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Dear Sparky,
What do you think about invisible fences? Are they a safe and humane way of keeping my dogs safely in my yard?
Thank you,
Bob and his dog Jake
What do you think about invisible fences? Are they a safe and humane way of keeping my dogs safely in my yard?
Thank you,
Bob and his dog Jake
Hi Bob and Jake,
A dog and his dude – I love it. I have a dude, too, and boy do we have great times together! Oh, the stories
I could tell. But I’d better not. Don’t want to get anyone in trouble. Hee-hee!
So, you want to know about invisible fences, huh? Hmmmm….you mean when a guy comes out and puts
those little white flags around your yard….and tells you there is a fence there…and you silly humans
believe it? Okay, let’s talk about those. But first, I have to ask you something. Are you into bridges? I have
one for sale…real cheap..and I just thought you might….huh? What’s that? Electric fences?? Oh…those
are called invisible fences, too??? Oops. My bad.
Okay, so you are wondering about invisible or electric fences. I have to start by saying that I, the Great
Sparkdini, don’t have any personal experience with them. Oh, I know all about getting zapped. Check out
my very first column about peeing on Christmas lights! Yee-owie!! But my canine pals tell me electric
fences are nothing like that. They are more of a “buzz” than a “zap”! They tell me the shock gets their
attention, but doesn’t hurt. Cool.
A dog and his dude – I love it. I have a dude, too, and boy do we have great times together! Oh, the stories
I could tell. But I’d better not. Don’t want to get anyone in trouble. Hee-hee!
So, you want to know about invisible fences, huh? Hmmmm….you mean when a guy comes out and puts
those little white flags around your yard….and tells you there is a fence there…and you silly humans
believe it? Okay, let’s talk about those. But first, I have to ask you something. Are you into bridges? I have
one for sale…real cheap..and I just thought you might….huh? What’s that? Electric fences?? Oh…those
are called invisible fences, too??? Oops. My bad.
Okay, so you are wondering about invisible or electric fences. I have to start by saying that I, the Great
Sparkdini, don’t have any personal experience with them. Oh, I know all about getting zapped. Check out
my very first column about peeing on Christmas lights! Yee-owie!! But my canine pals tell me electric
fences are nothing like that. They are more of a “buzz” than a “zap”! They tell me the shock gets their
attention, but doesn’t hurt. Cool.
Even though I’ve never had an invisible fence myself, I still know a bit about them. After all, I am a very smart – and really good looking –
dog. Electric fences are made up of underground wires and transmitters. So, they are not actually invisible fences. They are more like
hidden fences. I’m sure you guys already knew that. I’m just spelling it out in case there are any cats reading this column. Hee-hee!
The dog wears a special collar that emits a noise when the dog gets close to the boundary and a shock when the dog gets way too
close to the boundary. Most dogs learn to stop when they hear the beep. That way they avoid getting the shock. Way cool.
My pals have told me some not-so-great things about electric fences. For starters, the dog must be trained to understand what the
noise means and how to avoid the shock. Now that’s not a problem if the dog’s person puts in the work to train the dog. After all, dogs
are really smart and can learn things faster than a lot of humans I know. But, between you and me, some people think they can just put
the collar on the dog, toss him in the yard, and have him stay there. Silly people! We dogs are smart, but we’re not mind readers. You
have to tell us what you want from us!
Another issue is those dogs that just can’t resist chasing that leaping deer or the fluffy-tailed bunny or the cute little poodle across the
street. My human pals say those dogs have a high prey drive. I say they just like to have fun. Either way, some of these dogs will go
right through the noise – beep beep – and right through the shock – zap – and just keep going. Uh oh. Even if the dog comes back,
now he is on the wrong side of the fence and might not want to take the zap to get back into his yard.
And remember that an electric fence may keep your dog in the yard, but it won’t keep other animals or people out of your yard. You could
have problems if your dog has unwanted visitors….like the mean dog from down the street or that smelly skunk that ventures out at
night or the neighbor’s kid who wants to play with the dog until the dog knocks her down and then it’s all tears and “bad dog!”. Ugh.
On the other paw, I have lots of buddies who have electric fences and can’t bark enough good things about them. Some
neighborhoods don’t allow physical fences. Some homes have hilly or odd shaped yards that are really difficult to fence in. Some
people just don’t like physical fences. Electric fences give dogs living in these places the chance to do one of the most important things
to a dog – run! It lets the dogs play outside and, as long as the dog is trained properly, keeps them from wandering out of the yard and
getting into trouble.
