A physical fence may keep other dogs out, but it won’t always be successful in keeping your dogs in.
Wireless dog fences allow pet owners the opportunity to outline their own safe zone.
Renters are more limited in what kind of solutions they can use for containing their dogs.
If the property doesn’t already have a physical fence, their four-legged friend won’t have as much freedom.
Is there a wireless dog fence for 2 dogs or more?
We’ll answer this question and give you our recommendations for the best solutions you can use to keep your pups safe.
Is There a Wireless Fence for 2 Dogs?
Yes, there is. All of our favorite wireless dog fences can be expanded to cover as many dogs as you need!
Purchase additional receiver collars that are compatible with the invisible fence receiver.
Each collar works the same way – alerting the dog as it approaches or crosses the invisible boundary.
Each dog must be carefully trained to understand and recognize the invisible boundaries.
Read our related article, How to Expand Wireless Dog Fence Systems to get the most out of your yard!
What Is a Wireless Fence?
Before you purchase a dog fence, here are considerations you should make first.
You may have seen terms like “wireless fence,” “containment system,” or “in-ground fences” used fairly interchangeably. So, what is a wireless fence?
Put simply, a wireless dog fence creates an invisible boundary that can be set up in just a few minutes.
Wired fences have a buried boundary wire, while wireless fences have an invisible radio boundary.
Both types of fences use transmitter and receiver collars, but the wireless fence creates a circular barrier that alerts the dog when it wanders too far from the central receiver unit.
A wireless dog fence is intended to work with waterproof receiver collars to keep dogs within a designated area.
Luckily, they also work great if you have more dogs, you may have to just buy additional collars.
Read More: Best Portable Wireless Dog Fences for Travel. Looking to keep your dog safe out on the road? Here are our favorite wireless fence picks.
How Does a Wireless Dog Fence Work?
When a dog wears their lightweight receiver collar, it’ll be able to run freely in the space allotted for them, receiving a warning beep from the collar when they come near the boundary line.
Once it passes the boundary, it will experience a small static correction. This can come in the form of vibration stimulation, a shock, or can be set to tone-only mode.
With proper training, when a dog approaches the boundary wire, it will respond to the warning beep before it escalates into the static correction.
That is of course unless you have the tone-only option set, which would only elicit a tone and not a static shock.
This setting can only be used with thoroughly trained and obedient dogs.
For completely wireless dog fences, a transmitter wire is placed at the center of a property that casts a dome around the selected area.
Dogs wearing receiver collars can roam within the area but will receive a static correction if they leave the boundary.
This is ideal for small areas, but the circular boundary can be confusing for dogs.
For in-ground (wired) pet containment systems, a buried wire outlines the containment perimeter.
This is a better system for large yards, acreage, or reinforcing fenced boundaries.
After a little training, your dogs should understand where they should and shouldn’t be within the yard.
To better understand how dog training works with a wireless fence, check out this short video from PetSafe.
The Benefits of Wireless Dog Fences for Multiple Dogs
It can be hard to keep an eye on more than two dogs at the same time, especially when they all run in different directions.
If you have at least two dogs (each wearing a receiver collar), and a compact wireless fence, you shouldn’t have to stress about supervising them in your yard.
The dog fence should do most of the work, but they’ll still need some supervision.
Large dogs (dogs weighing over 55 lbs) are more likely to run away, with some exceptions.
For those who insist on jumping over or digging under a physical fence, a wired or wireless fence can be just the thing to keep your dog safely at home by reinforcing the existing boundary.
Read More: Best Wireless Pet Fence for Small Dogs. We tested the top fences for small breeds and here are our favorites!
Tips for Using an Invisible Fence for 2 Dogs
The wireless pet fence is an alternative or supplement to traditional fencing. Here are a few perks that you should know about:
- The waterproof collars should fit the dog comfortably. Tight enough that the prongs can get through the fur to touch the skin, but never tight enough to rub or cause injury.
- The included receiver collar will provide a gentle reminder that they’re too close for comfort before issuing a vibration strong enough to alert them, but not enough to hurt them.
- Get a receiver with a high number of correction levels so you can step up the static correction levels gently instead of in big jumps. This is easier for your dog and gives you peace of mind.
- Use all of the included flags to mark the boundary area during training and remove them slowly as your dog confidently stays inside the invisible fence.
- Most collars will have built-in rechargeable batteries with a low battery indicator. Some collars have long-lasting replaceable batteries.
- To expand an in-ground boundary, you can always add more wire to accommodate more dogs, and to control range.
- You can increase the boundary range of a wireless fence by adding additional transmitter units, but the boundary shape will always be round or “scalloped.”
- A wireless fence that allows the dog to go in and out of a dog door will have to include the yard plus the house so the dog is free to wander in and out.
- Check the batteries weekly to make sure the collars are working correctly.
- Test the fence weekly to ensure it is still transmitting correctly.
Never assume that your wireless fence is working for more than a week or two at a time. If the fence stops working, there is nothing to keep your dog from running into the road.
