Benefits and Drawbacks of Electric Dog Fences

Every spring I get quite a few messages and emails inquiring about our experiences with our electric fence so I thought I would do a quick blog post on the subject and explain my thoughts on its advantages and disadvantages.

Cleo rocking her two collars. The normal blaze orange collar (because the world is her hunting ground) and her snazzy blue e- fence collar.

When we purchased our home four years ago the previous owners had an invisible fence installed. However, they had chosen to install the fence only in small portion of the yard. With their setup our dogs were limited to half the backyard and could not walk entirely around our ranch styled house. GSP's are high energy dogs so we felt that it was important that they have full access to the entire yard so the first thing we did was reach out to the manufacturer of the existing fence system (PetStop) and had them come out and rerun the fence around the entire perimeter of our property. Our yard is about an acre and a half. I bring this up as it I felt it was a testament to the product that it could easily be rerouted and although I don't remember what it cost it was relatively inexpensive. At the time we only had one of our GSP's (Ms. Sassy Spots Cleo) and she was just a puppy. So we had them make the changes and then waited until Cleo was old enough to be trained to the system.

Luna doing a little extra curricular mole hunting

One of the biggest concerns I hear from people especially with hunting dogs is will your dogs prey drive eventually take over and lead them to break through the fence?  Our shorthairs have an extraordinarily high prey drive and they will full out run like their life depends upon it in hot pursuit of a rabbit or squirrel and stop dead at the barrier. Rest assure they bark every dog expletive they know at those furry creatures and probably even a few at me but the moral of the story is they don't break through. I have also on more than one occasion seen my Cleo and Luna practically foam at the mouth at the fence line over our neighbors 3 legged cat that sits and taunts them about 4 feet from the barrier. Not sure there could be anything more tempting then that for a fur driven dog.

I actually own this badass mug....and a Siamese cat.

Even when the collar batteries are dead or on the rare occasion they are in the yard without collars on they will still not break through the fence. They have also never become aggressive or fearful from being trained to the electric fence. In fact our girls are rather happy and well adjusted shorthairs. Keep in mind that our girls are exercised everyday. Tired GSP's are happy GSP's and they go looking for a whole lot less trouble when they have been both physically and mentally stimulated. But I would encourage everyone who is in the market to get an electric fence to USE COMMON SENSE. If your dog is predisposed to behavioral issues or anxiety make sure they are a good fit for this style system. Like all things in life what it is good for some people/dogs is not good for all people/dogs. 

Luna modeling her green e-fence collar while playing catch off the back deck. Cleo is ALWAYS outfield.

Please note our neighbors handsome pup Lincoln watching us in the background who also is on an e-fence. (Luna is trying to figure out why she didn't get to dig that hole) 

With that said, in my humble opinion there are quite a few benefits of owning an electric fence. The first being cost. It was exponentially cheaper to run our acre and a half property with an invisible fence as opposed to a traditional above ground fence. Because of the low cost we were also able to enclose more of our property giving them more room to roam. Another added benefit is regardless of your terrain they can pretty much run an e-fence through anything, water included as well as across your driveway. I also like that the fence is hidden. I would absolutely hate to have an above ground fence in my yard and I rather like the idea that my dogs are able to see out into our quiet neighborhood. If we had a traditional above ground fence I could just imagine them barking like hell at whatever they couldn't see but could hear on the other side. I also like that there is basically no maintenance to keep up with. We got it installed four years ago and other than occasionally replacing collar batteries it's a well oiled machine.

Cleo escorting the neighborhood ambassador Natasha to the property line

The biggest downside to consider is that although an invisible fence keeps your dogs IN it does nothing to keep other animals or people OUT of your yard. For instance we have a couple who lives up the road from us who own an older German Shepard and they allow her to freely roam the neighborhood. Natasha ventures down to our property almost daily to visit the pointer sisters. Luckily for us Natasha is very sweet and in the four years we've lived in our home we have never had a problem although we would very much prefer it if she would stay in her own yard or more importantly crap in her own yard....but I digress. Also, if you happen to live in a neighborhood like ours with lots of children the invisible fence does nothing to keep them from cutting through your yard. Be your dogs best advocate and don't leave them in your yard for long periods of unsupervised time. And keep in mind the e-fence is not a baby sitter and you should always keep a watchful eye on your dogs when they are in your yard.

