Is there a good reason to get frantic over electric fences? Dog owners are reluctant to install an electric fence on their farms because they fear losing their fur babies if they trip on the fence. Dogs getting electrocuted by faulty electric fences are uncommon compared to dogs hit by vehicles or bitten by fellow dogs. A study shows that over 1.2 million dogs are killed annually in the United States on the road instead of injured due to electric shock. Confining the dogs in electronic fences did not stop them from escaping from the yard when they recognized stray dogs, cats, or rabbits.
Do My Dogs Get Hurt by Electric Fences?
An electric fence can hurt your dog, but the pain is not severe as you might think. The electrical charges cause short-lived pain in the dog when it touches the electric fence. Scaring the dog is the primary purpose of installing electrical fences to discourage it from escaping and not killing it.
Dogs are intelligent animals, and they behave after experiencing discomfort. They feel punished every time they see the fence, so they will never try to touch the electric fence in the long run, even if they see strange animals outside. Electric fences generate pulsing shock from their energizer, making it safe for your fur babies.
The pain causes their muscles to lock in due to the pulsing shock that lasts for a few seconds. Faulty electric fences can cause continuous electric shocks that can fry your pet’s body, which leads to its untimely death. Deaths occur when your pets get entangled between the electric wires for extended periods, but not the quick electric shock.
How Strong the Electric Voltage to Kill a Dog?
Both humans and animals can get killed when they touch an electric fence for as long as the electrical charges are continuous. The electrical charges are non-stop, causing the person or animal’s body to burn. It may happen if both amperage and currents have the same level of intensity.
Electric fencing is a safe form of confining your dogs, livestock and pets. The ground and hot wires in electrical fences can hurt your pet or kid, causing short-term pain for ten minutes. The pain does not cause paralysis or burn since the electric fencing works in low and pulsating currents.
The pulsating electrical currents from the wires deter pets and people from touching them. Their hands automatically release from the electric wires, keeping them alive, unlike when using electric devices with continuous currents.
Energizer of electric fences that emit 8,000 volts and operate low amperage of 120 milli-amps is not dangerous to your pets. The duration of exposure to the electric shock can kill your dog, not the number of volts. Your fur baby will die if exposure to a 110-volt electric fence lasts for thirty seconds but not for a split second.
Disadvantages of Electronic Containment System
Confining your animals, especially dogs, in electric fences can bring harm instead of protecting them. Non- aggressive dogs have developed aggressive behavior in boundaries when they see strange animals or humans passing by.
This assessment was released by dog bite expert witness Dr. Richard Polsky, who has testified in more than 300 cases of animal attacks. He helped established aggressive behavior patterns in a Florida dog bite case, which led to the awarding of 1.26 million USD to the victim.
The victim, Marie Tatman’s left foot, was mauled by an Akita during a dog show in Florida while walking. The dog did not let go of her not until the people helped pull the aggressive dog off the plaintiff. The plaintiff’s leg underwent five surgeries, shortening it by three inches.
According to Polsky, aggression in dogs develops if they live in electronic containment systems. Aside from developing attacks, electric fencing can injure the dog when they get entangled between the wires or when left without supervision.
Dogs become anxious and agitated when they see the boundary area, yard, or on a leash by someone strange to them, like a dog trainer. They scare passers-by by barking and lunging at the gate or boundary, thinking they will get attacked by dogs confined to invisible electronic fences.
The situation becomes worse when other dogs become reactive, causing a lot of trouble when the dog is left unattended. The detrimental effects of electronic containment systems are considered severe in some countries in Europe and Australia. Disciplining a dog’s behavior with a shock collar or similar devices leaves a stigma on your fur baby that is difficult to delete from their minds.
Electronic containment systems are illegal in some countries like Wales, Slovenia, Germany, Denmark, Austria, and some areas in Australia.
Effective Method to Correct Your Dog’s Behavior
Train your dog without a leash in your yard and teach him some tricks in emergencies. Putting the dog in an invisible electronic fence is not the solution. Why not place the dog on a physical fence where there is much freedom?
Walk the dog to the park, beach, or yard in a combination of leash or unleash. Unsupervised dogs develop aggressive behavior when you leave them within the property boundaries. Like humans, they need interaction with fellow dogs or humans.
They bark and growl so loud to get your attention, so instead of confining them in the fence, allow them to mingle with your kids and spend time inside your home. Talk to your dog trainer if you are raising a puppy about how aversive training can cause misbehavior in dogs.
A high-tech containment system or electric shock can traumatize your fur babies. Allow your dogs to freely acclimate and explore their surroundings without the leash to correct misbehavior.
My Final Thoughts
Electric fences are safe for dogs, but, like humans, they feel alone when you put them on a leash or in electronic containment systems. They live unhappily and develop the habit of growling and creating irritating sounds to get noticed by their owners.
Confining them in a containment system is not a solution to discipline them, but they become more aggressive and dangerous to people. Learn their behavior to understand better how they react to an environment without human interaction.
