We’re lucky enough to live on an acre of land that is fenced, but not everyone gets the same privilege. That’s something I do recognise.
As anyone who has ever parented a high-energy German Shepherd (or any other high drive dog!) will confirm, it’s a full-time job requiring constant attention to balance their insatiable need for exploration and motion against an equal desire for our furry friends’ safety.
Like other adventurous dog guardians and dog owners, I am consistently exploring smart collars! I’ve been lucky enough to test some of the finest in modern technology to give Indie, Lucy and Shelby, my trio of adventurous dogs who love to explore in an attempt to find that perfect balance. Enter the SpotOn GPS Dog Fence, a product that offers an interesting blend of technological innovation and practicality with a promise that intrigued both Indie and me. Having now explored its benefits and any potential pitfalls through extensive testing and assessing its performance throughout various settings, I’m excited to share mine and Indie’s findings in this comprehensive Review.
Limitations of review
First and foremost, I am a force-free, positive reinforcement trainer, so you may be surprised to see this product on my site; however, to me, it’s immensely important that we educate about these tools so anyone investigating these tools gets an informed opinion. For clarity, we never actually put the beep, vibrate or the optional static correction (shock) functions on for Indie, instead I tested these in situations we mocked up with humans and with a multimeter & oscilloscope to test, including how quickly the response time is!
When Do I See This Being Perfect
If you live a nomadic lifestyle, often go camping, have a huge amount of land, or are in temporary living situations that don’t foster a fence this is perfect! Essentially, in an environment where a physical fence is impossible. These can be a good option.
I wouldn’t advise using it with a nervous dog, or around children.
Product Overview
This innovative and flexible solution for dog-owners offers one of the best digital fencing solutions in the pet industry. Utilizing high-performing GPS technology linked to a network of 128 satellites, it offers exceptional accuracy in setting and maintaining pet boundaries. It’s adaptable for use anywhere, ideal for large properties as a cost-saving alternative to traditional fences.It includes optional static correction, and also features audio and vibration corrections also. SpotOn is a company that values honesty and transparency about its product’s capabilities and limitations. However, improvements could be made regarding battery life and collar size configurations to cater to all breeds. Its reliance on static correction is controversial, it’s not entirely escape-proof and is priced as a premium product. Even so, SpotOn is a remarkable example of leveraging technology for pet safety.ProsWaterproofIncredibly AccurateUser friendlyCost effective alternative to a fenceConsHave to charge ever 22hrsShock functionalityChunky collar
Purchasing the SpotOn GPS Fence, you’re not merely acquiring a product but an investment in advanced technology designed with a single target: ease the life of a pet parent whilst maximising the safety and freedom of our beloved pals. The SpotOn GPS Fence is unlike traditional fences. It’s operative digitally, is mobile and evolves as per Indie’s (or any other pet’s) explorations with the spoton virtual fences.
Incorporating GPS technology in a collar, the system allowed me to create dynamic perimeters that tie in seamlessly with Indie’s ventures, no matter the diversity of the terrain or weather conditions. GPS dog fences are a great idea if you’re in an awkward property.
Metrics
As opposed to the metrics given on the websites, I like to do a series of tests and give you the averages I find in the real world
Battery Life: We got an average of about 10-14hrs.
Alerts: Accurate; responses were on time.
Tone within 10 Feet of the boundary
Collar’s Vibration alert within 5 feet of boundary
Static correction within 0 feet of boundary
Static shock correction levels: 30 settings
Recall Tone: up to 10s.
What Is A GPS Fence or Virtual Fence?
A virtual GPS fence, or geofence, operates on GPS (Global Positioning System) or RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology to create a defined, virtual boundary around a specific geographical area. It begins with a GPS-equipped collar on your pet, communicating real-time locations through GPS satellites.
These locations are continuously checked against a defined virtual perimeter, set by the pet’s owner via an interface such as a smartphone app or website.
When your dog approaches the edge of the virtual fence, an audio cue, usually a beep, is issued by the collar as a warning. If the pet continues toward the boundary, certain systems can emit a mild static correction as a deterrent via two contact points, while others may notify the owner. This way, owners can ensure the pet’s location without hampering their freedom to roam, providing more flexibility and cost-effectiveness than physical fences – especially when you consider that SpotOn do suggest this tool is best for properties with more than half an acre of land – or a sniffspot if you’re not lucky enough to have acres and acres of land.
Why I Love About the SpotOn GPS Fence
The SpotOn GPS fence has a lot of positives about the SpotOn fence, so let’s take a little look.