***Public Service Announcement: E-fences are crappy baby sitters. Do not let them babysit your dogs!! The last time our E-fence babysat our girls we came home to the 15 month old drinking Summer Shandy and smoking woodpile stogies.***

So for us the positives have far out weighed the negatives. And we will never not have an invisible e-fence for our dogs. I can't stress it enough that properly training your dog to your e-fence is going to be the secret to your success with it. It is my experience that when the dog is properly trained it will not break through the invisible barrier even in hot pursuit of delicious furry critters.

Luna-tic AKA Hell Puppy got a little rammy and chewed Cleo's e-collar battery right off.....fan-flippin-tastic. Let's just throw our wallet at the invisible fence.

My final tidbit of advice regarding collars is they can be expensive to replace or purchase (as pictured above). If you have a national brand ask if the company has any used collars for sale or check Ebay and Craigslist to save some cash.

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Back in the Saddle: Preparing for the NAVHDA UT Test

Cleo at Steady by the Blind

This posts title is a bit misleading because we never really leave the "saddle". Were always busy with the girls working towards some type of goal. It's good for our sanity and theirs as well. Well directed GSP energy creates happy GSP's. Happy GSP's eat less of my stuff like expensive flip flops keeping me happy which in return makes Jim happy and then were all happy. I love it when were all happy.

The title is more accurate in a sense that I've been a legit crappy blogger as of late. I've been training for some Muay Thai competitions and the thing that has suffered the most has been this blog. Which sucks BUT after this July I'll be way more dedicated to keeping this blog up to date. This is when I put down my bourbon and lemonade slushy and cover my tye dye t-shirt wearing heart and raise the other hand and pledge to do a less crappy job for all of you readers.....so help me god.

Master Hunter Bling and a happy Jimbo

Now that we have that out of the way a quick spring recap and then onto the UT update. We ran the girls in some AKC Hunt Test braces this spring. Luna was our little super star bypassing Juniors and Seniors and jumping right into the Masters division and passing her first brace at the age of 13 months. By 15 months of age she completed 5 of the required 6 braces. We will finish off her title this coming fall as soon as the seasonal tests become available again. Cleo also did a pretty darn good job in Masters and only has 2 more braces to earn her respective title.

Luna also had her first heat cycle followed by a crazy growth spurt. She is close to an inch taller than Cleo now and maybe four inches longer. Her chest is dropping and we feel she is going to fill out a bit more. She's turned into quite a hellacious tank. My little pupper is all grown up. ***This is when the sad trombone music plays***

Luna returning from her Duck Drag

Cleo being sent on a duck drag. Jim telling her to Track Track Track Track....

Cleo bringing back the bounty

This time last year Luna was a 16 week old puppy and therefore missed out on a good portion of the UT work we put in with Cleo last year. We introduced her to ducks at 18 weeks of age and tried to lay a good foundation for her with mini searches and tracks but we knew the real work would start this spring. This past Friday and then again on Sunday we began formally introducing her to the sequences of the Utility Test. Both Luna and Cleo are scheduled to test in the UT this coming September at the Delval Chapter.

Cleo being sent during the steady by the blind sequence

Luna staying steady during her turn

We kicked training off for the dogs with some duck drags. Cleo has historically done a fantastic job with drags and did so again this weekend. We set a small drag up for Luna on Friday and after a successful first time out he increased the distance on Sunday. She had no issues with the track and we quickly moved onto the Steady by the Blind sequence. The steady by the blind sequence is where the wheels came off the cart for Cleo last year when she tested in UT. Up until that point she had knocked her field work and duck search out of the park with 4's. Needless to say we will be spending more time in this area of the test for her this time around. She did a pretty nice job during training this weekend so we feel were off to a good start. Luna did an exceptional job considering she had never been exposed to this segment of the test before. She heeled wonderfully, sat quietly and retrieved her bumper delivering it to hand.

Luna's duck search

Luna getting to carry her duck back to the truck

Is that Cleo or the Swamp Thing??

After some mud puddle four wheeling we made our way over to the duck search pond. Our friend wanted to see if we could get Luna to go out without a visual. He kayaked out the receiver off of one of his Dogtra remote release traps and hid it on an island across from the area we would send Luna from. The receiver can either quack or beep to be located. If needed we could use the quacking to coax Luna out farther into the pond. Jim brought Luna up to the shoreline for her first real duck search and sent her out. She swam out a ways and then returned not entirely sure what was expected of her. Jim called her over, set her back up and resent her and then our friend hit the receiver with the quacking. It was like fireworks went off in her head and she moved right out into the water, past the island and across the pond to the other side. After about 15 minutes she started making her way back with a duck. Success! It was a great first time out for her.

