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High Tech Pet Fences – Most Popular Brands Reviewed

Electric pet fences are steadily gaining popularity with pet owners around the world. With a radio wire buried underground, your electric fence is invisible to the landscape but just as effective in protecting your pet as a traditional above ground fence. Advanced technology in below ground fence systems create a hidden barrier that dogs will not cross. Training your dog what to do within the confines of the fence takes only a few minutes a day as you teach your pet that there is an invisible boundary line marked by flags which are placed above the underground wire. Typically, it only takes a few days for your pet to exhibit retreat behavior when nearing the flags. Instead of exhibiting dangerous behavior, such as chasing the neighbor’s cat out of the yard, your dog will soon behave like a well trained pet, allowing you to have the freedom an electric dog fence gives you without fearing that your pet will escape.

How it works is that a narrow trench is dug around the perimeter of your home where a wire will be placed. This is connected to a transmitter, which works in conjunction with a collar worn around your pet’s neck. Traditionally, if your pet crosses or is approaching the perimeter, the collar gives out a mild noise and this is enough to scare him off. If he does continue ahead, he receives a mild shock. Some amount of training is required in order for your pet to actually understand his limits. Once your dog has been trained, he can roam around freely but within a certain perimeter defined by the underground fence wire. There are different principles on which the stimulus is administered.

1. Progressive Stimulus – These systems typically have a tone only warning zone, followed by a mild stimulus zone and finally a high level shock zone very close to the wire. The downside to electronic fences that feature tone only warning zones is that this type of system often allows the dog to escape because many animals quickly learn that if they stand in the warning zone long enough, the tone stops because the collar battery runs down. Once the warning tone stops, the dog figures out that he is now free to leave.

2. Run Through Prevention – These systems create zones wherein a low voltage shock is followed by a higher voltage shock. Depending upon the dog’s temperament the mild shock can be too little, in which the dog simply ignores the stimulus, or too much, in which case the dog reacts with trauma.

3. Pulsed Proportional Stimulus – This is a different approach to the traditional shock technique, trademarked by High Tech Pet Products, Inc. Sound & shock stimulus are applied in short, pulses that automatically increase as your dog approaches the off-limits zone. Eventually, the dog will reach the level of discomfort that will cause him to stop his foray into the zone and trot back into the comfort zone of the fenced area.

Following is an overview of customer reviews of some of the most popular electric pet fences on the market today.

The PetSafe PIF-300 Wireless Fence sells for about $279 on Amazon. This system does keep the dogs off the road or from running after the neighbors, and users report that the system is dependable on flat terrain, fairly easy to set up and the customer service is good. There are negative customer reviews that the batteries only last about 2 months and are about $6 each per collar. Users have reported that there is no way to know when the battery is running down until you notice that your pet is out of the area. Another reported problem is that it is inconsistent if your lot is elevated at all, so if you’re not on a completely flat lot, be aware it may not work properly. If you don’t mind the cost of the batteries and if you’re on a perfectly level lot, this should be a reliable system..

The PetSafe 304W Deluxe In-Ground Fence sells for about $200 on Amazon. The fence transmitter and receiver collar are reported to work well in customer reviews. There are negative reports by customers that the antenna wire included in this kit is light gauge, making it hard to staple and easy to break. Also, the transmitter is reported to chirp for no apparent reason, possibly caused by too long a run of the light gauge wire around the property perimeter.

The PetSafe PRF-3004W In-Ground Radio Fence Sells for about $135.00 on Amazon.  This fence has good customer reviews on the easy setup, detailed instructions and the collar battery life. There are some negative customer reviews on the light gauge wire. Although PetSafe does sell a boundary wire break locator for about $70, it is reported that the wire usually has to be broken completely through in order for the locater to pinpoint the break.

The PetSafe PIG00-10777 Stubborn Dog In-Ground Fence sells for about $185 on Amazon and has mixed reviews. Users have reported that it works well keeping their stubborn dogs in the perimeter, but there are negative reports on the collars being skimpy, the wire being too light and prone to breakage and one report of the transmitter blowing, leaving burn marks on the wall.

High Tech Pet HC-8000 Plus Sells for about $179 but you can find it for $97 on the Sam’s Club Website. This fence has good customer reviews on price, sturdy transmitter base, self charging battery back-up compartment, loud external training speakers, progressive tone stimulus, and general system dependability. There are some negative reviews on the collar life, although if you send in the non-working collar, the company will replace it with a working one.

High Tech Pet Model X-10 sells for about $199, but you can find it for $177 on the Sam’s Club website. The reviews on this system were generally very good. Customers like the system dependability, rechargeable collar battery, sturdy transmitter, external speakers, progressive tone stimulus, and heavy gauge wire. Customers also like the fact that this system’s radio collar works with multiple pet items such as the electronic pet doors and the indoor pet training items. The only negative reviews we could find on this system were on collar construction, although the company will replace faulty collars at no cost.

High Tech Pet HC-7000R sells for about $150. This system has good reviews on system dependability, progressive tone stimulus, rechargeable collar battery, heavy gauge wire, wire break alarm and sturdy transmitter. We found no negative customer reviews on this system.

Electronic radio fences can be a major investment of money, work, and time, and a big headache when your purchase one that does not meet your expectations, so we hope this review of 7 of the most popular pet fences will help you choose one that most closely fits your needs and the needs of your pets.

About the Author

By Marilou Sabina, msabina@earthlink.net

If you’re looking for a superior electric dog fence, don’t purchase until you do your homework. One company to consider before making your final decision is High Tech Pet Products. An established US-based company, they’ve developed their products by listening to pet owners to create a very clever array of pet containment products, trainers, pet doors and accessories that can all be driven by one electronic collar, allowing you to add compatible products at your discretion, to create your own Pet Automated World™.

Guardian In-Ground Containment : Installation and Pet Training – Part 1

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