ADMIN – Hi Stacy,

Correct. To create a straight line barrier – you want to create a long thin oval shaped loop, with the opposite sides of the loop at least six feet apart.

ADMIN – Hi Sarah,

1. For a doberman, particularly one with low pain sensitivity, the PetSafe Stubborn is always a good bet. You rarely need the full strength of the system, but it is good to have it in reserve in case you need it.

2. In wooded areas, you can just staple the wire down and it will usually just bury itself over time. If you want some extra protection, you can use a thicker gauge of wire or run the wire through some type of protective conduit. Sprinkler system irrigation pipe and hose pipe works well. You get a long length of the pipe, straighten it out and then start feeding the dog fence wire through. Using fish tape, and pulling the dog fence wire through also works lets you get longer runs if you have fish tape handy.

ADMIN – Hi Joe,

Yes, you can run the wire through standing water. It helps if you run the wire through a protective sheath like an old hose pipe or sprinkler system piping, but this is not mandatory. It is also useful if you staple down or weigh down the wire so it does not move around. Also, try and arrange the wire so that you don’t have any splice points underwater.

ADMIN – Hi Kelly,

You can indeed attach the wire to the fence. If you have a fence available, using zip-ties or staples to hold the wire on the fence is preferable to burying and is much easier. If you use a weed eater, just make sure you run the wire at least a foot above ground so the wire does not get hit when you are doing yard work. Once you have run the wire, you will want to adjust the boundary width dial so the correction starts a couple of feet before the fence – you don’t want it starting only when the dog is sailing over the fence because at that stage it is too late for the dog to change his mind.

The Innotek would be a good choice with an Australian Shepherd. We find Aussies are easy dogs to train on a fence system because they are smart, eager to please and sensitive to the correction.

ADMIN – Hi Rick,

With a German Shepherd that is a little more hard headed, I would use either the SportDog or the PetSafe Stubborn. You are right in thinking they are almost identical. Both will serve you well. The transmitter on the SportDog is a little better, and the collar on the PetSafe is a little more powerful. Given you description of the dog and that you are only doing 5 acres, I would go with the PetSafe. The PetSafe is also a little cheaper.

The Innotek IUC-4100 is good, but not quite as strong. It will probably do the job, but I would rather see you have a collar that has a lot of power in reserve, in case you need it.

1. I’ve talked to a professional installer that installs Dog Guard equipment that he says is manufactured in New York state. He claims the unit is much better and the electronic components are stronger. He also says that the Pet Safe / Innotek units have a high rate of failure. His price for about 1/3 of an acre is about $1,000. I’m a fairly capable person with handy man tasks, but I don’t want to waste $300 on a unit only to have to replace in a year.

Is this “American Made” unit really better / stronger?

2. I have two lab / shepherd mixes. They are female, about a year old and approximately 50 lbs. They are in a 4 ft high chain link fence and have learned they can climb the fence and escape. I’d like to run my wire along the top rail of the fence. My goal is to maximize their yard area and just keep them off the fence.

Is there any problem with stringing the wire along the top of the fence?

3. Several people have told us that our dogs seemed particularly aggressive/destructive –

Should we go ahead and try the IUC-4100? It sounds like a great unit, or go with the stubborn dog unit?

4. One of their regular tricks is ripping each other’s collars off.

Does any manufacturers warranty cover this?
I read that the bitter apple spray works well – I’m ready to try arsenic (not really) – Is this your best recommendation?

I’d much rather buy from someone that I can call with questions if I get in trouble as opposed to one of the big boxes. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated. Thank you -

ADMIN – Hi Chad,

1. We are not as familiar with Dog Guard as we are with other full-service brands like Invisible Fence, they are smaller and we don’t see them much in our neck of the woods. So, we can’t say anything intelligent about Dog Guard specifically. But, generally we are pretty skeptical of these claims of being bigger/better/stronger. I am sure the Dog Guard is a good system. Lots of the DIY systems are good too and will last for a long time. The newer Innoteks (4100/5100), newer PetSafes (Little Dog, Stubborn, Deluxe), the Perimeter and the SportDog (SDF-100A) all should last you the life of the dog. In particular the transmitters don’t tend to go, with no moving parts, we rarely see them break. If you do get a breakdown after the warranty, those brands all will repair the unit at a fixed cost, so it should cost you closer to $50.

2. Running the wire along the top of the fence is fine.

3. It is more to do with pain threshold than aggression. If you observe your dogs being indifferent to things that should hurt (they run into a wall, or someone accidentally stands on their tail, and they have no reaction), then the stronger Stubborn Dog unit is the way to go. Otherwise, the Innotek will be fine. When there is a fence already in place, you usually don’t need as much correction – because escaping takes much longer they cannot run through as easily.

4. We get good results with the bitter apple. Anything with an unpleasant spray works. The manufacturer’s warranty does not cover that kind of damage. Anecdotally, we have heard customers getting a replacement under warranty anyway – but I would not rely on it.

ADMIN – Hi Sheila,

Happy to make a recommendation. What is the weight of the two dogs, and what is their temperament like. (FYI – if you wait till six months, training will be a lot easier)

If you are checking the neck at daily for the first two weeks, then weekly and aren’t noticing any problems, then you can leave the collars on all the time.

If the dog runs through the fence, they cannot return without getting the correction. Of course, with a properly trained dog this should never happen, indeed the dog should not realize that running through the fence is an option and will assume the correction zone extends out indefinitely.

This site has been so helpful – I’ve learned so much! This product will definitely meet my needs after reading all of your answers to others!

ADMIN – Hi Jaimee,

Unfortunately none of the dedicated training collars from Innotek (or any other brand) work with the dog fence. You need to use one of the dog fence collars.

ADMIN – Hi Rachel,

You can run the boundary through or across the the creek if you want to. It works the same way, and there is no risk of electrocution. We usually run the wire through an old hose pipe and staple it to the creek bed to protect it from debris. You can also run the wire across a fallen tree crossing the creek if you have one convenient.

I usually advise clients to fence off creek areas, otherwise your lab will be permanently wet and tracking mud through the house. Once you have established the fence and trained the dog, it is easy to teach them that they can cross when the collar is off and you give them permission. This kind of controlled access seems to work for most clients

ADMIN – Hi Chris,

Set the reminder switch on the control box to “off” and you should fix the problem. The transmitter has a monthly reminder to tell you to recharge the collars. This is just a ‘dumb’ timer that trips once a month irrespective of whether the collars need charging. If you want to keep using the reminder, you would switch from the A setting to B, and then back again when it starts squawking in a month.