Water Serpent....Jim's favorite

Kerry Lucas receiving a duck from her girl Indy after a very nice duck search

Occupying my time while waiting for the dogs to return.

Cleo also had a successful duck search. She milled around for a minute or two after being sent but then took off across the pond. It took about 10 minutes before she appeared with her mouth stuffed full of duck. It was a positive and progressive day of training. We'll stay focused on water work for the next couple of weeks and hopefully be a well oiled machine by test time. Below are some additional pics of our and our friends dogs during training.

Cleo and Luna's older sister Grace owned by Keith and Kerry Lucas. I'd LOVE to know what was going through her head.

Indy also owned by Keith and Kerry Lucas jumping a tree on a duck drag

Luna's duck drag hand off

Bonnie's crazed duck game face! Bonnie is owned by Bob G

This is Cleo with the hammer down barreling towards the water. 

Cleo and Luna's father Maximus owned by Bob G

I do love me some dragonfly pics

Miss Grace AKA The Duck Stalker

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Homemade Gourmet Frosty Paws

Things are about to get real people......real flippin good.

You might be asking yourself why bother to make frosty paws gourmet? Why go through the trouble to kick them up a notch? Well because after a few bourbon and lemonade slushies you can totally enjoy one with your dogs. That's why....because they are amazing.

Couple things to keep in mind when you are making these for your dogs:

1. Only use dog approved food so that means no chocolate, no raisins, no grapes, no macadamia nuts, no salt and no dairy based ice cream. If your unsure whether or not your dog can have something check a toxic dog food list before preparing them treats. Your dog WILL think your a total jerk if you make them sick. Just saying.

2. When buying the frozen yogurt try to get plain, low fat yogurt and go organic if you can. Often fruit flavored yogurts contain additional sugars and if your hunting dog is anything like my gals the last thing they need is any amount of assistance in being spastic. Today I used fat free vanilla bean frozen yogurt because its what I happened to have my in freezer and its delicious.

3. I like to use 9 oz. coated paper cups as opposed to the 5 oz cups. I find the 5 oz cups to be to small in diameter and it makes it more difficult to stuff the awesomeness of this recipe in there. In addition I like to leave some space at the top of the 9 oz cups so I have plenty of room for peeling the paper off later.

4. There really isn't a number four. I just like it when things are even. Five bucks says most of you do too so don't judge me people.

This is a Cleo and Luna approved recipe

Homemade Gourmet Frosty Paws

What you need:
~Large container of Low fat or Fat Free Plain Organic Frozen Yogurt (48 Fl. Oz)
~Your favorite creamy peanut butter (Clearly I'm a Skippy kind of gal)
~Salt Free peanuts (coarsely chopped)
~9 oz. Coated paper cups

1. Set all your cups out in a row (I usually construct 6 to 8 cups at a time). Then fill the bottom of each cup with a layer of frozen yogurt. Use the spoon to push it down so it's compacted. My base layer is usually about an inch or so deep.

***Note: You want the yogurt to be on the soft side but not melting. If it gets to soft it makes sticking to the peanut butter a challenge. So if this occurs throw the cups and the large yogurt container back into the freezer to stiffen them up again.***

 
2. Spoon a dollop of the peanut butter on top of the yogurt and use the spoon to push it firmly down. You don't want to push the peanut butter into the yogurt but you want to eliminate any air gaps.

3. Sprinkle in your salt free chopped peanuts. Use your fingers to gently push them down onto the peanut butter.

4. Put your final layer of frozen yogurt on top and do your best to push it down so its set in there nice and tight. You should have about an inch and a half of empty cup remaining at the top. Take the full cups and leave them in your freezer until they are fully frozen. It shouldn't take longer than a couple of hours. Once frozen use a scissors to cut a line into the top inch of the cup and then peel the paper cup off of the frosty paw. Serve in an area you don't mind a mess.

Peeled but with the bottoms and backing still on. I didn't want a mess on my counter. 

Luna chasing a rogue peanut

There are plenty of variations to this recipe so if you decide you want to switch it up here are some suggestions:

Omit the salt free peanuts and instead use thinly sliced ripe bananas. If you want both then simply switch your creamy peanut butter to chunky.

Or omit the peanut butter and use canned pumpkin. Be sure not to buy canned pumpkin pie. Then sprinkle the pumpkin with chopped salt free peanuts.

Or add a layer of broken up dog biscuits. I'd suggest using homemade dog biscuits for that. If your not sure how to make them check out one of my recipes for that here.

