What Is the Difference Between a Wireless Fence Collar & an Inground Collar?

Learn how to keep dogs safely inside your yard using advanced electronic containment systems. There's no difference between a wireless fence collar and an inground collar. The differences are in the types of fences connected to the collars. Collars carry a receiver to pick up radio waves. This receiver tells the collars to deliver a mild electrical shock when your dog strays beyond preset boundaries.

  1. Ease of Installation

    • Wireless dog containment fences are the most simple and quickest to install. Just decide where to position the transmitter and attach the receiver to your dog's collar. Once installed and connected to a power source, or batteries, the transmitter sends signals to the collar whenever your pet leaves the area. Inground collars require a little more work to set up. A buried copper wire marks out the area you want your dog to stay within. The transmitter is attached to this wire and sends signals to the collar.

    Range and Portability

    • The range of inground electric fences is decided by you, prior to installing. This isn't a portable or changeable system, since you'd need to dig up the copper wire to alter the area covered. Wireless electric fences are portable. Take them on vacation when your dog accompanies you and when you move house by relocating the transmitter. Typical ranges for wireless fences are between 90 and 200 feet. This area is circular, radiating out from the transmitter's location. Inground systems cover large or small areas and are customizable for odd-shaped yards.

    Effectiveness

    • Wireless fences run into difficulties in yards where lots of trees, cars or other objects block the signals. Signals from inground systems don't experience these same issues with transmission of radio waves to the receiver on the dog's collar, since they're under the ground with a wired connection to the transmitter. Wireless fences are more effective for dog owners who have yards with regular shapes and plenty of open spaces. Inground systems avoid the "dead spots" of wireless systems, where an object blocks the signal, and are more effective for crowded yards.

    Cost

    • An inground unit that costs less than a wireless one will not work out to be cheaper overall, if you pay a contractor to install the copper wire. Wireless systems usually cost more to purchase, especially for units with larger ranges, but there's no installation costs. Maintenance of inground systems sometimes involves digging up the copper wire, another factor to add to the overall cost. If you plan to relocate within a year of purchasing your system, removing it might be more expensive than buying and installing wire at your new home.