Hi folks.
My neighbors have an Alaskan Husky and lately it's been getting out of their yard a lot. I had to chase her down three times alone yesterday and get her again today. The folks are not being irresponsible about it, this dog is just playing Houdini.

They've talked about getting an electric wire installed in their yard that she can't dig under without getting zapped, but I've heard that it doesn't work well on long-haired dogs. I'm just wanting to know how well they work on long-haired animals and if they can control them.

Also, if anyone else has a suggestion, please let me know.
Thanks,
Greg

 

I had one with a Alaskan malamute and it got the idea...

 

They work. They have different setting, just turn it up. I have a Golden he wants nothing to do with it.

 

Most of the shock collars come with 2 sets of electrodes, short and long, so using the long ones lets the probes make contact with the skin. ZZZAPPP!

The DIY set ups are no good unless they're dug in a constant depth all around...otherwise there'll be "gaps" in the coverage and the dog will soon discover them and find it's way out everytime.

The pro-installed ones are better, plus they usually train the dog initially, and if the power unit gets fried cause of a close-by lightning strike, they'll sometimes replace it free.

It doesn't take long at all for most dogs to get trained, usually one or two zaps and they get the message. Now, you just gotta keep the kids from daring each other to wear the collar and jump through the fence!!

 

Those little shock callers are surpisingly effective. I took one off of a small dog(<10lbs) and tested it to see just how much of a shock it puts out. I had it in the palm of my hand with the two prongs resting on my palm. It was tiny; only about 2 inches long and 1 inch square. As my hand neared the buried invisible fence it beeped to warn me I was close. Then ZAP!!!! Wowweeee! It works. I pulled my hand back pretty darn quick!! It did not shock as hard as a personal stun gun but it will wake you up. It was quite effective on my 6'1", 180lb frame. I think for the longer haired dogs the collar will need to be tightened enough so that the pins stay in contact with the dogs skin. I'm very tempted to get one for my tunnel digging beagle.

 

Have an Innotek Contain 'n Train Model. Don't have any gaps in the fence due to difference in depth of wire burial. My wire depth varies from 1 inch to buried under 6inches of earth, to just laying on the ground out in the woods. If you buy the unit with lightning arrestors, they guarantee it.

Anyway, had an "Alpha Male" Husky mix, with a very thick undercoat. I used the long prongs on the collar, but the pooch wasn't being affected by the collar's discharge even when I adjusted it to the maximum setting. Solved the problem by clipping back the fur directly under the collar. Once the prongs were able to touch his skin, he got the message very quickly. Afterwards, the collar only needed to give the warning beep and he would retreat back to the center of the yard.

He would charge the fence if there was another dog outside of it, but he stopped just short of the warnging zone. He wouldn't run through it.

 

We enclosed 2 acres with a radio/electric fence and it works well even for a DIY project. The wire is not buried very deep (4-6in) so it takes only a flat spade to cut a slit.

Trimming the lower neck on long haired dogs works best, especially when first training. After the initial training period, the dog relies more on the audible signal than shock. If the dog is aggressive/slow learner and charges across the fence it will tend to stay out rather than cross back to return home.

Avoid purchasing units that require use of "special" batteries that are only available from the manufacturers. These collars go through batteries rapidly, especially during the training period.

A small, cheap, portable AM/FM radio with headphones makes a good locator to pinpoint breaks in the underground wire. Tune it to the lowest AM frequency (~550) where it is not on a station. It will pick up the radio frequency in the wire and make a distinct low pulsing sound and you walk along the wire. A sudden drop in tone occurs over the broken segment. Our expansive soils and long wire runs causes breaks in the oddest places. I'd go nuts finding the breaks without the radio locator.

 

I had a German Shepard that could jump my 6' cedar fence, so I got one of those electric fence units designed to keep deer out of your garden. I ran it along the top of the wood fence. The dog continued to jump the fence with no ill effects. Turns out since his legs were off the ground and wood fences don't conduct very well, he wasn't getting shocked. I ran another bare wire about 1" below the live wire and put it to ground. At that point, he was getting shocked. Still, he persisted in leaving the back yard about once a week. Final solution was . . . . . . . neutering.

 

aerocolorado...great idea with the AM radio for tracking down breaks in the system!!

 

My friend has a golden retriever and has an electric fence buried in the ground. It works - the dog's hair doesn't make a difference, she still gets shocked if she gets too close.

 

I guess I'm confused. How can you bury an "electric" fence. It won't work since it's grounded. When SOCOM asked the original question, it sounded to me like an inquiry into a bare wire fence with a big transformer such as what keeps cows and horses in the proper field. What it appears everyone is assuming is that the wire is buried and the dog wears the shock collar which the wire activates. Which is it?

 

The one I know of that people seem to have around here is a wire that is buried underground and the dog wears a shock collar.

 

The buried wire does not conduct electricity, it is merely acts as a very short distance radio antenna. The other part is the radio transmitter that is mounted in the house or garage and emits a weak radio signal over the buried wire. The signal strength can be dialed up or down depending on how wide an area you want to create along the buried wire. The radio receiver is carried on the dog's collar. When the dog comes within range of the radio signal (buried wire) the receiver collar gives a beep to warn the dog. If the dog stays within the signal range for more than, say 3 seconds, batteries in the collar trigger an unpleasant shock. When a system is first installed, visual marker flags are put up around the perimeter to help the dog "see" where the boundaries are. Once the dog learns not to approach the boundary the flags are removed.

ON EDIT: While we're on the subject: Over the years, we have discovered one serious drawback to using radio collars. Neither of our dogs were previously afraid of storms but now are. While working near the radio transmitter as a storm approached, I could occasionally hear the transmitter beep as it will if there is a discontinuity (break/etc) in the line. After hearing this a few times I realized it beeped each time lightening flashed nearby. The lightening was not hitting the ground, just creating a strong electrical discharge that was being picked up by the buried wire. This simultaneously caused the dog's radio collars to beep. The poor dogs were no where near the fence line but were in mortal fear they were going to get zapped every time the lightening flashed. So, now they associate storms with getting shocked, even though they no longer wear the collars. (The collars are only to be worn during training or 'refresher' courses.)

 

Interesting - I was hoping SOCOM would clarify the original question.

 

Hair trimming may be the trick for some of these dogs, but some just steal themselves up for the shock and "YIP!" as they jump through it to freedom. It's a personality thing, but will work for most. I Know a woman who's dog got shocked when it went in the kitchen wearing the collar for some reason. had to do with where it was set up, but make sure it's cool for the dog in home, or remember to take the collar off when going inside. The other con for these things is that they only keep the dog in. whatever wants can still enter your yard to mess with the pet.