AND if you decide you want to make these for yourself and you have no plans on sharing yours with the dogs throw in a layer of Carmel or fudge. Or go a healthier route and use granola and fresh fruit like strawberries, blueberries or bananas. And be sure to stick a Popsicle stick in the cup when finished so you don't have to lick them off the floor like the dogs although after enough bourbon and lemonade slushies you may have too.

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and get more recipes from us here.

Trailers, AKC Hunt Tests and Missing Food from the Counter....Oh My.

When you start posting pics of trailers, campers or RV's on facebook or on blogs it means your hunting dog obsession has reached new unhealthy heights and you should maybe invest in an therapist induced intervention. Just sayin.

We got a new toy!!! Yay! Jimbo and I have talked about getting a trailer for years and finally pulled the trigger through dog obsessed justifications. It's remotely similar to when we had always discussed buying kayaks but could never justify the purchases till we HAD to get one for duck searches. We may be heading up to the Catskills to an AKC test at the end of the month for our maiden voyage! Boom!

Cleo calls top bunk!!

The back of the trailer pushes out to an entire king sized bed to open up the living spaces of the trailer. You can see it in the photo above. The pointer sisters seem to be all about the bunks at the other end of the trailer but I have no doubt they will be squeezing in with us at night. We should all start taking bets how long it takes for Luna to wreck something in the trailer and for me to melt down like Chernobyl. 

***Cleo is not a mountain goat although she would argue that statement. She did not leap onto the top bunk. I picked her 60lb spotted ass up and shoved her up there because it made her happy. Mainly just because her little sister couldn't get up there. #OlderSiblingsAreJerks***

Bone Buddies. Cleo and her daddy Maximus.

Hunt test season is upon us again! To kick things off proper this year we had some well enjoyed company with Bob G and his two GSP's Maximus (Cleo and Luna's dad) and Ms. Bonnie G. The whole crew spent the night at our place last Saturday to lessen their drive up to the Hunt Test in Weatherly, PA on Sunday. We had an AWESOME time kicking back, enjoying some cold ones and watching the dogs roll each other around the yard. After spending two days with Maximus it's apparent that Cleo is not only his clone in the field but in the house as well. Now I know where she inherited the mystical art of counter surfing. 

Hmmmmm. One side doesn't look like the other side. How peculiar.  

In all fairness Bob warned me that Max was a bit food motivated but I completely forgot (let's blame it on the wine) and wandered away from the kitchen for about 2 minutes while making dinner. I returned to a half barren cutting board and an extra attentive GSP. Max managed to stuff his spotted face with approximated 1 1/2 chopped tomatoes and 3/4 of a sliced cucumber in probably a quarter second. Five bucks says he didn't even enjoy it. The main thing I gathered from this experience......Max doesn't like broccoli. Next time have less cucumbers and tomatoes and double the broccoli. I'll show him who's boss. :)

 Some AKC MH bling for Cleo

Cleo passed her first of five required MH braces so I'd like to say that we are well on our way to an AKC Master Hunt Title! I couldn't be more excited or proud of our girl.

Cleo on point with Jim walking in to flush. She held this point for a very long time.

Luna honoring her bracemate Maggie in the back field

Luna sadly struck out but at the age of 14 months we were far from disappointed. She ran fantastic staying steady through the shot, retrieved to hand and honored staunchly several times in the backfield. She got picked up in the bird field for not honoring but it was kind of an odd situation. Which brings me to my main gripe about AKC Hunt Tests....the judges often create / force these odd situations in the bird field and often discount what happened in the back field although it happened in a more realistic hunting situation. But regardless the judges were very impressed with how well Luna did considering how young she is to be running at that level. It was also a good reminder that when competing in these tests your essentially playing a game and it's not like hunting at all. I have no doubt Luna Lu will have her own MH ribbon bling within the next couple of weeks. Bob's female Bonnie also qualified for her first of six required braces. The weekend was an epic win.

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A Tale of Two Dog Beds and One Ill Behaved GSP

A picture is worth a thousand words...and a wine slushy or two

Thursday night I came home from work to discover a class five tornado had touched down in my living room. Please take note that Cleo the innocent one in the back, had her ears down. As the eldest sassy GSP she knew the shit was about to hit the fan. Luna-cifer, the guilty as hell one, stood there proud like she was saying (in my best Thor voice), "Look what I have created!!!" She is totally oblivious that destroying the new dog bed was wrong in any way. I can only imagine how much fun she must have had. I envision her barking at it while intermittently flinging saw dust laden stuffing everywhere while her short little tail wagged in glee. What a jerk. While rummaging through the stuffing I also found the remnants of the cat food plate in there. If only they had gotten their little spotted paws on some alcohol it would have been a frat party scene from Animal House.

