On Sun, 26 Sep 2004 20:28:19 -0500, zxcvbob
wrote:

Elizabeth Naime wrote:
Bob, wouldn't it be very easy for a dog to avoid a single foot-high
wire? One of my dogs would probably hop over it (she believes in
shortcuts) and never learn that it was "hot" at all! Same possible
problem with other dogs in the neighborhood.


It has been my experience that the dog will walk into the wire one time
(without seeing it) and get zapped, or he will see it, sniff it, and get
zapped on the nose. Eventually, he will go back to see what it was that
bit him, and he'll see the wire. I've never had one that would go over
or under an electric fence after getting zapped once or twice. In fact,
I seldom have the fence around my garden electrified. My dog someimes
goes right up next to it to show just how close she can get but she
won't cross it. (if it were a fence around my yard to keep her in, I
would have to electrify it again at this point.)

I think IF's are cruel because the doog can't see or smell it.
Traditional electric fences are kind of harsh, but not cruel because Dog
can see it. Also, it keeps other dogs out where the IF doesn't. Your
dog is trapped in the yard and other dogs can go in and out -- That's
why I really prefer chain link or wooden privacy fences.

Bob

I know of situations where the dog's first encounter took place with a
wet nose and wet coat while standing in wet grass and it was not a
minor trauma... a friend's dog (Dogma, who is on my web page at
www.geocities.com/viscouspuppy) had that experience and he spent the
rest of the day trembling in fear. He ran into a standard livestock
fence.

Another dog on that same web page (Chuck Berry) ran into a similar
fence while approaching some sheep, and he was terrified of sheep for
years after that. That was not all bad, of course.

I have trained my dog to stay inside a perimeter and away from
livestock without any kind of gadgets. It takes patience, but it is a
better (and cheaper) solution if you are moving around with your dog.

Charlie