By the way, physical fences have their share of problems, too. Many dogs can jump over or dig under a physical fence if they want
to…and sometimes they get hurt in the process. So, there are pros and cons on both sides.
As my human pals say, it’s six of one and half dozen of the other. I have no idea what that means, but they say it a lot in cases like this.
Six of what? Six biscuits? I’ve never seen six biscuits just sitting around. Sometimes I see biscuits, but before I can even count them,
they’re gone. I’m not sure what happens. They disappear so quickly it makes me dizzy. Anyway – where was I? Oh yeah, fences….
well, Bob and Jake, I think electric fences are cool for some dogs and physical fences are cool for other dogs. It really depends on the
dog and their humans. Both can be humane and effective ways to keep dogs safe. Just remember the most important things – training
and supervision. Oh, and throw the ball a few times, too!
Thanks for writing!
Anyone else have a question? The Great Sparkdini has the answer! Hee-hee! Drop me a line at AskSparky@verizon.net.
Hugs and Sloppy Kisses,
Sparky
dog. Electric fences are made up of underground wires and transmitters. So, they are not actually invisible fences. They are more like
hidden fences. I’m sure you guys already knew that. I’m just spelling it out in case there are any cats reading this column. Hee-hee!
The dog wears a special collar that emits a noise when the dog gets close to the boundary and a shock when the dog gets way too
close to the boundary. Most dogs learn to stop when they hear the beep. That way they avoid getting the shock. Way cool.
My pals have told me some not-so-great things about electric fences. For starters, the dog must be trained to understand what the
noise means and how to avoid the shock. Now that’s not a problem if the dog’s person puts in the work to train the dog. After all, dogs
are really smart and can learn things faster than a lot of humans I know. But, between you and me, some people think they can just put
the collar on the dog, toss him in the yard, and have him stay there. Silly people! We dogs are smart, but we’re not mind readers. You
have to tell us what you want from us!
Another issue is those dogs that just can’t resist chasing that leaping deer or the fluffy-tailed bunny or the cute little poodle across the
street. My human pals say those dogs have a high prey drive. I say they just like to have fun. Either way, some of these dogs will go
right through the noise – beep beep – and right through the shock – zap – and just keep going. Uh oh. Even if the dog comes back,
now he is on the wrong side of the fence and might not want to take the zap to get back into his yard.
And remember that an electric fence may keep your dog in the yard, but it won’t keep other animals or people out of your yard. You could
have problems if your dog has unwanted visitors….like the mean dog from down the street or that smelly skunk that ventures out at
night or the neighbor’s kid who wants to play with the dog until the dog knocks her down and then it’s all tears and “bad dog!”. Ugh.
On the other paw, I have lots of buddies who have electric fences and can’t bark enough good things about them. Some
neighborhoods don’t allow physical fences. Some homes have hilly or odd shaped yards that are really difficult to fence in. Some
people just don’t like physical fences. Electric fences give dogs living in these places the chance to do one of the most important things
to a dog – run! It lets the dogs play outside and, as long as the dog is trained properly, keeps them from wandering out of the yard and
getting into trouble.
By the way, physical fences have their share of problems, too. Many dogs can jump over or dig under a physical fence if they want
to…and sometimes they get hurt in the process. So, there are pros and cons on both sides.
As my human pals say, it’s six of one and half dozen of the other. I have no idea what that means, but they say it a lot in cases like this.
Six of what? Six biscuits? I’ve never seen six biscuits just sitting around. Sometimes I see biscuits, but before I can even count them,
they’re gone. I’m not sure what happens. They disappear so quickly it makes me dizzy. Anyway – where was I? Oh yeah, fences….
well, Bob and Jake, I think electric fences are cool for some dogs and physical fences are cool for other dogs. It really depends on the
dog and their humans. Both can be humane and effective ways to keep dogs safe. Just remember the most important things – training
and supervision. Oh, and throw the ball a few times, too!
Thanks for writing!
Anyone else have a question? The Great Sparkdini has the answer! Hee-hee! Drop me a line at AskSparky@verizon.net.
Hugs and Sloppy Kisses,
Sparky
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