So what does one do when their puppy is vibrating from all the pent up energy? You let them out into the yard to run laps while you clean up the mess. I still stand firm that this is quite possibly the best video I have ever taken. Fingers crossed I could win an Oscar for this....Best Director of a Dramatic Animal Documentary. 

All of this is a result of them not getting out to run. It was raining at the end of last week and everything was a mud pit. It all comes down to simple math. BORED GSP's + NOT ENOUGH EXERCISE = DESTRUCTION. On the other hand TIRED GSP's = HAPPY GSP's (which is the equivalent of happy owners). Now that we have that out of the way there is no excuse for the next picture which sent me into profanity laden fits.

This is why I drink.....well not really. But more importantly WHAT THE HECK LUNA!??!

This was an old dog bed I threw into the same spot as the new one Luna destroyed so she would still have something to lay on.  It lasted four days. FOUR DAYS!!! And then she destroyed it after having spent 5 hours running like a banshee at daycare WHILE Jim was home. Cleo just laid there idly watching her have her way with it. So time for some new math: LUNA + DOG BED = JERK. So I told Jim no more dog beds in that spot....which funny enough is her spot. So now she lays happily on the floor in the spot where her dog beds used to be or squeezes into Cleo's dog cave with her. But there has been no more destruction since...well she destroyed all her dog beds and we haven't replaced them. She hasn't even attempted to maim anything else in the house. She is such a quirky little pup. So she's officially on dog bed probation for the next month. Maybe she'll get off early with good behavior but judging by historical prior wrongs....I highly doubt it. :)

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Baby Luna Turns One!

On February 15th, 2012 our whole world changed. Jim and I patiently waited for 18 months for Bob Corsaro of Nobelle's Kennel to produce a repeat breeding of his female Tessie and Bob Gelder's male Nobelle's Dbl Trbl Maximus MH. This specific breeding had produced our other female, Cleo two years prior. In addition we were extra excited as we had pick female!

This time last year Tessie produced 8 males and one single female. I couldn't have been more excited but Jim was pretty bummed out the breeding only produced one female. So much for having pick! I could have cared less and told him it just meant that Luna was meant to be....she was ours from the moment she was born. It was destiny. He would eventually come to agree with me.

Luna looking to feed within minutes of being brought into the world. She was one of the first couple of pups born. She was so white and looking extra guinea piggish!! (The next three photos taken by Bob Corsaro)

Luna facing the camera a few days after being born. She was born with a white sash on her head (the sign of the devil) just like her big sis Cleo. It has since turned liver but the hell puppy attitude remains stoically in place.

Baby Lu at a couple of weeks old. Starting to get some color!

Here is a quick video of Luna in the whelping box the day we picked her up! 

Jim and I had an agreement that when we picked up Lu I would get to be the one who held her on the two hour ride home since he held Cleo two years before when we made the trip. She seemed so small...smelled awful and was perfect in every way. It was like holding a little piece of our soul in my arms. She was the sweetest puppy and cooed regularly and pushed back in your embrace as if cherishing it. 

Luna getting a hold of my sweatshirt string in the whelping box. I should have realized this was the first sign of trouble.

Once we got her home Cleo was excited and interested but after Luna spent the night Cleo wanted her gone. It took about 8 days for Cleo to get fully on board and love her the way we did. Below are some previously unshared videos of our first days together as a family. 

Day 3 or 4 I believe when Cleo first starting making an effort

I can barely stand to watch these videos as they pull on my heart strings so much

This video was taken on the day Cleo finally gave in (day 8) and started to Love our Lu.

Luna has completed our lives. She's the missing piece to our puzzle and there is not a second were not glad we waited for her. She's quirky, and funny and will happily destroy your shit or steal your things faster than you can catch her in the act. She cries like crazy when she sees her Sammy Lou and gives the best kisses ever....even better than Cleo. She has a nack for finding trouble and moles and prefers sleeping under the covers. She always has a wagging tail and loves to chew off Cleo's collars. We love her and couldn't live a minute of our lives without her.

Not such a little white guinea pig anymore. 

This past year has flown by and I just want to thank everyone for being along on the hell puppy ride with us. It's been awesome to share this adventure with so many cool people. I still can't believe my baby is getting so big. Here's to many many more years of Luna Shenanigans!!

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