LittleSteps Fence Training by Hidden Fence, Inc.

So, what about our Advanced Dog Fence Training Certification from the IACP?
What makes it different?

Our training technique will teach your dog his new hidden fence, and it will do it without frightening or stressing him out. As the name implies, this training uses numerous tiny little steps of harmless static corrections that feel much like tickles. The tickles really do feel like tickles, and we encourage you to feel them for yourself. 

Using these mild tickles, we will be teaching your dog to back up from the flags. You may notice your dog slightly cocking his head to the side, perking his ears up, or scratching his neck, but what you won’t see is yelping or crying - most dogs show no sign of discomfort or stress, and many actually enjoy the training. Your dog will soon learn (after 10-20 tickle sensations) how to back up on his own. We will reward him with tasty treats throughout the process.

Next, he will notice that there is a flag in front of him whenever this sensation is present; and he will also notice the audible beep that is present prior to the tickle ever occurring.  Paying close attention to your dog, you may notice that he is now looking around the yard at all the flags (knowing what they mean). Compared to the commonly used method we call “learn or burn”…we accomplished a week of training in just 30 minutes. By giving your dog hundreds of tickles, and lots of tasty treats; we were able to teach him a wealth of information in a very short time.

So what’s wrong with the “Learn or burn” technique?
If I just shock my dog he’ll get it, right?

Yes, he will get it. He will get that the yard is a really bad place to be. Likely this dog will spend the rest of the week on the porch. You then have what we call a porch dog. Think about how this dog was taught…He had one hard shock, he saw one flag, and heard one beep. Terriefied, he ran to the porch. Do you really think he is going to know the flag is what caused this one shock? He is likely going to assume that you caused it, the grass caused it, or maybe a tree. Whatever it was, he is stressed and wants out of the yard! A stressed-out dog can not learn anything more at this point. Training is done in one minute, but what his been accomplished? Compare this to our approach which gives the dog hundreds of chances to associate the correction to the flags and beep. This “porch dog” will venture out in time, but will he know what to do next time he encounters the flags?

My dog is high-strung. What makes you think my dog will respond to tickle level corrections?

We don’t know at what level your dog will respond. That’s why we start on the very lowest level and gradually work up. Your dog will let us know when he feels it, simply by perking his ears or cocking his head to the side. We will be “reading” your dog throughout the process. We will find a setting that annoys them, not frightens them.

If your approach is gentle, how is this actually going to contain my dog?

Our approach to teaching dogs is more gentle, but once they understand, we use a firm level correction to keep them in. It is simply a way of teaching your dog his boundaries quickly, humanly and effectively. A permanent maintenance setting will be required to contain your dog. Your dog’s permanent setting may be determined the first day, or it may be later that week. There’s no guesswork, and no timetable. Your dog will be telling us what level they need and when they need that level. Dogs are like people, every dog is different. We will progress at the dog’s pace.

So this means that my dog is still going to be set to receive a firm correction if he challenges the fence after he has been trained?

Yes. A tickle is not going to keep most dogs safely contained. We’ll need more of a deterrent to keep the average dog contained. It’s a simple fact: dogs don’t like shock. Most dogs will do what’s necessary to avoid it. Teaching them to avoid it in a humane, yet effective way is the challenge.