HAVE PITTY ON ME, PLEASE....

I am Paul Wheaton's brother.  You know its true,  who would admit to it?  Guarantee he will laugh when he sees that I posted.   

I live in a small town in N. Idaho and have a problem with my dogs.   Our lot is small and building a fence to keep them in would not only be costly,  it would make our yard seem smaller than it is.   I tried an electric fence today and the wires make the running area just too small for the dogs.   Does anyone have any other ideas.  Please be nice,  I am a virgin poster.   Thank you,  Tim aka "Susan".

OK I'll bite - no pun intended - Describe the dogs. 

edit: BTW what's Paul really like?

Our oldest dog is a female boxer, about 8.  The youngest is a border collie mix and she is 6 months.  She is the biggest problem.

The youngest is a border collie mix and she is 6 months.  She is the biggest problem.

Aha!  A border collie that knows no boundaries.  Probably a member of dogs without borders.

We have a border collie also.  A rescue.  What a work ethic, she would herd every living thing in the neighborhood into one tight circle if we let her.    If you knew our neighbors you'd really be laughing right now.

We have fences, I think fencing is the best solution.    Training and lots of exercise will help but you will probably never tire out a border collie.  Sorry I don't have the solution you want.

There is a  guy near me who has pitt bulls and in this town p.b.s are considered to be vicious monstrous dogs -- of course they are not.  They are some of the sweetest dogs you will ever own if you ever have the opportunity to own one.

Anyhow, I found a breeder for these dogs who have to be contained or the city police will shoot them.  He uses invisible fencing. I visited his property and it seems to work very well.

His crew of dogs barked at me, but after he came to the door they went back to playing in their area -- they knew right were the invisible fencing was.

What happens if the power goes off?  Im not sure, but I think there are portable chargers for them.

there is a type of shock collar that warns then shocks when they get a certain distance from the central unit..no fence to be buried or anything..you can set it for up to 100 ' away i think for most units..

also the invisible fenceing isn't that expensive to install now..our neighbors did 13 acres for around $1000

gary wrote:
edit: BTW what's Paul really like?

Oooo Oooo I know I know..... Paul is 'REALLY' obnoxious 

This could be Paul's brother, the IP address and ISP are different than Paul's, so it is not Paul pulling our leg(s) at least. . . but we won't know for sure until he posts more (hint hint).

Brenda's suggestion of the non-buried unit would be my suggestion too considering your situation.

PROOF, YOU WANT PROOF....................I AM NOT SURE WHO SEPP IS, I VOTE, AND VOTE REPUBLICAN.  ENOUGH?

Yes, this is really my brother.

Susan,

Remember when we were gonna dig some ponds with the track hoe and I had you watch that movie with the guy with all the ponds?  The guy with all the ponds is Sepp.

paul wheaton wrote:
Susan,

...

Brother or
sister?
LOL

If it's a small backyard with nothing to get tangled up in a rope attached to the back of the house works.  A long leash on the clothes line also works.  RUN the dogs daily and for a border collie I mean RUN! You will be fit in no time trying to keep up  .  Train the dogs, a lot of work but worth it!  If none of these suggestions or the ones above work for you then bite the bullet and fence.  With time and effort a fence doesn't have to cost that much, eg a pallisade fence made by peeling saplings collected in the woods, sharpening an end and driving it into the ground.  For the short term plant vines that will entwine in the palisade, wild grape or morning glory is nice.  Longer term plant a thorn hedge such as roses or raspberry.  By the time the palisade rots the thorn hedge should have come in.  If you keep it shorter it shouldn't make the yard seem too much smaller and you get flowers or fruit out of it.  You can even mix the thorns.  Note that I say thorns as that will eliminate attempts to get through the spaces, dogs aren't dumb.

we have shock collars on our dogs, its the ones mentioned above where it warns then shocks. it seems sad but too many of ours and neighbors dogs have been killed at the road at the bottom of the property, and everywhere in the bushes is loaded with poison oak( which always gets on you and your family). eventually they learn the boundary and wont even pass it without the collar. unless you tell them its ok. you can set it to a 50ft or up to 200ft circle around the receiver.

edgegardener wrote:
Brother or
sister?
LOL

  Oh, I'm so glad you asked.....  Is this another example of a "(Johnny Cash) - A Boy Named Sue" or a slip of the tongue?


The wireless dog fences can be pricey, but for a boarder collie your going to need something very solid. 

My friend trained his labs to stay in his un-fenced yard, which runs along a large road. 
His training was rough, don't know if I would be able to follow his methods.  He would chase the dogs down when they ventured off property and would grab/hold their heads while yelling 1" from their face (can you say aversion therapy).  However, I'm sure his success had a lot to do with the breed of dog.  And like all dog training this required a good bit of effort over their growing up period, with reinforcement during their teen years.  (wow, sounds like raising children).

well i guess that is proof enough...the voting republican..that sure can't be Paul  !!! tee hee..I'm sure Paul MUST be a Libertarian !!! tea parties and all

I try to be apolitical. 

Susan is very political and as much as I don't want to hear susan's politics, he just has to share. 

must be a younger brother, sometimes we babies of the family have a hard time keeping our mouths shut?