Invisible fencing - Do you think its cruel?

Celestrina wrote: DH would like to get a dog later this year. I would like to have an area for it to run free, but I'm not sure I want an above ground fence. One of our neighbors has an invisible fence and their dog seems fine with it. How do you feel?

If you aren't familiar with an invisible fence, click here.

PrairieMom replied: i voted that i think they are cruel. BUT i also think that those bark collars are cruel for the same reason, and my 2 dogs have nearly driven me to the point of getting them stupid dogs....

luvbug00 replied: nope i dont have one and no they are not cruel. It's little shock and to be honest i'd rather my dog get a small jolt then get hit by a car or sent to the pound because of barking.
never heard of a dog suffer long term effects..

~Roo'sMama~ replied: My sister and BIL have one, and it works really well. I don't think it's cruel because it's just a little shock, and it doesn't take the dog long to learn how far they can go without getting a shock. So after the training period they don't even get shocked anymore because they've learned not to cross that line. I have heard though that it doesn't work on some dogs because they'd rather just barrel right through it and get a shock than be stuck in the yard.

mom21kid2dogs replied: I voted "other" because I don't have one but am fine with it. We have a fence but Parker can jump it. We've considered installing one for several years. My sister has one for her new dog as she has fence restrictions where she lives so it's her only option. It works fairly well. Yogi does break it occasionally for prey. I suspect Parker, being a beagle mix, would break right through it for prey. One of the fencing companies had a breed listing in order from most to least trainable with the system. You might consider checking that out so you know how well the breed you are considering does with that kind of containment system.

What I think is cruel is people who allow their dogs to roam free with no containment. Dying by the side of the road is neither quick nor painless in most cases. THAT is cruel!

A&A'smommy replied:
I think they are cruel also!!

coasterqueen replied:
COMPLETELY AGREE.

Gavin ran right through it and NEVER EVER felt the shock. So we put in a regular fence and put shock wire at the bottom of the fence ONLY because the first day we had the fence, we went into town leaving Gavin in the fenced in yard and he dug his way out. He got shocked ONE TIME and I shocked myself with it and it does NOT hurt, and he never ever tried to dig again. So I'm not sure why that would even be considered cruel to anyone.

I personally think it's cruel a dog actually has to be fenced in in any way. I think they should be able to roam, but there are a long list of reasons why that's not possible, so.......

We use a shock collar on our dogs and let them roam anywhere they want when we are home. The only time they get shocked is if they try to run into the road and it's not a shock it's a vibration, which we have tested out on ourselves and it doesn't hurt. It's just a vibration like your phone vibrating in your pocket and it just startles you. I've rarely ever had to use it - 2 or 3 x, now I just put the collar on and they know not to run in the road and they behave well.

So is having a dog take a very light shock 1 or 2x to learn their boundaries cruel or is putting up actual walls crueler?

My3LilMonkeys replied: I personally don't think it's cruel. My SIL has one for her dog and unless he gets really excited about something, as soon as the warning beep sounds (which is I think 2 feet or so before the shock point) he backs right up. There was one time when the battery in his collar was dead - she doesn't even know for how long - and he never even tried to leave the yard.

kit_kats_mom replied: The problem with using them here in our neighborhood, is that other animals can get in...for example, gators, and then the dog is trapped. Also, kids can enter the area without knowing and be attacked by a dog. We would love a fence but are going the more natural route and have planted hedges which will take about another two years to fill in enough to let the dog run around. For now, he's out on a long line which is screwed into the ground. He typically goes for walks or to the dog park instead of just hanging in the yard though. Our dog is a house pup.

coasterqueen replied:
This is one aspect of them that I did not like. Coyotes can get in around us, but the dogs couldn't get out, but for us that would only really be a problem at night and we keep our dog inside at night. I can see it being a problem for others, too, I'm sure.

mom21kid2dogs replied:
Wouldn't a dog door into the garage/house solve most of that problem? My sister has one (though I'm not sure why as Yogi is an indoor dog ) Lucky for us, not many gators or coyotes in Ohio!

coasterqueen replied:
Yeah, most definitely would if your house was set up that way. The area that our dog would be w/that kind of fence, would be no where near the garage, but would have access to the patio/patio door. Again, we don't have that, we have a regular fence so we don't have the issue. But I'd do that -- put a doggie door in on our patio if needed, if we had that type of fence. Although, wouldn't it give them access full-time? That would be ok for my big dog, but not my small one who is still a pup and chews everything. No gators here, but coyotes, wolves, whatever you wanna call them that sit out there and howl at night and our cousin who lives next door to us said she's seen them on her property during the day. Again, nighttime is the only prob for us, but we do keep ours in at night anyways. The thought of them barking all night at every thing running around in the woods and me getting no sleep.....not good.