Invisible Fences

[buggyone]

Yesterday, my wife and I were driving on Talley Ridge Drive and we spotted a miniature Dobie running on the road with no owner around. We stopped and I went over to the dog to see if he had an ID tag - he didn't. He did have the electronic gizmo on his collar for an invisible fence. After the dog sniffed my hand, I picked him up and we went home and got a leash. My wife went house by house on a couple of streets nearby asking if they knew of a Miniature Doberman in the area. I walked the dog up and down the streets to see if he knew where he lived - he didn't.

My wife's search turned up a neighbor of the family who owned the dog and she went to that house. The dog had not been missed and the owners were really surprised he was gone.

I met my wife at the car and we drove the dog back home. Family re-united! Glad the search had a happy ending. People with invisible fences should check periodically to see if the collar devices have enough battery power to still work. I don't know if that was the case or if the dog had just broken through and could not get back in.

We met some nice people in the asking around and everyone seemed to like dogs. Made me feel good! (I do not have a dog.)

[quirky3]

You sound like very special people to do all that. They are a lucky family, and hopefully they take your advice!

[philnpat]

Yesterday, my wife and I were driving on Talley Ridge Drive and we spotted a miniature Dobie running on the road with no owner around. We stopped and I went over to the dog to see if he had an ID tag - he didn't. He did have the electronic gizmo on his collar for an invisible fence. After the dog sniffed my hand, I picked him up and we went home and got a leash. My wife went house by house on a couple of streets nearby asking if they knew of a Miniature Doberman in the area. I walked the dog up and down the streets to see if he knew where he lived - he didn't.

My wife's search turned up a neighbor of the family who owned the dog and she went to that house. The dog had not been missed and the owners were really surprised he was gone.

I met my wife at the car and we drove the dog back home. Family re-united! Glad the search had a happy ending. People with invisible fences should check periodically to see if the collar devices have enough battery power to still work. I don't know if that was the case or if the dog had just broken through and could not get back in.

We met some nice people in the asking around and everyone seemed to like dogs. Made me feel good! (I do not have a dog.)


You're correct. The batteries need to be checked and replaced at least quarterly. We had an "Invisible Fence" brand. They sent us replacement batteries every 3 months.

[graciegirl]

I have always liked Buggy one from his posts. This just reinforces those good feelings about a nice person.

[buggyone]

I have always liked Buggy one from his posts. This just reinforces those good feelings about a nice person.

Thanks but the post was not about me but a reminder for folks to change batteries on a regular basis in their collar gizmos.

I do have a real soft spot for dogs and cats, though.

[kittygilchrist]

I'm not usually scared of dogs but I knew a terror of a minpin so you're a hero in my book for picking a stray one up! Well done.

[BarryRX]

No man stands so tall as when he stoops to help a child (or a dog)! Thanks for doing that!

[ugotme]

Excellent job.

A question please.
I will be looking into the "invisible fence" for our yard. I am of the opinion that I would not leave my mutt out by herself because any dog can run through this.

Do most people leave their dog out unattended?

Just curious not commenting !!!!

[TV MAN]

We have a Pet Stop Fence another version of the "invisible fence" (Just different brand) and our dog has learned the boundary quite quickly. However that being said it will not prevent another dog or person, or critter (aka gator) from entering your yard. So it is a good idea to keep an eye on your dog while he is outside. It also depends on what type of dog and how the fence is setup for a boundary. We just had Hidden Fence come by to install the wire in the ground so that we can bring our receiver down and install it when we are here. He did it in about an hour and no problem that it was a different system. After all it is the wire that is important and that would work on any system.

[Dreamer61]

Your dog should never be left unattended even with an invisible fence!

[Barefoot]

A question please.
I will be looking into the "invisible fence" for our yard. I am of the opinion that I would not leave my mutt out by herself because any dog can run through this.
Do most people leave their dog out unattended?

We have an invisible fence installed by Dog Watch in Ocala. They really helped with the initial training, which is an essential part of having an invisible fence. The invisible fence works equally well for both our 10 lb dog and our 70 lb dog.

In answer to your question, we would never, ever leave our dogs out unsupervised.

If you want to come to our house and see how well our fence works, please just let us know by PM.

[kathymar528]

Excellent job.

A question please.
I will be looking into the "invisible fence" for our yard. I am of the opinion that I would not leave my mutt out by herself because any dog can run through this.

Do most people leave their dog out unattended?

Just curious not commenting !!!!


We just installed an Invisible Fence a couple weeks ago. Our property back home was fenced, so this has been a first for our dogs. They took to it incredibly quick and we've been really pleased. With that said, we do not leave the dogs unattended. It does not stop other dogs from coming into the yard - it just stops your dogs from leaving. Our dogs are overly friendly and I wondered if they would stay in the yard when people walk by...so far so good. But in fairness to my neighbors, I want to be sensitive to how they might feel about a dog being outside without seeing the owner attending to them.
If you decide on Invisible Fence, please PM me. I'd be happy to give you the name of the local rep and his contact number. He did a great job for us.

