Electric Dog Fences

Electric Dog Fences, also known as pet containment systems, are a safe and effective way of keeping your dog in the yard without having to spend well over 1,000 and countless hours building a physical fence. They majority of these systems operate by a radio signal being sent from a buried wire to a collar the dog wears. In the absence of the radio signal the dog receives no correction or shock. If the dog comes too close to the boundary the collar receives the radio signal which will cause the collar to give a warning (either tone or vibration), a correction (static shock) or both at the same time. There are a wide range of electric dog fences with varying features.

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Basic Containment Systems

A Basic Containment System is designed to keep your dog within the boundary that you determine. The transmitter is plugged into a standard DC outlet. The transmitter has two terminals that the boundary wire connects to. The wire is run out one terminal, around the boundary and then connected into the other terminal. Most systems have a boundary width setting on the transmitter that can be set anywhere from one to 10 feet from each side of the wire. The dog wears the containment collar. There is a pair of prongs, or probes, that must come into contact with the dog's neck. When the dog comes to near to the edge of the boundary around the wire, with most systems they will first receive a warning tone. Some systems, namely the Dogtra EF-3000, use vibration rather than tone. If the dog continues into the boundary, they will receive a shock through the probes. This shock, or correction, is progressive in most systems. This means that the longer the dog stays within the boundary, the stronger successive shocks become. On some systems, the level of correction is set by the user. Its important to note that the wire must make a circuit or continuous loop. If there is a break in the wire, the system will not function.

Contain and Train Systems

A Contain and Train System is the same as a basic containment system, with one big advantage. It has a hand held remote that you can use to remotely correct your dog. You can use this for basic obedience training like teaching your dog to come, sit and stay. It can also be used to correct unwanted behaviors like digging, chewing and jumping up on people. The remote trainer range on contain and train systems is generally limited to less than 300 yards. Also containment collars are not as rugged and durable as high end training collars used for hunting. For these reasons, a contain and train collar is not generally used for training hunting dogs. The remote transmitter on most contain and train systems is independent of the containment transmitter and will work either inside or outside of the containment area. There are some contain and train systems where the remote will only work inside of the containment area, so if it's not clearly stated, it's always a good idea to ask.

Wireless Containment Systems

The Wireless Containment System is the exception to the continuous loop system. It is also the only system that is activated by the absence of a radio signal. With the wireless containment system a transmitter is plugged into a standard DC outlet. It emits a radio signal within a radius that is set on the transmitter, generally from 10 to 90 feet. The dog wears a collar that receives the radio signal. As long as the collar is receiving the radio signal no correction is received. If the dog ventures outside of the radius of the transmitter signal it loses the radio signal and a correction is given. The big advantages to the wireless systems are no need to bury wire and their portability. The biggest disadvantage is the circular containment area. Most people don't have circular yards, so this can be a problem. Additional transmitters can be added to increase the range of the system. The dog is able to cross where the signals overlap.