Installing Invisible Dog Fencing

We were called to a home in Fairlawn because the homeowners 5 year old invisible dog fence had stopped working. The dog was smart, caught on real quick, and made a break for it. The invisible fence system consists of a transmitter, shown on top left and a receiver, the dog collar shown on the bottom left. After testing the system I determined that the ground loop had become damaged and would need to be replaced.

Here's a closer shot of the collar (receiver). The system itself is pretty slick. The transmitter is mounted in the garage and is connected to a loop of wire surrounding the entire area that the dog is to be contained in. The transmitter emits low frequency pulses to the wire that is buried 2-3 inches deep in the ground. When the dog wearing the collar gets close to the perimeter wire the receiver picks up the low frequency pulses and the dog hears a warning beep beep. If he stops at that point or backs up no further correction is given. If he moves closer to the perimeter wire he receives a static correction. It actually feels like the type of static shock that we have all experienced by briskly walking across a carpet and reaching for the doorknob. It startles more than it hurts. The dog remembers the correction and learns very quickly not to go near the perimeter boundary.

Here we are using a gas powered slitter to cut a very narrow trench in the sod. The spool of wire is mounted on the slitter and automatically plays out as the slitter is advanced. Although the carbide slitter blade will cut through roots it will not cut stone hence some of the curves that you see. I use a screwdriver stuck in the ground and wrap the wire around it to anchor the wire before I start advancing the slitter. The slitter saves a lot of back-breaking work.

Here you can see the slitter with the spool of underground wire attached. The slitter is made to be pulled backward as it works.

If you need to cross a drive the easy way is to clean out an expansion joint and use a wood paint stirrer to gently push the wire into the joint. Waterproof caulk is then applied over the joint to protect the wire.

Once the complete ground loop is laid both wires are run inside this PVC conduit and into the garage where they attach to the transmitter.

Here's another shot of the waterproof dog collar (receiver) You may also be able to see the tiny neon light in the envelope under the marker flags. It is fastened to each of the probes on the collar temporarily to test the collar to be sure that it is functioning correctly.

The white marker flags serve to visually show the dog the perimeter line of the fence. This way he can quickly associate the beep and correction with the boundary. Once the dog learns the boundary the marker flags are removed. Here you can see the little guy checking out the boundary flags. He is a quick learner.