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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

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Original poster

Invisible fences - saw several in the USA, not seen them in UK

71 replies

AdventureIsWaiting · 17/02/2021 20:37

I've been pondering this off and on. We visited some friends in the USA (midwest if it makes a difference) a while ago. They had just bought a puppy, which came with us on a short walk one day. Not knowing the area we walked down a dead end on their estate, and as we turned around to come back saw a wolf the biggest husky I've ever seen, sitting under a tree watching us, completely unfenced in. Friends' puppy was very reactive and aggressive to other dogs, so we got out of there asap without him spotting - and upsetting - the other dog. Apart from our blood pressure, all was fine, but it was the biggest rush of fear I've ever had.

We asked our friends about it and apparently where they live (stereotypical US affluent estate with big front lawns), invisible fences are really common. They pointed several out to us during the rest of our trip and were adamant that the fences work 100% of the time and they are a great idea. Having said that, they are not the best dog owners I've known (I mean this factually, rather than disparagingly - mixed messages, finding biting and aggression funny, only letting the puppy out to toilet on the lawn (sometimes) and not walking him - I ended up Googling a lot about the breed as I felt so sorry for him and he should have been getting 2x short walks a day at that age - hence us taking him for a walk), so I've wondered since if this is true.

I've never seen them in the UK (to my knowledge) and thought knowledgeable posters on here might know why - is it that gardens in the UK tend to be fenced in / smaller, or are invisible fences thought to be cruel (I've seen mixed responses to e.g. training collars, which I think operate similarly)? To be fair I've been in other places in the USA and also not been aware of them, but those places have either been much more rural, or very urban, not suburbia.

Many thanks to anyone who can shed some light.

OP posts:

SaltyTootsieToes · 17/02/2021 20:46

Haha well you wouldn’t see an invisible fence.

Seriously, yes some people do have them here but most people will have an enclosed garden whereas in USA, unless you have a pool, people don’t tend to fence in all of their garden.

Friends of mine in Esher have a very large property, which ultimately is enclosed but they don’t allow their dogs full access so are restricted by the invisible fence

ApplestheHare · 17/02/2021 20:48

Personally I wouldn't want my dog to get an electric shock, not even 'just' as part and parcel of learning where the boundary is.

He's had an electric shock from the horse fencing when he was young and he is terrified forever more of that spot. I mean, I can see how they work, but I'd still prefer him to be able to amble around the garden without worrying.

ArcherDog · 17/02/2021 20:49

American properties don’t tend to have physical fences unlike here in the U.K. where people fence in their gardens.

Invisible fences are also less common in the U.K. because they work by causing pain to the dog, and we don’t tend to like doing that.

TheVolturi · 17/02/2021 20:51

Seems cruel to me.

Original poster

AdventureIsWaiting · 17/02/2021 20:51

Thanks for your replies, that's interesting. @SaltyTootsieToes the ones we were shown had a small sign in the lawn to warn other dog owners and advertise the brand used, about the size of a large man's hand maybe, on a stick. I haven't seen anything like that here - maybe that's a US thing or I'm not looking hard enough.

OP posts:

sunflowersandbuttercups · 17/02/2021 20:52

Invisible fences are, in my opinion, incredibly cruel and a very out-dated way of containing a domestic pet.

Why on earth would you want to give your dog an electric shock for any reason? It's appalling and I'm so glad it's not a "thing" here.

Chunkymenrock · 17/02/2021 20:53

Christ, they are really cruel. Thank goodness they are hardly seen here in the UK.

DeathAndTaxis · 17/02/2021 20:56

I literally don't know what this is - is it an electric fence, but there aren't any wires? How does that work?

Squarepigeon · 17/02/2021 20:56

In the US they use shock collars on dogs and declaw cats.

sunflowersandbuttercups · 17/02/2021 20:58

@DeathAndTaxis

I literally don't know what this is - is it an electric fence, but there aren't any wires? How does that work?

The fence runs under the ground - like an electric wire, and it's linked to an electric shock collar that the dog wears. If the dog tries to cross the boundary, they get an electric shock.

