Specifications
Range: ½ acre (180 ft. in diameter)
Price: $$ (average price in this market. Use the box below the review to find today’s price. It fluctuates thanks to the frequent sales and deals found on Amazon)
Verdict: Great buy. The best overall unit we found. Quality, effectiveness, and ease of use all make this a great buy for the majority of pet owners looking for an electric invisible fence.
Review
The PIF-300 Wireless Pet Containment System is a great choice for those of us who haven’t used a wireless containment unit before. It’s highly recommended for dog owners who want a good, standard wireless fence, that – when coupled with thorough training – will give you fast results. It’s a good unit for those dog owners who have decent sized yards, as the range covers an area of 180 ft. in diameter (up to 1/2 acre of coverage). Many owners have found their dogs began respecting the new boundaries with just a day of training. The range of the PIF-300 can also be extended to cover larger areas by combining it with other units.
PetSafe has included a training plan in the manual, with detailed instructions about how owners should get the best results out of their containment system. The unit is only for pets weighing 8 pounds or more. It is easy enough to increase the range of the transmitter, and simply requires purchasing another unit and installing that. Users have reported the unit is very easy to set up, and doesn’t take much time at all.
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Once everything is set up, you can begin training your pet. Very helpfully, boundary flags are included with the system. So you can mark out the boundary area with flags first. This way, your dog has a visual cue to associate with the correction. This will save your dog having to discover where the perimeter is situated only through corrections.
As the dog approaches the boundary limit, there is two seconds worth of warning beeping, before the correction is administered. Correction lasts for about 20 seconds. Correction levels can be adjusted and range from a tone-only correction for training, to different levels of static correction (there are 6 total settings).
It’s easy to adjust the correction level on the collar, you just need to unscrew a small cover on the collar and depress a button. Adjusting the transmitter range and level are even easier, as there is a dial.
Dog owners frequently test the shock on themselves first and report it ranges from a mild pulse, to a sharp static correction. Not painful, but enough to surprise your dog and make sure they turn back from the area.
Some owners have expressed worry that their more adventurous dogs might run past the barrier and continue getting shocked. There’s no need to worry though, because the PetSafe unit comes with a ‘time-out’ feature that means your dog will automatically stop getting corrected after 30 seconds.
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Users might find one or two problems with this unit. The boundary is not fixed and permanent. A few owners have reported that on clear days the dog is able to wander a bit further, so if you would like a completely fixed boundary, then this won’t do it. However, if you train your dog to respond to the warning beep, not just the boundary, then this shouldn’t be a problem.
If your neighbor has the same unit, and the signals from the transmitter cross, then your dogs will be able to travel between the areas. This is something that can be fixed, but you will have to contact PetSafe to discuss solutions, and also have a chat with your neighbor about it.
There have been complaints from some users about the high cost of replacement parts. Although, with proper care and maintenance, parts shouldn’t need replacing too often. Another disadvantage is that the collar runs on batteries, which can make the unit on the collar quite clunky. The unit is placed on the outside of the collar, rather than some units that are enclosed in the collar and are therefore better protected. So if you have a highly active dog, that may cause damage to the unit with its explorations, you might want to consider some way of protecting the unit. Similarly, there is no warning when the battery gets low, so it’s advised that you check the collar before each use.
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There are numerous advantages to using this unit. Many users have found that their dogs learn very quickly when using the correction, compared to other units which have taken some days of training. Although a minimum of four days training (10-15 minutes at a time) is recommended, a lot of dog owners have found they got the results they wanted with just one day of training. This is one of the reasons this is the top-rated unit all around for a variety of situations and dog owners.
The fence is also considered really easy to install, and takes only 1-2 hours. As mentioned earlier, the range of the wireless fence can be extended with multiple transmitters, which works well if you have a large property and want your dogs to be able to roam. Also, unlike some other units, users haven’t reported any problems with interference from objects in the way of the signal e.g. trees, poles or any other objects.
All told, this unit is a great choice for dog owners who want a simple, standard wireless fence that will give them fast results with quick training.
Does the PIF300 not do it for you? Check out what else we have reviewed by clicking here to go home.