Did You know A Wireless Fence Could Save Your Pet?
by Matthew Penrod
I remember when I grew up we lived in the country and everyone in the neighborhood owned a dog. The streets had little traffic and there was lots of space between the houses and lots of woods and fields for all to roam. You could expect to see any of your friend's dogs during the course of your travels during the day. It seemed more like the dogs belonged to the neighborhood, but each dog knew where to go for their dinner and when it was time to sleep. When I turned 16 and began driving, I remember seeing my dog a mile or so away from our house and pulling over in the car to give her a ride home. From the look on her face I could tell she had a great day exploring the woods, chasing scents, and probably getting into a bit of mischief. She also looked glad to see me and exhausted. I knew she appreciated the lift.
While I look back on those days fondly, those days are long gone. More and more people are particular about other people's animals on their property and the damage that those dogs can do. A roaming dog may not understand leash laws, clean up rules, or fences, but people do. Irresponsible pet owners have made problems for everyone. This is why most communities have legislation, or at least a local understanding, that your dog needs to stay on your property. Even though I have those happy memories, I'll admit this isn't all a bad thing.
There are a lot of options out there to help you keep your dog in the yard, including traditional fencing and leashing when your pet is outside. An outdoor pen or a cable or dog run can also be a possible option. Each one has its own pluses and minuses. One relatively new method for keeping dogs contained is use of radio frequencies to establish a boundary for your pet. These are also called invisible fences or wireless fences.
Let's take a look at some of the good and bad things about each method of keeping your dog where he or she needs to be.
Traditional fencing - These are very effective against dogs that don't clime or dig, but if the gate is accidentally left open, they become ineffective. This option is also relatively costly in most cases, and limited to back yards only.
Cable tethering and outdoor pens - These can be extremely restrictive, and cable tethers can cause harm to your dog if he or she gets tangled up in them. Dogs mostly stay in one spot in the majority of these situations, even with long cables and large pens. Using this type of setup can cause a lot of stress and turn into behavior problems later.
Wireless Pet Fencing - This option uses fairly basic technology to help you train your dog where his boundary is and provides an influential reason for him to choose to stay in his own yard.
Since everyone understands how the traditional methods work, I wanted to elaborate on the newest method and explain how it works while addressing some common questions.
Why A Wireless Fence?
There are lots of reasons to pick this option for helping contian your pet. In many cases, your community may not allow a traditional fence, since community groups prefer an open look. However, even in areas that allow traditional or chain link fences, wireless fences might be a useful option. If you choose to contain your dog with this method, digging under or jumping through or over the fence is impossible. You can also give your pet access to both the front and back yard, and you don't need to worry about leaving the gate open.
The way this technology works is that a radio transmitter is installed inside the house. The dog is wearing a collar that that knows when it is within the user set boundary. When the collar senses it is about to leave the "safe" area it gives a warning tone and then an electric stimulus if the dog doesn't choose to move back towards the radio transmitter. With proper training, the dog quickly learns his boundaries and decides that he doesn't want to receive the electric stimulus. It's that simple. Naturally, with any electronic device, there are a myriad of options and features that can be had, but the basic concept remains the same.
A lot of people have questions when they learn about this new technology. The first one is whether or not it really works, and the answer is yes. The majority of companies producing this kind of technology report around a ninety-nine percent rate of success.
The next question is, is it cruel? Well, this can easily be debated at length, but in my opinion the answer is a resounding "no". Not because the negative stimulus isn't unpleasant, because it is (if it wasn't it wouldn't work!). What most people don't know is that a properly trained dog may only receive this stimulus a small handful of times in his entire life (most during the initial week of training). In exchange for this handful of negative experiences your dog will obediently stay in his own yard and avoid the possibility of truly serious injury or possible death from getting hit by a car. In addition, your dog will avoid spending endless hours at the end of a cable or chain or prison-like confinement in a pen.
The next question is why would I need this if I already have a real fence? The answer to this is that you may not, but you may wish to for several reasons. You may not need this option if your dog stays in the yard and probably would not run off if a gate were left open. But, many dogs only see a traditional fence as a puzzle to solve. They either figure out a way to dig or chew through a traditional fence. I owned a dog years ago that was able to pull apart a chain link fence and break the welds of welded wire fencing. This dog did incredible things when a storm was approaching. This same dog even learned to vertically climb many fences. Even if a traditional fence successfully contains your dog, the owner may choose to add an wireless fence in order to take advantage of some of their benefits. A wireless fence can add access to the front yard for your dog and will prevent your dog from running through an open gate.
There are lots of things you'll need to think about when you decide to own a pet, and keeping him or her safely contained is one of them. Letting your pet run isn't a choice anymore, and it's irresponsible. Be responsible and find the best way to keep your dog where he or she needs to be. - 20511
Matthew Penrod is an expert on pets and maintains a (http://www.petgateltd.com) pet gate and dog fence website. If you are looking for a pet containment system then look no further than the PetGateLTD.com. You can find an assortment of pet supplies including underground dog fence products and (http://www.petgateltd.com) wireless dog fence equipment.
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New Unique Article!
Title: Did You know A Wireless Fence Could Save Your Pet?
Author: Matthew Penrod
Email: slick_mo@hotmail.com
Keywords: pet gate,dog fence,pet containment,pets,dogs,cats,home,family
Word Count: 1154
Category: dog
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