Dog Gone 2
Now, this is strange:
The dogs were traced to the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Martinsville by a microchip roughly the size of a grain of rice implanted under Sammy Jo’s skin before the Zimmers adopted her from the shelter in 2002.
Reportedly the dog owners’ electric fence wasn’t working and the neighbor was pushed over the edge by the dogs’ cat-chasing behavior.
I’ve never placed much stock in those electric fence things. I know it wouldn’t have kept my Labrador in–he used to go through the lower screens on the porch because, frankly, he didn’t even notice them. I solved that problem with several sheets of lauan plywood.
May 10, 2010 at 4:36 pm
We’ve had an electric fence for 15 years with excellent results. I understand this problem, though. I heard a dog expert on the radio about this very subject. She said a “fence line” which would be, say, along your front sidewalk isn’t necessarily good. A friendly dog that “loves everybody” would see people walk by, run out to greet them, get “corrected” (as the euphemism goes!) and, with negative reinforcement, would associate the shock with people walking by. Not good for the dog. She also mentioned a scenario with a more aggressive dog, but I forgot about that one. Ours is in the back yard where passersby aren’t.
May 10, 2010 at 8:16 pm
Let me guess.
You probably did not have a big dumb bull-headed love-filled 110-pound Labrador with muscles of steel, a heart of gold, and a head of lead.