# Invisible Fence for Goats



## MissyParkerton

Just thought I'd put this out there...

My goats have a nice pen, but they've browsed it to death, of course!  Anyway, we have lots of great unfenced browsing pasture all around--unfenced mostly because our property is SO ledgy it's hard if not impossible to get a post in anywhere, and because of cost. It seemed really unfair to keep my two wethers from accessing such healthy, natural food that I decided to train them to invisible underground fencing. Because I only have two, this was quite feasible. It only took a day to train them to it. I didn't fence them IN any specific area, just OUT of where I don't want them (gardens, chicken house, etc). We have 20 acres and live way off the main road -- and living on a tiny island off the coast of Maine, the main road has about 6 cars a day on it! There are also no coyotes here. It has worked really well, and they are happier and healthier for it. I only let them out of their pen when I am home and an keep an eye on them. Everyone is always so surprised that it works! I know it isn't a viable solution for everyone, but it has sure been a god send here!


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## MissyParkerton

They also get to have way more social encounters this way. If they are out of their pen they get to greet any car that comes in the driveway--the UPS lady loves them! And they love to walk out to the mailbox with me.


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## ksalvagno

That is great that you are able to do that. Most people couldn't.


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## PiccoloGoat

My mum wanted to Use that to stop the dog running down the street. 
How does it work?


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## xymenah

I have never had a success in using it for dogs. Ours always ran it. We had one dog that even with the shock on high he would just walk calmly out of the yard twitching until he was out of range. I wouldn't dare use it on my goats. They get shocked and they run forward making things worse. I'm glad your boys can use it. It sounds great that they can now browse allot and it even saves you money.


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## MissyParkerton

Yes, there are some dogs who are so driven to 'run', that they will go through it. And once they figure out the shock only lasts for a few seconds before they're free, they choose to endure it. Some breeds are notorious for this, eg hounds and primitive breeds...

In general, most underground systems are designed so you can increase the duration of the shock, not the strength of the shock. So I got my goats special 'Stubborn Dog' collars which have 5 levels of shock strength. Mine is set on 3. They rarely, if ever, get shocked as they know what the warning beep means and simply back up when they hear it. Also, they just know where the boundaries are and don't go near them. They've actually figured out exactly where they can stand, within inches of the beep zone, when they are yelling at me to hurry up with their supper!


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## MissyParkerton

PiccoloGoat said:


> My mum wanted to Use that to stop the dog running down the street.
> How does it work?


PiccoloGoat, the system comes with coated wire that you use to define your boundary--in only needs to be buried and inch or so, a transmitter/receiver, and a battery powered collar that communicates with the wire. It also comes with little white flags that you stick in the ground as a visual cue so the animals can better and more quickly learn where the boundary is. When initially training my goats, I put them on leashes so they couldn't bolt at getting shocked. I lead them near the white flags (did not force them), and of course they were curious. When they got shocked for getting too close to them, I immediately lured them a step or two away and gave them small bits of grain. I wanted them to learn to respect the fence, not be terrified of it. This same principal will work with dogs. It really only took them a couple shocks before they realized the white flags were evil. Over the course of a month or two, I slowly removed the flags a few at a time. Now they just remember where the boundary is.

Before this, I was NOT a fan of shocking animals for any purpose, but this system has really improved my goats' lives tenfold. As long as it works for your mom's dog, it could have the same results, especially if it prevents her/him from getting hit by a car, etc.... If it were me, I still would not rely on the fence if I wasn't home, just in case.... Good luck!


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## PiccoloGoat

Thanks! It makes sense to me now. I was just curious. 
We have a collar we put on her when we go out because she is very clingy and cries and screams sometimes when we're not there, and when we comes home she's very loud. 
So the collar can shock, vibrate and beep. She has been shocked once or twice in the beginning when she was bad, but now all she needs it for it to beep to know that it's working and she behaves perfectly. She's very clever.


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## Texas.girl

My friend has 2 cocker's who obey the invisable fence very nicely. They have doggy doors which allow the dogs to come and go as they please. The only time it is a problem is when the batteries run low. On the other hand they adopted a white husky? who refused to stay in the yard of the previous owner. So when that dog showed up at my friend's house and the owner said, "keep her", they did. This dog had a huge need to run all over town. They taught her to respect the shock collar and invisable fence but it just wasn't enough. They live on a county highway and one day found the dog killed in the middle of the street, clearly hit by a car. Invisiable fences do work but clearly not on all dogs.


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## MissyParkerton

Oh, that's so sad about the husky. They fall into the 'primitive breed' category which typically has such a high drive for running that invisible fence systems often aren't an option for them. :-(


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