How Does Our Hidden Pet Fence Compare To Other Fences?
Our Hidden Pet Fence system compared to the Invisible Fence® brand
We really want folks to understand that we are a full-service company when it comes to keeping your dogs safe! The professionals of Hidden Pet Fence won’t just install a fence and then leave you to it. We also include training for your adult dogs and puppies.
Here are the top reasons customers have shared as to why they chose us over the other options:
·We have been locally owned for over 30 years, since 1992! We are NOT a franchise.
·Your dog will be trained using IACP (International Association of Canine Professionals) certified training process.
·Unlimited training for your dogs is provided with all Pro packages.
·We have specialized training protocols for timid and stubborn dogs.
·We have a 100% success rate including extremely stubborn dogs.
·Local veterinarians and pet professionals use and recommend us.
·We have a full office staff with 6 full-time employees.
·Our warranties are backed NATIONWIDE!
In addition to these qualities, we are also able to install your fence earlier than you can expect from the other guys. We are typically only booked out 1-2 weeks for installs, while Invisible Fence® will have you waiting for several months.
Take a moment to look at the charts below to compare us with the Invisible Fence® brand.
CLICK HERE to watch a short YouTube video explaining why you should choose Hidden Pet Fence!
Hidden Pet Fence Continuous Boundary
Our Continuous Boundary technology activates the collar not just at the line but also beyond.
The collar continues to activate if the dog runs past the wire, meaning they are given a constant reminder to break their concentration from whatever motivated them to test the boundary.
During training, your dog learns that they must retreat to the yard as their safe space. The Continuous Boundary puts an end to dogs “breaking through” the fence by giving an extended reminder to come back to the yard. We are so sure this will stop your dog, we back it up with a money back guarantee!
Hidden Pet Fence is the only company that offers complete customization of your boundaries. We can use distance or time settings, as well as control how wide or narrow the boundary is, to the needs of your yard and your dogs.
Traditional Dog Fence Systems
THREE DOWNSIDES of the other guys’ fence
- Your dogs can run past the activation zone and continue to run.
- When your dog runs past the line and tries to come home, the fence keeps them from returning.
- You lose 5-8 feet around your whole yard.
- With other brands, your dog can run past and can’t walk home.
How it works: Most dog fence systems create
an activation zone around the wire. This means there are a few feet on either side of the wire where the collar activates. Anytime the dog is outside of the activation zone, including outside of your yard, the collar shuts off, leaving room for error.
This is commonly the only type of setting available with other companies. Hidden Pet Fence offers better solutions, especially for stubborn dogs.
Carl T. from Scottsville NY
What’s the Difference Between our Underground Dog Fences and Conventional Style Above Ground Fences?
Dog Fencing by Hidden Pet Fence of NY vs. Traditional Above Ground Fences
- Dogs can jump over or dig under a regular above ground fence
- The front door and garage doors are not protected. Dogs get out the door and run out of the yard
- Gates can be left open by kids, friends, or family which lets the dogs escape out of the fenced area
- Weed whacking around the whole above-ground fence is time-consuming
- Cost – is definitely the biggest reason.
Pricing for conventional above-ground chain link fencing starts at about $6000 for a 1/4 acre backyard only. This starting price is an average price for chain link dog fencing including links, rods, and one entry gate.
Our installed underground fence is less than half that cost.
Privacy fencing, vinyl fencing, wood fencing, or even a rod iron type fence will greatly increase that cost. In many cases, the cost can be over $20,000.
Our prices for underground fencing are going to be less than 50% of that.
When you purchase a Hidden Pet Fence we do the back yard AND the front yard for the same price 99.9% of the time! That’s right! We can also secure your front yard, to protect your dog from running out the front door or garage door, and running out into the road. That is nearly impossible to do with chainlink or conventional dog fencing.
If you mow your own lawn get ready for a headache. Mowing, weed whacking, trimming the grass, etc. are going to be quite the chore when a chainlink fence or other styles of fences are installed in a yard. Between professional installation and a maintenance-free wired setup, you won’t waste any time with upkeep when it comes to our system.
Our dog fence is installed securely underground and the wire needs no maintenance. In other words, no obstructions between you and mowing your lawn perfectly.
Dogs are resourceful. Where there is a will (to escape) there is a way. Jumping over or digging under many types of conventional fences (like ones made of vinyl) is common with dogs. Even if they don’t escape, you now have a major maintenance issue on your hand every time your dog tears up your landscaping trying to escape from the big hunk of metal surrounding your yard. When it comes to an electronic fence, there is no leaping over it or tunneling under it. Your dog will absolutely stay in the yard with an escape-free system like this.
Also, if you have a traditional style above-ground fence with entryways like gates, you stand the risk of leaving that gate open by accident and thus leaving a wide-open “escape route” for your dog. With an underground electronic fence, there is no more “forgetting to close the gate” problem that can continue to arise.
