Introducing the Dog to the Fence
An Overview of Dog Fence Training
The most crucial part of installing an electric dog fence is training your dog on the fence. It should take about 2 weeks for your dog to be happily contained. Without training, the system is completely useless. Training your dog is simple. All you need to do is commit to three 15 minutes sessions every day, for 2 weeks.
You can find a quick overview of the training below. The most important thing that you need to teach the dog is that when they hear the beep, they need to turn around, instead of running through the fence. Follow the information below to find a more detailed explanation for each step of training.
Introducing the Fence
First, you teach the dog that the warning beep and the boundary flags mean that they must turn and retreat. It is important to set this foundation, because when the correction is applied in the next step, the dog knows what they are expected to do, and they learn how to not get the correction.
For Step One, it is important to disable the stimulation. With the eXtreme Dog Fence, you can do this by putting it in beep only mode.
Playtime
Begin each session with playtime. Playing with your dog starts things off on a positive note. Your dog will be more likely to stay interested and eager to train. Also, food works wonders with dogs. Small bits of roast beef, chicken or hot dogs can seriously aid in the training process.
Teach the dog: beep and flags
Fitting the Collar
Fitting the collar
An electric dog fence receiver collar should be worn high up on the dog’s neck, ideally right below the ears. The receiver box should be at the front of the dog’s neck, underneath his head. The collar should fit perhaps more snugly than you think. You should only be able to get one finger between the probes on the collar and your dog’s neck. If you can freely spin the collar around the dog’s neck, it is too loose and your dog will not feel the correction.
Remember this: if the contact points aren’t making good contact with the dog’s neck, the dog won’t feel a thing. The most common cause of a dog ignoring the correction is a collar that is fitted incorrectly. Dogs that have longer hair may need longer contact points. What you may need to do if the dog has longer hair is thin out the hair around the contact points with some scissors. Then you can mat down this spot with a bit of Vaseline.
*As a side note, be sure to not leave your dog’s containment collar on for more than 12 hours a day. Leaving a collar on for too long can cause a condition called pressure necrosis, which are red sore spots on the dog’s neck. Should you ever see red spots on your dog’s neck, remove the collar immediately, and discontinue use until the sores have healed.
Training in Step One
Reward him with praise and a treat
In step one, you are taking your dog out on a long leash that is attached to your dog’s regular collar. Don’t attach a leash to the receiver collar because you don’t want to put any pressure on the contact points of your dog’s neck.
Allow your dog to approach the flags, but never encourage him to do so. Let him wander over to them on his own. When he does, he will hear the beep on the collar. Next, give the “no” command and lead the dog away from the flags, back into the safety zone. Be sure to install a sense of urgency in this initial session. When the dog goes back over into the safe zone, reward him with praise and a treat. Repeat this process during every training session using different areas of the yard at least 3 times a day for the first 2 days.
Start and end each session with a victory lap! If you run, your dog will run too. Just do a quick lap around the safe zone away from the training flags. A victory lap is done so that your dog knows that the yard is safe.