock field and the intensity of the shock separately. Ours is set on like 3.5 shock level (out of 5), but with a fairly narrow field. (Our yard is only like 4 feet wide on one side, so the wire is right next to the house. Otherwise, there would be two rooms of the house that her access was limited in.)
Some dogs just aren’t good candidates for shock fences. My former coworker had a dog who would decide when it was worth it to get zapped and go over the line when he wanted to.
You could also try putting up a conventional fence, or keeping the dog inside except when you take it out for walks. Dogs are pack animals, and they are happier when they can be inside and interact with their human pack, rather than staying outside by themselves.
You should do that anyway, just on general principle, unless it is a champion show dog. There are too many unwanted dogs and puppies as it is. There just isn’t nearly as much demand for puppies as there are puppies being born every day, so far too many puppies end up euthanized. Please do the responsible thing and get your parents’ dog spayed.
Very important thing to remember when you have a shock-collar fence - just because your dog can’t get out, doesn’t mean other dogs can’t get in. Please get the dog spayed as soon as possible, or get her inside!
As was stated earlier, some dogs just “handle it like an man” :rolleyes: and decide to accept the pain for their freedom…what kind of poochie. I had both a Malamute and a Siberian that were oblivious to ANY type of shock.
you could also try removing some fur where the electrodes are as to increase the skin contact area.
good luck…and oh yeah…Spaying or neutering is a Great idea!
And some dogs just can’t be trusted outside without a leash. If you must let her outside for long periods of time, get a runner leash that hooks to the clothes-line.
The following is not meant as criticism, but some question to try to identify a possible source of the problem.
How well was the dog trained to understand where the shock is and what to do?
Did you spend time with the dog making sure that it knows to return to the yard when there is a shock?
Since I probably won’t be on too much this weekend, I won’t be able to respond to any of your answers. Suffice to say that I am suggesting that maybe you need to work on the training that goes along with the fence. (And even if you’re happy with how much you’ve done it before, a little retraining mught not be a bad idea.)
I was going to ask a similar question. I know of too many people that install the wire, throw the collar on the dog, and think the dog will learn by trial and error.
You actually need to mark the wire visually for the dog (usually little flags) for a few months and then train the dog with a leash. You walk them around the yard with some slack so they can wander and then when they get close to the wire and the collar beeps or shocks them you immediately pull them back towards you into the yard. They can then learn their boundaries and know how to retreat properly. You do this daily for a few weeks and then progress to being in the yard with them but no leash. You can eventually get to the point where you stand outside your yard with a treat, call them over to you, and they will no pass their boundaries. It just takes time and training.
Also, some coats may resist the collar. My poodle didn’t even notice the shock until we changed the prongs and made them slightly longer… he has a dense, curly, strong coat.
We had all the flags set up at first, so I don’t think that is the problem. If you are playing with the dog and the collar starts beeping she usually goes in the other direction. But I think she is the type that doesn’t mind the shock when she has something important on her mind. Her fur is pretty thick so maybe that is a problem.
I have looked up collars and seen some that come with remotes. Those should be helpful in case it runs away, but I wonder if that will just confuse the dog.
Either that, or cut the hair where the collar prongs touch.
I’ve never trusted invisible fences. I’ve yet to see a dog who wouldn’t barrel through one if the provocation/temptation was strong enough.
But, then again, I’m paranoid about letting my dogs outside and I have a six-foot fence around my entire yard. I watch them like a hawk while they’re outside, and bring them in as soon as they’ve answered nature’s call. There’s just too many Bad Things that can happen: dog-nappings (high in my area because of dog-fighting rings), poisonings, both accidental and malicious, maulings by wild or loose domesicated animals, escaping and being hit by a car . . . I have a tiny Jack Russel-- I put him on a tie-out leash even in the fenced yard because he might be able to squeeze beneath the fence.
It wasn’t so much where they touched as the natural curl of the fur acting like springs to keep the collar bouncing up off the skin. Would have had to shave almost his entire neck.
Another vote for making sure its making contact with the skin. We got a training collar for our retriever/hound mix, and the regular barbs didn’t do anything at all (it took a few days to notice that it wasn’t actually doing anything. I finally confirmed this by holding the collar right next to her neck and pushing the button, and when she continued laying there like nothing happend, I put the longer barbs on). If the collar didn’t come with longer barbs, you can always shave or trim the hair on the dog’s neck some.
