Containment Systems: Training Tips

Training your dog is the most important part of owning electronic pet supplies. The better your dog is trained, the easier it will be on the both of you. A well trained dog is more than just a pet, he is a member of the family. Our electronic pet products are the safest on the market. With proper training from you, the products become even more humane. Dogs are intelligent animals, and the more training they receive, the better they will understand the limitations that have been set. With the training tips we have provided below, you may have a better understanding of the training process as well. The better you understand these systems, the better your dog will learn and behave.

Step by Step Training Made Easy!

To get the most out of your containment system,
keep these tips in mind:

Step By Step Training

Training Plan:

• *To teach your dog to identify and retreat from the boundaries.
• To make the training fair – so your dog will understand the consequences of leaving the yard.
• To make the training fun— so your dog will enjoy staying and playing on your property.

Training Lessons:

Lesson 1: The Retreat Pattern

Before you start to train – make sure the collar receiver is fully charged. Remove the standard probes and install the training probes. The training probes are the black plastic probes. The training probes ensure that your dog does not receive stimulation until he learns to retreat from the boundary.

Lesson 1 -- Day 1

The goal for day 1 is to introduce your dog to the boundary and to help him understand that he should retreat when he hears the warning tone. Depending on the lead, there are several ways to do this.

Using a 6 foot lead, casually walk your dog to the boundary. When he reaches the containment field, let go of the slack in your left hand, immediately spin to your right, and instantly grasp the lead under your right hand and retreat. Your dog will continue forward and the feel the tug. As he runs back towards you, praise him.

Using a retractable or 15 foot lead, casually walk your dog toward the boundary. Your dog may indicate he hears the warning sound by tilting his head or twitching his ears. The instant the dog hears the warning sound, give a tug on the lead and bring him back.

On a retractable lead, press the brake. This will redirect the dog back into the safe zone. Have fun and praise him.

On days two and three, repeat the lesson of day one. As the training sessions progress through the three days of lesson one, you will see that your dog will begin to anticipate the signal and retreat without prompts.

Day three is successful if your dog retreats with no prompt from you or he refuses to approach the boundaries. Remember to praise, praise, praise proper behavior

Lesson 2: The Stimulation

A dog may be tempted to break the rules. To prevent this, he must understand that there are consequences for inappropriate behavior. When your dog retreats from the boundaries on his own, or won’t go into the flagged areas, he is ready to receive stimulation.

Before you begin this lesson, remove the training probes and install the standard probes. Make sure the wall transmitter is turned on and functioning properly.

Use a 15 foot or a retractable lead. Have a family member run through the containment field. Let your dog follow. The distracter must not stop, look back, or call the dog. After your dog receives the stimulation, pull him back to you and lavish him with loud happy praise. Try it again. If he responds correctly, praise him, then move to another boundary area.

Lesson 3: Distractions

If your dog is avoiding the boundary, he is ready for distractions. This is the most important but often short-changed part of the training. This lesson teaches your dog that he must resist temptations. When practicing distractions, never call or pull your dog into the containment field.

Most dogs have a hard time generalizing concepts so you can’t assume that if your dog won’t chase a ball he won’t chase a bicycle. You have to go through a list of distractions that will tempt your dog the most. Dogs will learn specifics. If your dog is attracted by other family members, other dogs use them as temptations.

Lesson 4: Off-Lead Supervision

After several sessions of distractions, your dog should be ready for off-lead play. You must stay in the yard for off-lead training.

In fact, it’s wise to spend more quality time in the yard with your dog. The more your dog stays on the property for the first month, the less confused he will be.

If you wish to take your dog off the property, remove the collar receiver and take him on and off property in the car.

Lesson 5: Off-Lead Unsupervised

When your dog resists any kind, both on and off-lead, he can be left unattended in the yard. With this lesson, make sure you observe from inside the home. This freedom should be brief at first. You must frequently go outside and check on your dog. Over the next several weeks, unsupervised freedom can be gradually increased.

Before and after each unsupervised session, you must continue the play and praise routine so that your dog understands that the yard is a happy place to be.

Lesson 6: Removing the Flags

After 2 weeks of successful unsupervised containment, you can begin removing every other flag every other day until all are gone.

The leads, trainers, flags and the collar receiver signals are all training clues for your dog. During the last three weeks of training – one by one – all but the collar receiver will be removed.

As the training clues are removed, it is essential that you continue to use distractions to make sure your dog retreats from the unmarked boundary.

The stimulation teaches the consequences of the improper response. Know your dog and what tempts him. Gradually extend the amount of unsupervised freedom, and finally remove the flags when you are confident that your dog is fully trained.