I think there is some confusion of terms here. In general these are called an invisible fence. And I often see the one that has a wire you bury referred to as an underground fence. Then you have a wireless invisible fence, or pet containment system, that does not involve burying a wire.
can it be a perimeter loop, or is it always a round circle ? I'm trying to figure out how to set it up on our yard
The wireless fence has a transmitter which sends a wireless signal out in a circle a certain radius from the transmitter. It will create a circular boundary. You can use multiple transmitters to enlarge the area the dog (s) can roam by overlapping the circular boundaries, making sort of a snowman type shape.
The circle works very well on my property, and I like that I can just load the transmitter up and take it with me if I take the dog somewhere and still use it. For instance camping or visiting with family and staying over on their property. You can adjust the range down to be pretty small if need be.
I had a wired fence in the past and with this newer wireless, I didn't miss burying the boundary wire one bit!
If you don't quite understand what I mean by overlapping the circles poke around here.
I could do sort of a clover type overlap to get more of a square shape, or snowman type overlaps to get a longer shape, or both. The 1/4 acre circle from one transmitter works well for me.
I had to do zero training. I put the flags up, walked my dog near the flags and let him approach them as the collar began to beep only one time. After that I turned him loose, he got zapped once, and that was it. The documentation with the fence has a lengthy training process that attempts to teach him with no shock ever being administered. However, each dog is different. I doubt I would have ever been able to get my old German Shepherd trained to stay within the boundaries. If I would have, it would have taken extensive training for sure.
I don't think its just about shock intensity but also how its delivered. The system I have uses audible as well as vibration in conjunction with the shock, its designed for stubborn breeds and I will say it has impressed me.
I've used other systems in the past and they have worked also although with less stubborn breeds.
I think the biggest failures with invisible type fences are in poor training, train them right from the beginning and you'll most likely be successful with most systems.
I have never seen one that doesn't also have tones and vibration that serve as a warning first and then go along with the shock, but perhaps they exist. I've had 2 different systems and have family who has them. I have also used a regular ole electric fence with a visible wire that is electrified and shocks you if you touch it.
