PetSafe Collar Tips

For years, dog owners with a yard but no fence had little choice when keeping their dogs outside except to tie them to a tree or other object. Fortunately, modern technology has created invisible fences for dogs such as the PetSafe system. These wireless dog collars are a humane and effective method for training your dogs to remain within the boundaries of your yard, helping keep them and your neighbors safe.

  1. Best Fit for Dog Collar Receiver

    • First, be sure the battery is not yet installed in the receiver collar. Then, with your pet standing, center the contact points underneath your dog's neck. With thick-coated dogs, use the longer contact points, and it may be necessary to trim the hair a bit around the points. Insert one finger between the end of a contact point and your dog's neck to ensure that the fit is snug but not too tight. After your dog has worn the collar for several minutes, moving around normally, you can double-check the fit to make sure it's still optimal.

      Finally, mark the desired length on the collar, allowing for growth for young dogs or dogs that grow winter coats, then remove the collar and trim the excess. Note that if your receiver collar product includes a nylon strap, you'll need to seal the edge of the cut collar by using a flame over the frayed edge.

    Wireless Transmitter Setup

    • When selecting the site for your PetSafe transmitter, make sure it's 2 to 4 feet above the floor and at least 3 feet from large metal objects and close to a wall outlet. You can also place it on a nonmetal table or mount the unit on a wall. Test the site out before you mount the transmitter permanently in case you need to make adjustments.

      To set up the transmitter, plug it into the wall outlet, turn it on and adjust the boundary control knob to 8. Making sure your pet's collar is on, attach the test light tool that came with your unit and hold the receiver collar down low in front of you as you walk into your yard. When the collar beeps and the test light tool illuminates, this indicates the containment boundary, which you can mark with boundary flags. You can adjust the boundary area by changing the boundary dial setting up or down or moving the transmitter's location within your home.

    Dog Training

    • During initial training with your dog wearing his receiver collar, limit sessions to 10 to 15 minutes, gradually increasing to more than an hour. Don't leave your pet unattended during this time. In the training sessions, walk around the yard and play with your dog, staying within the boundary area at all times. Act as though you're occupied with some other task at the same you're keeping a close eye on your dog. You'll know your dog is ready for unsupervised sessions in the yard when he avoids the entire boundary flag line, regardless of distractions or temptations. At this point, remove every other boundary flag, one every four days, until all flags are removed.