It's cheaper than traditional fencing and the idea is that the shock stops the dog from wanting to cross the boundary.

In other words, to work, the shock has to be so painful and scary that the dog doesn't want to try it again.

WeatherwaxOn · 17/02/2021 20:58

DeathAndTaxis that's exactly what I was wondering. I've never heard of invisible fences before.

Crescia · 17/02/2021 21:00

Plenty of people use them here. They also use shock collars to train gun dogs here. Lots of people here are happy with cats massacring loads of wildlife but find declawing inhumane. We have an invisible fence for our cat. It feels like no more of a shock than the tens unit I used in labor. It means our cat is safe but can still go out. It's a great solution. It would be far crueler to keep him in. He'd be miserable.

pyjamarama · 17/02/2021 21:04

I’m pretty sure they were outlawed in 2018 in the uk.

Crescia · 17/02/2021 21:06

We had ours installed two months ago. They are perfectly legal.

www.catfence.co.uk

Squarepigeon · 17/02/2021 21:11

The government announced a ban in 2018 but have yet to implement it

www.dogstrust.org.uk/news-events/news/2020/we-welcome-ban-on-the-use-of-electric-shock-collars

sunflowersandbuttercups · 17/02/2021 21:12

Sadly, I'm not surprised to see people defending the use of shock collars on domestic animals. Grim.

Squarepigeon · 17/02/2021 21:12

It looks like Wales banned them a while ago.

Original poster

AdventureIsWaiting · 17/02/2021 21:12

@sunflowersandbuttercups @DeathAndTaxis

This is why I didn't find the explanation reassuring / didn't really believe it - either the collar is capable of giving a massive dog (and honestly, this was a huge dog) a shock to make it comply, which by virtue of its size must be huge and therefore cruel, or the collar gives a small buzz, like excess static electricity and why/how does that keep a large dog within a defined boundary 100% of the time, even if provoked by a passing aggressive dog (as opposed to a regular, calm dog).

Apologies by the way if any of my terminology is clunky - we're not dog owners (which is possibly why this has puzzled me for so long!) I really appreciate people replying, I think the consensus seems to be that in the UK it's viewed as cruel / unnecessary.

OP posts:

Original poster

AdventureIsWaiting · 17/02/2021 21:13

@Squarepigeon Thanks for that link, that's really interesting.

OP posts:

Crescia · 17/02/2021 21:14

People saying it's a massive shock have never actually felt one. I have. It's not massive by any means. It doesn't have to be massively painful to work. It really doesn't. The cat got zapped a total of 3 times before he got the idea. Now he gets to go outside. How would leaving him inside for his entire life have been less cruel?

Squarepigeon · 17/02/2021 21:14

www.gov.uk/government/news/cruel-electric-shock-collars-for-pets-to-be-banned--2

Here’s a link to the announcement from 2018.

It sounds like a petition is needed to get the government to hurry up and implement this. I would have thought Carrie Symonds would be all over this.

sunflowersandbuttercups · 17/02/2021 21:17

@AdventureIsWaiting you're right not to be reassured.

I remember watching an American episode of It's Me or the Dog where a dog was so terrified by the electric fence/shock collar that it refused to go in the garden at all. The dog toileted in the house and didn't even want to go and play in the garden with it's favourite toy.

There was another where they'd used an invisible fence to stop the dogs leaving the house by the front door, and the dogs were so petrified they wouldn't go within a metre of the door - I also believe once of them would urinate on the floor. It was really sad to watch.

sunflowersandbuttercups · 17/02/2021 21:18

@Crescia

There are other options that don't involve shocking your cat

Build a catio.
Cat-proof the existing fencing with mesh or fencing that bends over towards the garden so that the cat physically can't climb out.

Squarepigeon · 17/02/2021 21:19

How a 75kg woman perceives an electric shock may be very different from how a 5kg cat perceives it.

PollyRoulson · 17/02/2021 21:20

Obviously omitting an electric shock to keep your dog in an area is cruel.

However electic fences do not stop other animals or people entering your property.

Another dog could enter your property and interact with your dog or people can come onto your property and steal your dog.

Rubbish idea.

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