Underground Electric Shock Fences (aka Invisible Fences)

I will never be an advocate for invisible fences, they malfunction, they can cause dogs to develop aggression towards humans and/or other dogs, they’re painful, and savvy dogs will often outsmart the systems. If it is at all feasible for an owner to install a physical fence, that will always be my suggestion. However, I recognize that under some circumstances a physical fence is not an option, whether due to neighborhood HOA’s or the cost of a physical fence.

If you are an owner who finds themselves in the unfortunate position of needing to utilize an invisible fence, following a very stringent training protocol will minimize the need for your dog to experience the electric shock and will reduce the likelihood of negative behavioral side effects (i.e. aggression towards strangers, fear of the yard, fear of the owner, etc.).

Many invisible fence companies will have their installation techs offer “fence training” for your dog as part of their service. Unfortunately, these people do not typically possess any legitimate education in dog training, making them unqualified to offer training services of any kind. Installation techs will have great understanding of how their product works, how to set it up, and how to troubleshoot technical issues with the fence, but that is where their expertise ends. I always recommend hiring a certified dog training professional for any invisible fence training.

As a positive reinforcement-based trainer my goal is for training to be enjoyable for everyone and to never involve pain or fear to force compliance from the dog. Naturally, invisible fences are in conflict with these goals, but again, given the circumstantial necessity of invisible fences I want to help owners train their dog to the fence boundary in the safest and least aversive manner possible. The following steps outline the training plan I follow for conditioning a dog to remain inside their fence.

1.      Ensure that your installation tech places the boundary flags at least 5 feet inside of the shock line. Similarly, the “warning beep” on the dog’s fence collar should be setup to go off when your dog reaches the boundary flags.

2.      Attach your dog to a long line (10-15 feet) and have plenty of small treats on-hand. Put on your dog’s fence collar, but do not attach it to your leash as it must remain stationary on the dog’s neck.

3.      Bring your dog out to the yard on leash. Initially, just allow them to observe the flags from a distance.

4.      Once your dog is comfortable with the presence of the flags in the yard you can begin to approach the flag boundary.

a.      At this stage you do not want to allow your dog to cross any part of the boundary, use your leash to manage this.

b.      At no point should you lure your dog to cross the boundary. This means do not toss food across the boundary, do not toss toys across the boundary, and do not stand on the other side of the boundary and call them. Doing so creates a high risk for negative behavioral fallout.

5.      As you approach the flag boundary allow your dog explore naturally.

6.      At some point during their exploration of the yard they will likely move to the flags and trigger the warning beep on their fence collar. At this moment you will excitedly call your dog to you and move towards your home and away from the boundary. When your dog follows you, praise them and deliver a treat.

7.      Resume exploring the yard with your dog on leash and continue to call your dog away from the boundary each time the warning beep goes off.

8.      With repetition, your dog should begin to associate the warning beep with moving back to the home and away from the boundary. As your dog develops this association you will find that you do not need to prompt them to move away and they will do so automatically. Continue to deliver a treat each time your dog moves away even if they are doing so without assistance from you.

9.      Continue to work on this exercise over the course of one week. Be sure to practice throughout the whole yard so that your dog understands the exercise regardless of where they’re at.

a.      During this initial phase of fence training be sure that your dog is never off-leash when in the yard.

10.      After one week of developing a conditioned response to the warning beep your dog will be allowed to move about in the yard more freely. Your dog should still be under direct supervision in the yard at all times, however, you can begin dropping your dog’s long line on the ground allowing it to drag behind them.

11.      It is quite possible that due to your initial training with the warning beep, your dog does not cross the boundary and does not experience the electric shock. However, most dogs will “test” the boundary at some point.

12.      If you see your dog approach the flag boundary, receive the warning beep, and fail to move away from the boundary, pick up your dog’s long line. At this moment, allow your dog to continue to move in whatever direction they choose (do not prompt them to come to you an do not pull on the long line). Ideally, your dog will ultimately choose to move away from the boundary, but your dog may choose to continue forward into the electric shock boundary.

13.      If your dog receives the electric shock they may panic. It is important to be well anchored and to have a solid grip on your long line so that your dog is secure.

14.      Many dogs will elect to move back into their yard and close to their owner after experiencing the shock. If your dog continues to remain outside the yard and is unsure of how to respond, call them back into the yard using a happy tone of voice.

a.      Most underground fences do not administer an electric shock when your dog re-enters the yard. If your fence does shock on re-entry it is highly recommended to have another model installed that does not.

15.      Once your dog has re-entered the yard keep hold of the long line and do not allow them to cross the boundary again during that session. It is recommended to move around in the yard to play or give treats for at least another 10 minutes after the dog has experience the electric shock. This helps to minimize the risk of your dog developing a generalized fear of the yard.

16.      Continue directly supervising your dog and allowing them to drag the long line when out in the yard. After experiencing one full week in which your dog does not “test” the boundary you can graduate to off-leash yard access.

17.      Your dog should continue to be under direct supervision when in the yard for at least 2 weeks after graduating to off-leash yard access.

18.      If your dog continues to remain inside their boundary your supervision can grow more laxed, but it is never recommended to leave your dog unsupervised for more than 30 minutes when contained by an invisible fence. Remember, your invisible fence will not protect your dog from outside threats like wild animals, other dogs, and strange people.

19.      Once you have reached this stage in your fence training you may gradually remove the boundary flags. Begin by removing every 3rd flag across the entire boundary. After one week you may remove every 2nd flag across the entire boundary. Finally, on the third week you will be able to remove the remaining flags.

a.      If your dog shows any indications of boundary confusion during the flag removal process, put a few flags back in the areas where they are unsure of the boundary. After one week you can attempt to remove them again.

Some owners may need to allow their dog to walk through the fence boundary on occasion (i.e. going for a walk in the neighborhood), but many dogs will be very reluctant to cross their boundary even when encouraged to do so. This is where I incorporate a “fence portal” into the training process. Our follow-up blog post will discuss how to setup and train a “portal” for your invisible fence.