Are electric dog fences humane?

by Herman

We've just moved into a new home that does not allow fences in the backyard (darn HOAs). I was wondering if anyone uses an electric dog fence for their Coton de Tulear.

I always thought these fences were inhumane, but don't really know a lot about them. A neighbor has one and swears that it doesn't hurt the dog. Their dog seems happy as can be playing in their backyard while our Coton looks out the window and watches. We would love to be able to have him outside with us, but without a fence it's too dangerous.

If anyone has first hand knowledge about these electronic dog fences I'd appreciate your feedback and advice. Thanks

Comments for Are electric dog fences humane?

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Apr 07, 2014
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I would prefer a non-electric fence NEW
by: George Picarious

I wouldn't want my dog to be shocked with electricity. It's inhumane. My wife and I bought a DIY kit from petplaygroundz.com and our 2 boxers have about a 1/2 an acre of running space. It's quite cheap, honestly and we've been using it for 3 years now. I'd try that out first.

Feb 13, 2012
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Affordable diy non electric dog fence
by: Anonymous

I would recomend a dog fence company called Pet Playgroundz. We installed one of their diy dog fence kits ourselves and it is not electric, I did not have to train or shock my dog and he is protected from other dogs and animals including the coyotes that are around our property. Best of all it was easy to install and is really hard to see

Sep 16, 2011
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Humane electric fence
by: Victor and Goya dog

We found a humane electric Fence made by Pet Playgroundz. They call it a hybrid electric dog fence. It a real fence to stop your dog and only uses a static like shock deterrent to keep your dog off of the real fence behind it.
That part is great and almost invisible too.

They did a great job installing. My dog is safe
Thanks Pet playgroundz
Me and skippy love your fence and all the dogs in the neighborhood visit our home dog park

Sep 13, 2011
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Electric Fence
by: Anonymous

We have 2 Cotons 12 and 7 months. We have an electric fence around areas we do not want the dogs to go to. They do not cross their boundaries. Jingle the oldest backs up to us when she sees us bring out the collar because she knows that is her sign she gets to go out and play at will.

Jul 19, 2011
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ABOUT FEEDING
by: KATHY

Kathy, I moved your question about food to:

https://www.coton-de-tulear-care.com/another-coton-de-tulear-dog-food-question.html

It can get confusing for people to find what they're looking for if there are different subjects in one post. Thanks

Gale

Jul 17, 2011
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"Invisible Fence"
by: Ron and Joanne

Hello all....We have a 7 month old "Sophie" and have had our "Invisible Fence" for her since she was 4 months old...We have a huge corner lot and have the "fence" all the way around the house. I can only tell you that it was the best investment we ever made. She has had only 3 "ZAPS" in that time and the intellegence of the breed has taught her to respect her limits...When the fence was installed, a trainer comes with the package once a week for 4 weeks and trains the dog to respect the fence limits..and she also adjusted the power of the necklace up or down to the dogs responce...and white flags outlined the fence to be taken down when we felt our dog knew her boundries...Our Sophie took only 2 weeks after instruction to know her boundries. She has a free run of our yard and it's a God-Send!!!!She knows where not to go as the collar warns her when she is 3 feet from the line...On a scale of 1-10, we rate our "Invisible Fence" a strong 10....and her freedom is our freedom....

Jul 17, 2011
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Thanks for the feedback
by: Herman

Thanks for your input - I guess that's pretty much what my gut was telling me, but I wanted to make sure. I guess we'll just use a long lead for now.

Jul 17, 2011
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No fence
by: Iris Miller

Hi, I have seen small to medium sized dog run into those electrified fences repeatedly. They don't think about getting a shock when they see something they want to charge at, like strangers or other animals. It is a terrifying and pitiful sight. I can only imagine the stress it causes a Coton, as they are already a bit nervous(at least mine is). I personally would not trust that it(invisible fence) works all the time, or that the dog will just tolerate the shock and jump the invisible fence. We do not have a fenced yard and live on a very busy road, lots of heavy traffic , big trucks and terrifying speeders. Tuffy is so friendly, he thinks every car coming toward him carries company just for him, and he runs straight for the cars, even on the leash. I keep him on a different variety of leashes, on extends 16 feet, the other two up to four feet for more controlled walks and travel.He rarely gets to play in the yard off leash, and only when my son is home to catch him, because Tuffy can run like the wind.I used to take him to an indoor dog park/training school in between classes when there were few if any dogs there,We played ball and Tuffy got to run as much as he liked.Too bad, they shut sown the business and moved to another town, with smaller dog area, both worth the trip there.
P.S. last week my neighbor's 1 year old toy poodle got out after the lady left in the car. The puppy ran away looking for her, and got hit and killed on that busy road. It made me even more diligent in keeping Tuffy on the leash. Even a fenced yard can have escape routes.

Jul 16, 2011
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don't get an electric fence!
by: Anonymous

Electric Fences give shocks so YES I would argue they are inhumane. I would recommend either finding a trainer who can help you train your dog not to leave the yard or getting a tie out for your dog. They make tie out leashes that are pretty long so the dog would be able to roam around the yard. Or you can always be out in the yard with your dog to prevent him from leaving.

Jul 16, 2011
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FENCE
by: KATHY

WE HAVE AN ELECTRIC FENCE FOR OUR BROWN LAB, AND IT WORKS VERY WELL. WE PUT UP A PICKET FENCE AROUND A LARGE AREA OF THE BACKYARD FOR MY COTON. I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PUT A COLLAR ON HER TOO, BUT I AM ALSO NOT SURE ABOUT IT.
I WOULD ALSO LIKE SOME INPUT. KATHY FROM PA

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