No permit is needed, no association approval is needed (in most cases) and no issue with the city or towns for our underground fencing.
CLICK HERE to watch a short YouTube video detailing underground fencing vs. traditional fencing.
The Lewis family from Ontario, NY
Are you thinking about trying the wireless Halo® or SpotOn® GPS collar in Rochester, NY?
We tried them so you don’t have to!
Over the years, the team at Hidden Pet Fence has tested countless GPS dog fence systems and have been less than impressed. Even the professional grade systems do not compare to the reliability of a wired system. Customers ask all the time about the ads they see on social media with different GPS collars such as the Halo® and SpotOn®. We decided to give them a shot and found many concerns that we want you to be aware of before spending $1000 or more. Please see the information below that we gathered while testing out the Halo® GPS collar and SpotOn® GPS collar.
The new Invisible Fence® Brand GPS collar
The latest GPS fence to hit the market is the new Invisible Fence® Brand collar. This is the largest collar we have seen so far, weighing in at over 8 ounces. The collar battery lasts up to 24 hours and comes with a 1 year warranty. If the battery stops charging after one year, you would have to purchase an all new collar as the battery can not be replaced. The charger gave us lots of issues and had to be factory reset each time we attempted to set up a fence. We also learned after purchasing the collar that you must also sign up for a yearly subscription for $199 annually to set up fences and use the GPS tracking. Instructions from the Invisible Fence® Brand guide stated to set up the fence boundaries at least 25ft away from any building or roadway. They also explained that the collar must be removed each time the dog comes inside of the house, as it could activate inside. Unfortunately, we were never able to fully set up the collar. After multiple calls to customer service, the Invisible Fence® Brand representative asked us to return the collar for a refund.
CLICK HERE to watch a short video discussing our experience with the Invisible Fence® Brand GPS collar
Halo®
The Halo® GPS collar makes a HUGE first impression with its massive size, weighing in at nearly half a pound! The collar is thick with electronics and is a solid semi-circle that wraps around half of the dog’s neck. On a small or medium size dog, it resembles more of a neck brace than a collar. Setting up the boundaries was difficult with an underdeveloped phone application. Once set up, the collar activation was all over the place. The Halo® instructions were followed meticulously, and we still experienced collar activation 20 feet in front of the set “boundary”, 35 feet after the boundary (in the street) and even further with activation inside of the building. This type of fluctuation is extremely unreliable and unsafe. We reached out to customer support for guidance and received an auto response saying they would get back to us in 1-3 days. The battery life of this collar is 24 hours, meaning you must charge it every day. To continue using the Halo® app and collar, you must pay for a monthly subscription.
CLICK HERE to watch a short video discussing our experience with the Halo® GPS collar
SpotOn®
The SpotOn® GPS collar has a few differences from the Halo® collar, with the same concept and similar reliability. The SpotOn® collar is even wider than the Halo®, however it does have a little bit more flexibility. The weight of this collar is also just under half a pound. Setting up the boundaries with SpotOn® was equally as difficult as the Halo®. The boundary fluctuation wasn’t quite as prominent as the Halo® collar, but still was off by up to 20 feet in some areas. The battery life of the SpotOn® collar is a bit less than the Halo®, lasting 12-18 hours. Similar to the Halo® collar, there is a monthly subscription fee you must pay to keep your fence system active.
CLICK HERE to watch a short video about our experience with the SpotOn® collar.
In conclusion, here at Hidden Pet Fence we do not recommend any retail GPS system. As pet professionals, our #1 priority is the safety of your pets. Due to the sporadic activation of the Halo® GPS collar and SpotOn® GPS collar, your pet’s safety cannot be guaranteed. A professional grade wired fence system from Hidden Pet Fence will not only guarantee containment of your dog, you will also receive the many benefits that our local company offers.
How do other wireless pet containment systems compare to a wired system?
Simply put, you are getting a much more reliable system with our underground electric dog fence. Wireless systems are bunk. They are considered to be the most expensive way to fail at keeping your pet safe. The quality and reliability of wireless pet containment are just bad. Interference, random collar activation, inconsistent boundaries, and dogs running away is, in our opinion, a big failure. Wireless technology for pet fencing is still unreliable.
Compatibility with a yard style is another “plus” for underground dog fences but a “minus” for wireless dog fences. Wireless pet containment systems create a circle. In many cases, the circle allows the dog into the neighbor’s yards but not to their own backyard. The corners of the backyard are fully cut off from the circular boundary on wireless dog fences. Very few yards are circular. Our wired fence systems are customized to the shape of your yard. We maximize the space that you want your dog to have.
A wireless dog fence works like this: A circular boundary in the form of a perfect circle is created around a central power unit (transmitting station). Circular landscapes don’t seem to be common so this is useless when it comes to matching an electronic dog fence to your landscape. Straight edges at multiple angles need to be taken into consideration when thinking about installing an electric dog fence to an area outside of a person’s home. This is yet another way wireless dog fences fail.
