Posted on 05/28/2005 11:24:50 AM PDT by Timmy
I just bought an Innotek invisible dog fence, but I need about 1000' of additional wire. Do I have to buy their add-on or is there something at the hardware store I can use? Thanks for any help.
I used the Pet-Safe system. For two dogs and 1.5 acres of coverage it cost me $250. It took two weeks to do the training and they are quite well adjusted to the system.
I got shocked one time when of the dogs jumped a stone wall and got stuck on the wire. I grabbbed him to pick him up and I got zapped good.
One thing I did for the twisted wire that runs out of the house (about 80 feet) to start the run was: I tied the two ends of the wire to a pole. I then put the other ends in a drill and pulled it tight. Then I ran the drill till I got about 12 to 14 twists per foot. I used 12ga. THHN for this. Be careful when you open the chuck for the wires will want to untwist and it was pretty wild.
It will run about .06 per foot, or $60 if you are a retail customer. The black is most UV resistant. Even burried an inch, the black holds up better.
Heard a lot of funny stories about these systems. My cousin's dog refused to go outside after being zapped. A friend of my wife's son picking on a neighbor put the collar on him to see if he would get zapped, yes it worked.
What kind of dog do you have? Certain breeds of dogs should NEVER be subjected to an invisible fence. Especially sighthounds. Sometimes the shocks can make the dog very mean too.
A lot of hounds will just grit their teeth and run through an invisible fence. They understand what the consequence will be and just decide that the game they're chasing is worth it. Jacks are also notorious for doing this. (Of course, Jacks are notorious for doing a lot of things.)
The average Beagle will go through those things like they aren't there.
I have a basenji that I inherited from my brother. He is both a sighthound and a scenthound. When my brother had him, they installed an electric fence. I don't think that they gave the poor dog enough of a perimeter and he got to be quite neurotic from the fence. Now that I have him, he gets walks daily.
I have a basenji, too. He is of African lineage, not far removed from his jackal antecedents. In my opinion, Devildogs--er, I meant to say basenjis--need more exercise than a lot of dogs twice their size, and one walk a day is not going to do it. Mine gets about five miles of running a day, plus some ball-playing, plus playing with my little boy. I would never trust a basenji with the electric fence. If a sighthound sees something edible moving in the distance, he'll chase it until he's killed it. He'll have a full tummy but you may never see him again.
And don't forget that basenjis can climb regular fences and small trees. Mine went fifteen feet up into a cherry tree after a squirrel. That was the most outraged squirrel in the world. Dogs aren't supposed to climb trees!
Reading both posts reminded me of my basenji, Gracie. We had a large backyard and she used to run the perimeter of the fence like she was running laps.
Unfortunately some tree trimmers came into the backyard and didn't close one of the gates to the fence. Needless to say, she was gone as soon as she discovered the open gate. I searched for her for close to two months, posted notices in all of the area shelters, posted flyers, newspaper lost and found, and drove around looking for her but never saw her again.
I'm all for people containing their pets but I don't get the invisible fence thing.
Surely it is hurtful and confusing to the dog. I suppose they may get used to it. I guess I'll leave that opinion to the dog experts.
But what really gets me is the invisible fence does not protect your dog from OTHER dogs. Isn't that half of the reason for having a fence? Keep things in and safe and keep bad unwanted things out?
Well, what do you know? Our own little freeper basenji club! I walk my Senji several times a day. He's like my personal trainer. He's a good dog by basenji standards...shreads papers occasionally. He doesn't try to escape too often anymore, now that he knows he gets regular walks. I walk him on an extendable leash to give him some room to roam. Fortunately there are some wooded areas around here. Loves chasing those squirrels and rabbits! We have a small, fenced-in area in the front yard. When the mailman comes, he goes nuts and runs around in circles in the enclosure for a while. He hasn't climbed over the fence yet, but he can jump the neighbor's 4' high retaining wall.
I am so sorry for your loss. Thank you for reminding me to get my bad boy chipped pronto. I hope it helps a little to know that you will see your dear dog on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge someday.
You MUST put the white flags along your parameter until the dogs are trained. The dogs learn by sight - when they see the flags, they back away. Most dogs will learn, however I had a friend with some big Rotties who would grimmace, and bear thru the radio fence. They would twitch a little, a small price to pay for roaming the open pastures.
Good advice from Morgan. You will need to make sure you get the proper shielding and gauge for outdoor use. Your local HW store should be able to assist
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