Dogs and Electric Fences

[Hivoltage]

I was an electrician for 40 years. I wont check my fence that way, I hate to get shocked. I have a $15 fence tester ordered with my fence supplies. I dont have big hopes for it !

 

[chickengeorgeto]

It may prove a valuable addition to a traditional electric fence if you will include an additional ground wire that runs parallel to the top hot wire so that any chicken who tries to perch on or that hits both the upper hot wire and the extra ground wire gets a shocking experience as well. That will also work to help repel jumping predators. In my experience it only required one of these shocking experiences to teach a dog to NEVER cross that piece of land that the fence was strung across. The dog (my own) never forgot this lesson ever years after the electric fence was removed.

 

[lazy gardener]

well I just did it yesterday morning... I had one net 'disconnected' from the other and touched it and the chicken wire around the garden.. the nets were close enough that the charge was arcing across and powering up the other net. .. woke me up that is for sure.

So, you didn't need any coffee yesterday, huh?

 

[chickengeorgeto]

An electric fence will cause pain. But, properly installed, it will not cause injury.... An electric fence can be tested with a voltage meter to ensure that it's working properly. However, I choose to do it the old fashioned way: I take my shoe off, touch the ground with my bare toe, and touch the wire with my hand.....

If you will quickly touch a hot wire with the BACK of your open hand the resulting shock will serve to make your hand fly away from the hot wire without your hand or fist closing on the hot wire from reflex..

The better you are grounded the harder the shock.

 

[Kusanar]

well I just did it yesterday morning... I had one net 'disconnected' from the other and touched it and the chicken wire around the garden.. the nets were close enough that the charge was arcing across and powering up the other net. .. woke me up that is for sure.

My dad left a trap on my horses hotwire, one of the gate connectors, he left a tail of tape sticking out, I was on the other side of the fence and went to unhook it, didn't see the tape, and it layed across the back of my hand.... Jolt forced my hand closed and it was about 3 shocks before I got my hand to let go of the darn thing so I could stop being shocked... That was fun..

 

[Howard E]

A story the helped convince me about dogs and electric fences happened on our farm years ago. Dad and a none too bright farm hand built an electric fence for cattle. Hired hand was curious about how well it would work, so tried to trick our dog into touching it. Dog had already touched it and would not go near it. So out of frustration, hired hand caught the dog, walked him over to the fence, stood him up and forced his paw over to touch it. Dad said when the fence got em, both let out a yelp.....dog ran one way and hired hand another.

As dad was fond of saying......dog was a lot smarter than the hired hand.

But with predators like dogs and others, without something like that fence to establish a barrier.......there is nothing to prevent them from having at the birds. Maybe you if you are there to witness the event and can act fast enough to stop it, but who has the time for that. On guard 24/7? Not likely.

Physical fences, if of the right type, are better than no fences, but dogs and other predators encounter those all the time and have no trouble getting past most of them. Just as the JR terrier did with our chain link fence. But electric fences are different. They don't understand the nature of those, only that they get near them, they get zapped and want no part of another dose of that level of pain. So the electric fence establishes a border they are reluctant to cross or even get near. Not a physical barrier, but a psychological one. That is one reason why I think my wire fences may be superior to the netting.........it actually encourages them to try touching it.....not jumping over, but crawling through or under. As such, there really is no physical barrier at work. Only a mental one. (plus they are more durable and easier to maintain).

Second part of this is no neighbor can complain about this whatsoever. Don't like getting their dog zapped? Keep him at home........but not likely neighbor would ever know in the first place. You may never know either. Fence is on guard 24/7.......they walk into it.....get zapped.....go home and that is that.

 

[Jessica Thompson]

They will eventually stop after they have learn d it's bad

 

[Abriana]

My fence is broken or something, the shock is very light and I need to get it fixed, but when it was still new (and even up to this day) no predator has ever gotten in the pen and killed a bird, except for one hawk attack (which of course the fence can’t keep put) I have only had two deaths due to predators and one was a hawk and one was a weasel (I think) this past weekend and the hen was out of the fence. Definitely the fence is great!
As for dogs getting into my pen and killing my birds, if a dog is on my property I legally can shoot it, and so I probably would, especially if it kept coming back. I would say that my first priority is my animals, then other animals.

 

[Hivoltage]

My fence is broken or something, the shock is very light and I need to get it fixed, but when it was still new (and even up to this day) no predator has ever gotten in the pen and killed a bird, except for one hawk attack (which of course the fence can’t keep put) I have only had two deaths due to predators and one was a hawk and one was a weasel (I think) this past weekend and the hen was out of the fence. Definitely the fence is great!
As for dogs getting into my pen and killing my birds, if a dog is on my property I legally can shoot it, and so I probably would, especially if it kept coming back. I would say that my first priority is my animals, then other animals.

Check and make sure it is grounded good. I dont think I could shoot a dog, shock the crap out of him......yes.

 

[KentuckyRooster]

Electric fencing is a very important proactive component of predator management. In concert with other approaches, it makes protecting chickens, whether free-range or not, much more sustainable. We need to quit thinking about predator management tools operating in isolation from each other.

Electric fencing is more often that not depicted as being appropriate for situations involving more acreage than available to a back yard, yet hotwire can do all sorts of repelling right up to the actual structure of coops and pens. The hotwire approach is often rejected out of hand owing to potential risk to children. A lower powered charger can be used and can be quite effective when used in concert with boundaries that structurally impede predator movement in a manner that makes it difficult avoid shocks.

I grew up successfully around hotwire several decades ago, and by measures of those that know me, everything turned out OK with no mental scars directly attributable to getting shocked. My young kids (6 an 4) are well adjusted to fencing and it have helped expand their vocabulary and technical thinking.

I grew up around electric fences. Nobody died. None of my other horse owning friends did either. I never got shocked, even. The only things that ever got shocked were the horses.

Most electric fences are safe for a small child to get shocked by. I think it's a foolish excuse. Teach your kid, or let him learn the hard way- the fence isn't going to do permanent damage to anything or anyone.

I love the idea of using them to protect ranging birds.