Make a testing routine and stick to it so you know your dogs are safe in the yard while you’re inside the home or gone for the day.
How To Choose a Wireless Dog Fence for 2 Dogs (or More)
Pet parents who’re considering getting a second dog should proactively opt for a pet containment system that will work with more than one collar to save money right away.
Pet parents should also err on the side of caution when introducing the new dog to their training collar, and any wireless containment system being used for the home.
Hopefully, they’ll learn quickly by observing their new sibling, but this is a confusing time for the new dog, so train carefully, slowly, and patiently so the dog is comfortable with the new boundary.
When shopping for a wireless dog fence for 2 dogs, be sure that the model you choose says that it is expandable to more collars. Most of them have unlimited expansion ability.
You won’t be able to change the boundary details for each collar, but you can change the correction level and tone-only or vibration settings for each dog’s collar.
We always choose systems that won’t shock the dogs for coming back home if they’ve chosen to escape. PetSafe fences usually feature this correction-free reentry.
It’s important to us because we want our dogs to feel free to come home without fear of punishment, which could keep them outside of the boundary rather than inside – the opposite of what we want!
Dealing with stubborn dogs? Read our article on the Most Powerful Wireless Dog Fence available!
What Is the Best Compact Wireless Fence?
First, let’s talk about safety. We tested the best electric dog fences and gave our picks based on safety and security for your dogs.
Our overall favorite was an in-ground fence, but our runner-up was a PetSafe invisible fence that expands to work for multiple dogs.
It has a nice boundary and is quick to set up.
Fully wireless fences are also fine if you don’t mind the circular boundary. But are all wireless dog fences circular? Unfortunately, yes. Which can be a pain depending on your landscape.
They are also great to travel with if you like to take your dogs on trips. We love to use them to keep our dogs safe while camping.
We only recommend using compact wireless fences for small dogs with a small area to roam.
Other dogs will get bored and eventually figure out that they can escape with the price of a small shock.
Read More: How Do You Set Up a Wireless Dog Fence? If you’ll be installing the fence, yourself, this guide is great to reference!
Is a Wireless Fence Harmful to My Dogs?
Training collars are never intended to harm or burn your dog but are meant to assist in training your dog.
To understand how they work, think more like static electricity, and less like regular electricity.
A static shock gets your attention but never causes injury. The same is true with a static correction collar.
Furthermore, your dog receives a warning beep before they get close to the boundary.
Train your dog to turn around when they hear the beep and they’ll never have to experience any static shock.
Now, we will also discuss some common pros and cons of choosing to use a wireless fence and debunk a few myths.
Pros
- Cost-effective – the cost of the largest electric dog fence is much cheaper than installing a secure wooden or chain-link fence around the same containment area.
- Works for two dogs or more – the same is true for a regular fence, but at a much higher cost.
- Reliable – dogs who may dig under a wood fence will not approach it in a training collar.
- Uses harmless static correction – less harmful than hitting, yelling at, or keeping your dog forever inside. Also keeps your dog from digging out and fighting, foraging, or running in the busy street.
- Waterproof – collars are designed to withstand the elements.
- PetSafe wireless collars are programmed to allow correction-free reentry for your dog. Your dog might get a zap as he leaves but won’t get one for coming home.
A great wireless pet fence should be all of these things, if not more. They’re reliable and safe when made well and used properly.
Cons
- When batteries are dead the dogs can escape.
- If the power goes out the dogs can escape.
- Can take a few weeks to train a dog to stay inside the fence, in some cases.
- The circular boundary of wireless systems can be confusing for dogs.
- Cheap, malfunctioning wireless containment units by unknown makers have given all systems a bad and undeserved reputation.
- Dogs still need some supervision to ensure they’re inside the boundaries and aren’t threatened by other dogs or animals.
You might be tempted to save money by going with a lesser-known wireless fence brand, but always read reviews like our BarkVA tests to know you’re buying a good fence before investing.
Our biggest critique is that wireless fences are designed to teach dogs to stay in, but a stubborn dog will fight through discomfort to go beyond the barrier.
You can get “stubborn dog” collars with higher levels of corrective shock to help overcome this resistance to training.
Breeds with a high pain tolerance may discover that a momentary (even painful) shock is a fair trade for a day of frolicking freedom in the neighborhood.
It’s really hard to keep a dog like this home with any fence.
There are also no safeguards that keep other creatures or people from entering your yard.
If you live in a safe area this isn’t a problem, but you may need to erect a physical fence if you have trouble with wild animals and other dogs coming to harass your dogs.
Read More: Do Wireless Dog Fences Need WiFi? Find out more about how wireless fences work and if they need WiFi connection to perform their best!
Final Thoughts
An invisible fence works perfectly for dogs who are well-trained to stay inside the boundaries.
It’s often the only option for renters and campers, and it does let the dog relax and play in a large area.
We advise buying a highly-rated invisible fence from a reputable brand like PetSafe with multiple collars to keep your dogs safe.
