Fencing

[This was originally posted to the Fairmount Animal Hospital website on 27 October 2008.]


Dear Dr. Lee,

My neighbors keep calling my town dog control because my Jack Russell Terrier keeps wandering out of my yard. Do you have any suggestions for how to keep him on my property so I don’t keep getting in trouble?

Escapee in Camillus


Dear Escapee,

There are multiple methods used to confine a dog to your property. These include tie-out stakes and overhead runners to which a line is attached. The other end of the line clips onto your dog’s flat collar or harness. Choke chains should not be used with a tie-out line due to risk of neck trauma. Prong collars should not be used as well because they can pop open. The advantages to tie-outs are that it is relatively inexpensive and easy to set up. The disadvantages include tangling around yard landscaping, injury from the line wrapping around legs, and slipping of the collar. Some dogs can exhibit increased aggression when tied up.

Fencing can provide a barrier to keep a dog safely in a yard while allowing a dog to run free without being tied to anything. Physical fencing comes in several varieties, including stockade and chain link. Stockade fencing can be a bit harder for dogs to climb and has the advantage of blocking the dog’s view of neighborhood activity, which can reduce nuisance barking, but is more expensive than chain link.

Invisible fencing is an option for owners who live in neighborhoods that prohibit fencing or who do not want to erect a physical fence on their property for aesthetic reasons. Invisible fencing systems consist of a buried wire that runs along the perimeter of desired dog area that is connected to a power source, and transmitter collars worn by each dog. As the dog with the collar approaches the perimeter wire, a warning signal is emitted, and if the dog crosses the perimeter, an electronic shock is delivered to the dog. These systems do require training of each dog so the dog understands what the warning signal and the punishment shock are for. Disadvantages of these systems include expense, potential for injury from the shock collar, failure of the fence during a power outage or if the collar battery runs low, and the fact that this fencing system will not keep unwanted animals or people out of your yard.

None of these fencing systems will confine every dog. Some dogs learn to climb or vault over fences, some dig under them, some chew through them. Dogs that break through an invisible fence to chase prey will often refuse to come back into the yard because they know they would be shocked on the way into the yard, too.

Consider your dog’s personality and activity level before deciding on a way to keep your dog in your yard.

Sincerely,
Dr. Lee