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I have a feeling this may turn out to be long -- my apologies in advance!
Because our backyard is strangely shaped, we had an invisible fence installed when we got our dog. (through a company called Dog Watch, if anyone is familiar) Basically, they have a training process that takes place over about a week where you gradually get the dog used to the boundaries and slowly increase the shock level when he crosses them. So, the first day, you take the dog to the perimeter and then cross it slightly, and the collar just beeps, and you say, "Watch Out!" and pull the dog away. This is repeated several times over the course of the day. The next day, you set the collar to the "level 1" shock, which is (supposedly) very mild, and do the "Watch Out" thing again several times, and then gradually increase the shock level and add some temptations over the next several days until the dog no longer wants to cross the fence.
Well, we started on Thursday with just the collar beeping. By the end of the day, the dog was turning away on his own when he heard the beeping, so we thought all was going well.
Yesterday, we increased to the first level. Again, they said this was supposed to be very mild and a lot of dogs weren't really bothered by it. And yes, I'm sure I had it set correctly. I checked and double-checked. So we took the dog to the fence, and let him feel the shock as we had been told. We did it twice. The first time he kind of just shook his head and looked around. The second time, he yelped and made a beeline for the house.
Now he is afraid to go outside. The fence people did warn us that "a little" fear would probably occur around the second or third day of training. This is not "a little" fear. It is a battle to get this dog to go outside. He is not quite house trained, so a potty schedule is important! So far I have been able to get him to potty but he is obviously afraid while we are out there and he wants to come in right after. The fence people have suggested that we just spend time outside with him playing in his "safe area" -- the areas away from the fence, but he wants NO part of it. He pulls on the leash to go back in the whole time. If I sit with him he will stay with me but he is still obviously very anxious. I even tried giving him treats today. He enjoyed eating the treats but still wanted to go back in. I stopped taking him to the fence, but he just does NOT want to go out. And of course now it is the weekend so no one at Dog Watch is answering their phone.
Has anyone else had this experience or does anyone have any advice to offer? I'm at my wits' end here!
Thanks!
Stacey
Because our backyard is strangely shaped, we had an invisible fence installed when we got our dog. (through a company called Dog Watch, if anyone is familiar) Basically, they have a training process that takes place over about a week where you gradually get the dog used to the boundaries and slowly increase the shock level when he crosses them. So, the first day, you take the dog to the perimeter and then cross it slightly, and the collar just beeps, and you say, "Watch Out!" and pull the dog away. This is repeated several times over the course of the day. The next day, you set the collar to the "level 1" shock, which is (supposedly) very mild, and do the "Watch Out" thing again several times, and then gradually increase the shock level and add some temptations over the next several days until the dog no longer wants to cross the fence.
Well, we started on Thursday with just the collar beeping. By the end of the day, the dog was turning away on his own when he heard the beeping, so we thought all was going well.
Yesterday, we increased to the first level. Again, they said this was supposed to be very mild and a lot of dogs weren't really bothered by it. And yes, I'm sure I had it set correctly. I checked and double-checked. So we took the dog to the fence, and let him feel the shock as we had been told. We did it twice. The first time he kind of just shook his head and looked around. The second time, he yelped and made a beeline for the house.
Now he is afraid to go outside. The fence people did warn us that "a little" fear would probably occur around the second or third day of training. This is not "a little" fear. It is a battle to get this dog to go outside. He is not quite house trained, so a potty schedule is important! So far I have been able to get him to potty but he is obviously afraid while we are out there and he wants to come in right after. The fence people have suggested that we just spend time outside with him playing in his "safe area" -- the areas away from the fence, but he wants NO part of it. He pulls on the leash to go back in the whole time. If I sit with him he will stay with me but he is still obviously very anxious. I even tried giving him treats today. He enjoyed eating the treats but still wanted to go back in. I stopped taking him to the fence, but he just does NOT want to go out. And of course now it is the weekend so no one at Dog Watch is answering their phone.
Has anyone else had this experience or does anyone have any advice to offer? I'm at my wits' end here!
Thanks!
Stacey