[njbchbum]

To those with the invisible fence - do your deed restrictions/covenants allow pets to be outside on your property without a leash?

Have always interpreted ours ["Only one dog may be kept by any Owner, provided, however, that at all times said animal, when not within the confines of the Home, shall be restrained by a leash."] to mean that pets must be leashed whenever they leave the house.

[JP]

I got an invisible fence but then I couldn't find it.

Sorry...couldn't resist.

[Toms River T&D]

Dogs should not be left unattended, with or without an invisible fence. It is irresponsible of the dogs owner. I would like the confidence of knowing if I go for a walk I am not going to have a dog leave their yard and potentially have a confrontation. I know most dog owners are very responsible, and they care very much for their dog's safety as well.

[OBXNana]

We have an invisible fence and still have to keep an eye on the dogs. We had excellent training with "bad flag" and the dogs learning to stay away from the flags with the command bad flag. They each had a couple shocks and know to stay within the flagged area. But, if a bunny runs by in another yard they may take off after the bunny. If we're there and say bad flag, they equate the term with the shock and back off. The flags should work, but we have labs with ADHD!

As Toms River T&D said in the above post, the dog owner should not allow the dog to be unattended even with an invisible fence. It may be worth the shock to them to take off after what they see beyond the flag. It's wonderful system allowing them to play in a larger area while supervised, but not a containment that can be guaranteed with all certainty.

[TV MAN]

We have an invisible fence installed by Dog Watch in Ocala. They really helped with the initial training, which is an essential part of having an invisible fence. The invisible fence works equally well for both our 10 lb dog and our 70 lb dog.

In answer to your question, we would never, ever leave our dogs out unsupervised.

If you want to come to our house and see how well our fence works, please just let us know by PM.
Barefoot, Yep that was the same company that came down to install our wire. And they will come back for retraining.
Well I just found out that I will be down on a permanent basis sooner than I thought (Yeah) but due to layoffs here in VA (Boo!). So the timing was perfect after all.

Hope to see ya in one of the squares!
TV Man

[Barefoot]

Barefoot, Yep that was the same company that came down to install our wire. And they will come back for retraining.
Well I just found out that I will be down on a permanent basis sooner than I thought (Yeah) but due to layoffs here in VA (Boo!). So the timing was perfect after all. Hope to see ya in one of the squares! TV Man

I doubt you'll ever regret being in The Villages sooner, rather than later! Happy Days ahead for TV MAN. I hope you'll come to one of the TOTV Crispers luncheons. There are always reminders posted on this site.

The invisible fence works very well for us. The guys at Dog Watch are such nice guys, and as you said, they will come back to help out with retraining.
Invisible fences are the best solution we've got for dog containment (except for CYVs). However as many have pointed out, the dogs always need to be supervised. Predators can come into the yard, or dogs can charge through the fence.

The invisible fence works well for our two dogs, even for our 70 lb Portuguese Water Dog. The ducks waddle up the hill to tease her, cheeky little devils, but she ignores them. Before the fence, she would have chased them back to the pond.

[Dreamer61]

I have an invisible fence as well BUT I also have several neighbors who seem to refuse to put their dogs on a leash. As I always accompany my dog outside I still have to keep my dog on a leash because if by chance they happen to see her in our yard they'll run over and my girl is not a socializer. I've asked them nicely to keep them on a lease but no luck. I don't want to cause any trouble for anyone so I'm not sure how to handle this. I would appreciate your suggestions!

[BettyCrocked]

I have a question for those with the invisible fence. I plan on getting one and I've seen the flags lining the border of a yard. I always thought those flags were a temporary thing but I'm now thinking I'm wrong after reading your posts. Do you have to leave those flags in the ground? What about when the landscape people come to mow or edge? Do you have to go pull up the flags then put them back?

[Dreamer61]

The flags are temporary! Our mowers just mowed around them until they all came up.

[DonH57]

I have a question for those with the invisible fence. I plan on getting one and I've seen the flags lining the border of a yard. I always thought those flags were a temporary thing but I'm now thinking I'm wrong after reading your posts. Do you have to leave those flags in the ground? What about when the landscape people come to mow or edge? Do you have to go pull up the flags then put them back?

The flags are a temporary thing and are a visual training aid for your dog. The dog will associate the location of the flags with the warning tone if he or she gets to close . When we installed ours I let all our neighbors know why the flags were there. I'm always present in our yard when our dog is out with a lease ready and have never had an issue with having our dog under control. Yes a dog could bolt thru an invisible fence as easily as break a physical lease. All are containment systems. The only problem I have had is with other irresponsible dog owners walking their dogs on the street now having to yank their dogs away from our yard because it's one less yard to mess in but I have had some let their dog meet our dog and socialize.

[Barefoot]

I have a question for those with the invisible fence. I plan on getting one and I've seen the flags lining the border of a yard. I always thought those flags were a temporary thing but I'm now thinking I'm wrong ...

Betty, the flags are temporary, used for training. The training part of the Invisable Fence process is extremely important.

We had our flags in the ground for about one week. During that week we trained every day.