Inconsistent boundaries with random, unreliable signal fluctuations are what you get with a wireless dog fence. A wireless dog fence system’s signal can interfere with other electrical signals such as microwaves and radios. This can confuse the dog creating a more difficult training session. Our underground dog fence has a strong signal that does not interfere with any other signal or obstacle in or around your home.
Here are three reasons why someone would want to avoid a wireless dog containment fence setup: Large collars that are uncomfortable on a dog, corrections (shock) that can’t be adjusted, and batteries with short life spans. Our collars are comfortable, the corrections are adjustable (for all sizes of dogs) and our batteries keep on going.
An underground dog fence signal is strong and constant without interference from any other signals that may be coming from a home’s appliances such as the microwave, mobile phones, etc. Wireless dog fences are notorious for malfunctioning due to these home appliance signals. Even certain structures made of metal (refrigerators, water heaters, siding, etc.) can disrupt a wireless dog fence’s signal but not an underground dog fence which keeps a strong and stable signal, regardless of the surrounding obstructions.
So, what is the reason to purchase a wireless dog fence? Why are these inefficient systems that can harm your dog even available on the market? They are cheap. That’s it. Here at Hidden Pet Fence, we do not believe in using wireless dog systems for the reasons mentioned.
If you want a quality hidden pet containment system then go with our underground electric dog fence.
Gregory S. from Lima, NY
Comparing Hidden Pet Fence to DIY fence systems such as PetSafe® or Sport Dog®
Do it yourself dog fences found online or at pet stores may seem tempting to some customers. However, most people who choose this route end up spending more in the long run on replacement parts and repairs. This is simply because the retail dog fencing systems can not hold up like a professional grade system. In some cases, customers are unable to use these systems at all because they do not have the settings needed for their dogs. One of the most popular store brand systems, PetSafe®, has had a return rate of 60%! That means on average, 6 out of 10 customers return PetSafe® equipment for a refund. This does not take into account the amount of customers who attempt to install the fence, and are unable to return it once they bury the wire. Many of these customers end up calling us for a professional install with professional training. Here are the main issues we hear complaints about from customers with DIY fences:
1.Training the dog is difficult. Most retail systems offer little to no guidance on training your dog to their new boundaries. This leads to confusion for your dog, and ultimately a failed system. All Pro packages from Hidden Pet Fence offer unlimited training by a professional. We come to your house for lessons and make sure your dog is ready to be off leash before we leave you on your own.
2. Many dogs can run through a retail fence system. With big, fast or stubborn dogs, a professional system is necessary. Collar settings are very limited on a do it yourself system, with less than 10 settings typically. Even on the highest settings, once the dog runs through chasing something, their collar shuts off when they get to the other side of their fence boundary. Many dogs will do this once, and figure out how to manipulate the system and go through whenever something is exciting enough. This issue does not happen with our equipment, as we offer the Endless Boundary system that continues activating if your dog runs through. Our collars have thousands of settings to fit every dog’s personality. This is why we have a 100% success rate, even for the most stubborn dogs!
3. Installation is difficult. Many people underestimate how long and grueling it can be burying hundreds of feet of wire. Doing so by hand can also tear up your yard. Obstacles such as walkways and driveways can lead to improper installation which will require professional repairs. Some of our current customers spent time and money trying to do a self install and could never get it working, so they called us to install ours professionally. A professional install from Hidden Pet Fence is done with specialized machines that make installs seamless, with no damage to your property. Most dog fences are done by us in just one day!
4. The wire needs constant repairs. The wire that is supplied with these dog fence kits is flimsy and can have issues holding up against the weather we face here in New York. With a system from Hidden Pet Fence, you can get a wire that is up to 10 times thicker than the retail wire, with up to a lifetime corrosion warranty for added protection.
5. Lack of low training levels leads to fear. While the settings offered with a retail system may not be high enough for some dogs, the opposite problem is just as prevalent. For anxious or timid dogs, even the lowest settings on a retail system can be way too bothersome. This leads to some dogs refusing to go into the yard and being afraid of the fencing system. We have specialized training protocols for these types of nervous dogs, as well as training settings that feel like a tickle rather than something bothersome.
6. The collar is bulky and uncomfortable. The size of retail fence collars can be bothersome for most dogs. Not only are they large and heavy, they also have solid metal probes that can push into the dog’s skin. Hidden Pet Fence offers the smallest and lightest collars in the industry, with gentle spring contacts that bounce along with your dog’s movements for comfort.
The reasons above, along with many more, bring customers to us versus the pet store. Unfortunately, some people try the do it yourself system first, and call us once their dog is confused and they are frustrated. Luckily, we offer trade in discounts and financing to fit everyone’s budget.
