Electric/Buried Fence?

ELECTRIC/BURIED/INVISIBLE

FENCING?

Have you ever wondered about installing this type of fencing for your dogs? We have all thought about how nice it would be not to have a tall fence that blocks the view. Please read below. This is a true story from a member of our group. It is the very reason why Big Sky Rottweiler Rescue does not endorse this type of fence/enclosure for dogs.

***Please note that the names have been changed to protect the innocent***

I thought I would share this story with you to reinforce why we don’t readily approve homes that use underground electronic fences. This morning I was walking “B” and “G” around 7am. “G” has a shoulder injury and is in a harness and limps a bit. The neighbor dog across the street, Bear, is a young mix about 50 or 60 pounds and he has shown serious aggression issues towards other dogs. Just a few days prior to this walk he had gotten off his leash while being walked and went nose to nose with “G” and learned quickly that even though “G” is old with a bum leg he learned how to fight from my first dog “M” who was the master at getting the best of another dog. Bear jumped for “G” at which point “G” quickly pinned him by the neck. All the while I am holding “B” with all my strength as she really wanted to kill Bear. Well I got “G” off of Bear only to have Bear jump on “G” again which resulted in Bear getting pinned by the neck again. This happened two more times. Finally Bear realized the odds were against him and moved on. Now back to the walk and the e-fence.

We are walking and Bear was in the front yard and stopped at the limits barking and growling at us as we walked by, the e-fence doing it’s job. Coming back though was a different story. “Bear” was now in his back yard and saw us and made a bee-line for us at full speed. I don’t think the collar even had a chance to give a warning beep as he crossed the barrier. I didn’t have time to pull “B” back so Bear found out very quickly what it is like to take on two Rottweiler’s. He lost. I got my dogs off of him and he made one more attempt at “G” and again “G” slammed him to the ground. Bear sat there very confused as I yelled at him to go home. I headed home only to hear Bear yelp as he tried to get back into his yard and the fence shocked him. I truly feel sorry for Bear as he is the sad product of really uneducated owners.

The reality with e-fences is that though convenient and cost effective compared to a traditional fence it one does not prevent anything from getting into a yard such as a person intent on stealing the dog or another dog. Also, as seen here, when a dog makes a run at something that has its full attention it can actually pass through the barrier without being shocked and once it does that, then it is unable to re-enter the yard, because when it approaches it will be shocked again. I have picked up strays who were still wearing their e-collar and who had gotten through their e-fence and could not get back in. That is why BSRR is not inclined to place a dog in a home that uses e-fences.