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When you're erecting a dog
fence at home, spare a thought for the people who built
the Dingo Fence in Australia. It was put up in the 1880's
to protect enormous flocks of sheep in Southern
Queensland, where Dingoes had almost been exterminated.
To prevent Dingoes from
other areas getting to the sheep, the fence was built. It
is 6 feet high and there is one foot of it underground,
with uprights every 9 metres. It's the longest fence in
the World, stretching 5,320 kilometres which is over 3,305
miles! Ironically, it has not been a complete success -
dingoes still lurk in the area!
Does Your Dog Need An
Invisible Fence?
Some dogs delight in
damaging flower beds and destroying vegetable gardens.
Worse still, they might escape and cause an accident - for
which you would be liable. If you don't want very high,
solid fencing around your property - or the price of it,
it might be time to consider an 'invisible' fence.
What Is An Invisible Fence?
There are many of these on
the market now and they all work in a similar way. An
invisible fence allows you to have one or more dogs
running freely on your property, within boundaries chosen
by you.
How Do These Fences Work?
A wire (of anything up to
400m long) is put onto the ground, buried just under the
surface or attached to a fence that is already there. The
wire carries a signal transmitted from a small unit. The
dog wears a special collar that receives a signal if he
goes near the wire.
The signals are usually
zoned. When the dog gets anywhere near the wire he goes
into a 'warning zone' and he will hear a warning 'beep'
from his collar. If he gets even closer, he goes into a
'correction zone' and will receive a buzz from a small
electrical impulse via the collar.
Once the dog begins to
realise the boundaries, the owner can reduce the
electrical impulses and rely on the audible warnings.
Eventually, once the dog is reliable and not going
anywhere near the fence, the collar may be taken off - or
substituted for a dummy collar while he's on -
'probation'!
Making Adjustments To The
System
These fences can be set up
to suit any dog and any layout defined by the owner. The
distances of both the warning and the correction zones can
be adjusted. The strength of the electrical impulse can be
altered to suit the size and temperament of the dog.
Will My Dog Be Hurt By The
Electrical Impulses?
No - it doesn't hurt. It's
not a new idea - this has been used in different forms of
dog training for more than 40 years.
I Have More Than One Dog -
Will This System Still Work?
Yes - with these systems,
as long as each dog has a collar with a receiver, the
system will work for them all.
Don't Forget The 'Dummy'
Collar
Most systems recommend that
your dog wears a dummy collar for a few days prior to the
invisible fence being set up. This is for two reasons. It
lets the dog get used to the collar so that it's not
distracted by the unusual feel of it when the zone
impulses start to be used. It's also important because it
can be counter-productive for the dog to associate the
impulses with the collar, rather than the fence.
What Happens If My Dog Gets
Through The Fence?
This is very rare and
usually means that the collar isn't fitting properly,
leading to the dog receiving weak or no impulses.
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