Training your pets not to cross the wire

I completed the installation of our cat containment system successfully. The next stage was to ensure the cats were adequately trained so as not to cross the perimeter wire. To do this, I set the collar to a beep only mode so they would not receive a static correction at any point. I then put the collars on my cats.

I purchased a harness for the cats and put them on too, I then walked with the cats around the garden. Everytime they approached the fence, I waited for the beeps to start, the moment the first beep went off, I tugged on the harness and encouraged them to run away. It took a while and in all honesty I never got to the stage where they understood this completely but they became hesitant about proceeding and that was enough for me.

I then altered the collar so it would shock, I set it to the minimum shock level, kept the cats on the harness and walked them around the garden again. The first beep they got, they ignored and followed with a shock. I could tell instantly there was no need for any further training. Out of the two cats, my most timid cat has never attempted to cross the wire and I've yet to see him receive another shock. My braver cat though has attempted once, failed but tried to endure the shock. I've updated it one level and since have never seen him try to cross the wire either.

The system comes with flags to demonstrate where the perimeter is to the cat, PetSafe recommend you use these and remove them gradually over time after they have got the hang of the system. I believe this is mainly if you don't have a defined perimeter in your garden (in America they have mostly open yards) where as we did have a defined perimeter, a fence.

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