Invisible fence - 6 month old puppy ran through it

[dal]

My puppy is 6 months old and we are training him to an invisible fence (invisible fence brand).  The trainer has been coming weekly.  Tomorrow is 21 days since we got the fence.  Last week (at two weeks with the fence) the trainer told me that I could let him run off leash but supervised.  I asked about allowing him off leash when the bus drops my kids off and he said to try it with the long leash and if he respects the boundaries, it would be okay.  He's been off leash in the driveway with me Friday, Monday and Tuesday.  He had been sitting and wagging his tail until the kids get off and come into the boundary.  Today though, he ran straight through the fence.  He didn't sit and I realized he was debating it but by then there was nothing I could do.  He was fine - the bus driver also realized what was about to happen so the bus was barely moving at that point.  Cooper (my pup) ran around the block right near the bus for a while and eventually let me grab onto him.  I took off the collar and carried him back in the boundary.

My worry is that now that he knows the zap doesn't last long once he runs through the fence, he will try it again and be willing to take the short hit.  The trainer is coming back Friday.  Anyone have this happen while training to the invisible fence?

Oh also, we live on a corner so even if he is not in the driveway, he can still see the street from the backyard.  We have the fence set up so he can either be in the backyard or driveway but cannot get from one area to the other.

Thanks for any input or advice.

Edited to add: I should also add that Cooper's behavior the last couple of days has been more challenging - I am assuming this is just adolescence.  But he's been mouthier, not listening so well, barking more etc...  So I'm not sure if running through the fence is also part of this behavior change.

[Amy and Annabelle]

I don't have one but my neighbor does. They have 2 dogs. The larger one never even tries to go through the fence, the smaller one does it all the time when I am out with Annabelle. She isn't even my dog and I feel guilty being out there and maybe being the cause she runs in the road and gets killed. She also comes over to poop in our yard but that's another story. The fence between our yards she pays no attention too. The larger dog is short haired and the little one is long haired, I don't know if that makes a difference.

[Ginny Nightingale]

My dogs are excellent with the Invisible fence but they do have a rare mistake--they have gone through it only a few times and usually run to my car thinking that they are going someplace with me--when they do go, I take off their collars, but they have sometimes made a mistake and made a dash for the car.

I think that the 6 month old is still learning--the school bus and the kids are BIG temptations and I wouldn't trust him yet--keep him on a leash when the bus comes and correct him if he goes past the fence line....I had the flags and the leash training for a month and did not even start that until 6 months of age--and then I watched them carefully for a month after a month of training. Also, make sure the collar is TIGHT enough and that the hair is not too long on the neck...at this point, since he went thru it, you should start the training all over again--you are training him between sessions with the fence guy, right? You can also check to make sure the beep that they hear goes off a good distance from the actual line of the wire--that should be warning him before he gets too close. 

Everyone in my neighborhood has an invisible fence and no one has a dog that runs thru it --the training is important though.

[dal]

Thanks for the reply!  Yes, we are training him everyday in between sessions.  He does not get a warning beep - the peep is simultaneous with what he feels (there may a very slight delay).  This begins 2 or 4 feet from the fence, I forget which.  When I questioned the company about no warning beep, they told me that unless my dog had a health issue that would prevent him from jumping back quickly, they do not recommend the warning because he could then run fast enough to get through without triggering the actual zap.  Not sure I'm explaining that right though.

[Kris and Sawyer]

Hmmm... We use Petsafe wireless electric fence and Sawyer has never once tried to go through it (in fact even when I take the collar off, you can't even drag him beyond the boundary--and we've never had it set on anything but the lowest setting!)... Probably a dumb question, but did you start with flags up? Maybe you need to go back to that step? He may need more time with that visual... Just a thought.

[dal]

Thank you for the reply!  Yes, we still have the flags up.  But where he crossed, there are no flags because it's the end of our driveway.  There are flags next to the driveway and we have trained him to that area but maybe the lack of flags at the end made him think it was okay?

[Anne & Mr. Haley]

We have an in-ground fence for Haley and have had it for six years.  It is set for a strong correction (advised by the fence supplier) and the warning is 10 feet from the fence.  After extensive training Haley ran through the fence "chasing" a vehicle on the road.  He received the strong correction (it wasn't pretty).  My DH went after him  in the car and brought him home.  Now he will NOT go near the boundary for any reason.  His most favorite visitor can come up the driveway calling his name and  he will not go to her but waits at a particular spot in the driveway.  He does not go after deer, dogs, cars, anything.  He has a total of about 1/2 mile view of one road and 1/4 mile view of the intersecting road.  He did really learn from the strong correction.  

I would discuss this with the trainer.  Perhaps more training and a stronger correction. 

[dal]

Thank you for the reply!  Yes, the trainer is going to make the correction stronger tomorrow.  Also, our beep is simultaneous with the zap.  There is no warning.  When I asked the company about this they told me unless he had health issues that would make it hard for him to jump back quickly, they do not recommend the warning because he could run fast enough to get through the fence without a zap.  Not sure I'm explaining what they said correctly but it seemed to make sense I guess.

[Anne & Mr. Haley]

The Invisible Fence brand has been around for a long time so the must know what they are doing. I really like the fact that Haley gets a warning 10 feet before a correction. It gives him time to veer off or put the brakes on.

[Angie, Hudson and Lily]

We have Invisible Fence and it has worked very well for us. Both Hudson and Lily ran through it once after being trained and they were also close to 6mths old. They haven't run through it since. They will chase rabbits, squirrels, balls, etc right up to the fence line and stop. You might want to put the flags back up in that  section and do some more training of the boundary line. You could also have the trainers come back out and see if the collar needs to be turned up a level. 

[dal]

Thank you for the reply!  Do you have invisible fence brand?  Is your beep simultaneous with the zap or do you have a warning beep?  When I called the company, they told me they do not recommend the warning beep because he could run fast enough to get through it with no zap.  We do have a beep but at the same time as the correction.  Just curious if this was the same for others who have invisible fence brand.  We still have the flags up but where he ran through there are no flags because it is the end of our driveway.  There are flags on either side of the driveway just not across so maybe he thought he could cross there even though we have trained him to it.  I carry him over that spot when we take him for walks.  They are turning his collar up tomorrow.

[Angie, Hudson and Lily]

We do have the Invisible Fence Brand. I believe we have a warning beep that starts well before the fence line because our dogs stop a good distance from where the actual wire is. (Our fence was installed about 5 years ago, so I don't recall for sure). Maybe you could take some of the flags and put them in something so that they could stand up over the spot in the driveway- just for some training on that spot. We also had the indoor training with our unit and I think they just took those flags and bent the bottoms some how so that they had a base to stand up. We have our front yard fenced too, but more so as a precautionary measure. I don't ever let the dogs in that area. 

I'm sure with some more training and his collar turned up a level that he will be doing great. 

[Kris and Sawyer]

I'd put flags at the edge of the driveway, for sure...