Ease of Use
From the purchase, to delivery, to the spoton app. For the SpotOn GPS Fence, user-friendly is not merely promised but delivered – the app makes it really simple, really straight forward. With a remarkably clear and intuitive interface, the technical process of adjusting the digital fence’s perimeters is effortless. Regardless of a customer’s tech-profile, the transition from a traditional fence to the SpotOn GPS becomes a breezy affair than a complicated tech-marathon like some services I’ve tried.
Setting Up The Boundary
One of the best features I have found of the SpotOn collar is how you set the fence. Usually, we have the issue of “set the fence on the app!” which never quite follows boundary lines and makes it kind of confusing (especially if you only just moved into a property!). However, SpotOn? Actually maps your boundary when you walk your property line – which is utterly genius in my opinion! That way you can use Satellite navigation systems and SpotOn’s patented true location to form even the most awkwardly shaped fence line – be gone straight line!
It’s actually something I loved when testing this over at our favourite sniffspot, I would just walk the boundary, and then let Indie off to enjoy the space.
Tip: If you’re struggling with creating a strong association with the boundary line for your dog, you can create a visual sign for your dog with either landscape marking spray paint, or with marker flags surveyors might use to help denote to your dog where the home zones are!
Reliability
One really good idea SpotOn had when creating this virtual fence system was that they give you the option of cell phone carriers, between AT&T or Verizon – which means you can look up the cell phone carrier and ensure that you get adequate coverage for a cell plan in your area The primary expectation I had from the SpotOn GPS Fence was reliability. Indie’s explorations are unrestrained, which demands a pet containment system capable of keeping up with him. The SpotOn GPS Fence delivered handling Indie’s motion tremendously well, ensuring my worries about him straying too far were put to rest once and for all.
Forest mod also helps us given we live in a wooded area.
Effectiveness
Despite being virtual, the SpotOn GPS Fence tackles the physical world challenges and rural areas brilliantly. Indie’s free spirit didn’t hinder the Fence’s ability to contain him within defined areas while allowing him ample freedom to channel his high energy. The Forest mode is also really useful for this and ensuring that if you’re in a wooded area (like I live in!) you can see a difference in the quality of signal – especially when we compare it to the likes of Halo or Fi.
On/Off Button
This one is one of those things that people underestimate – but it’s really good news in my mind! The SpotOn Fence is a great product, but the battery life is a little less than I’d like – but SpotOn have a really simple solution – an on/off button. It’s so simple, but knowing that I can stop it from eating battery life whilst say, I drive to a sniffspot with it off, turn it on, and then I know I have the whole battery life whilst we’re out. Simple battery saving at the touch of a button.
Solid Customer Service
When a hiccup occurred during our trial period, I was quickly attended to by customer service, and the arising issue was addressed promptly. Their problem-solving attitude and eagerness reinforced my belief in the product and its supporting service.
Honest Marketing
I left this to last because I don’t think others will value this as much as I do… What I truly love the most about this product is that the company are honest in their marketing. Nowhere in their marketing do the soften the idea that this is a “friendly” or “positive” way to keep tabs on your pup and to contain them – nope. They’re actually honest that it does use punishment to deter the dog. That’s important!
What I Don’t Love About The SpotOn GPS Fence
Price
Embracing advanced technology typically comes with a higher price tag, and the SpotOn fence is an extra cost. SpotOn GPS Fence is not immune to this norm. The price point is notably higher than conventional physical fences or traditional electric fences. However, the added cost is arguably a worthy investment, considering the flexibility, enhanced control and peace of mind on offer. That said, given we fenced an acre of land and it cost around $5k – and we did it ourselves. So compared to that, you’re still ahead unless you have 5 dogs… But you can absolutely look up rough pricing costs of fencing.
And worse, you don’t actually get everything for that price, there are optional extras with training and tracking – which is really disappointing to me, as this collar is the premium virtual fence collar. The only good thing is that it’s only $10 a month – but still… it adds up.
Battery Life
The smarter the device, the faster it drains its power source. A filled-up battery in the SpotOn GPS collar lasts anywhere from 8 to a 24-hour timeline based on the usage intensity. Regular charging is required to ensure continuous functionality, which could be perceived as inconvenient at times – and it’s something I struggle with.
Punishment Based Methods
As I noted in the beginning, sadly, the SpotOn fence uses punishment (positive punishment, per operant conditioning defined by Skinner). That always has a risk associated with it, and it’s something that I wouldn’t recommend outside of very specific certain situations. Because of this, we never actually put the beep, vibrate or shock functions on for Indie, instead I tested these in situations we mocked up with humans and with a multimeter to test.
Dogs Can Resist
One of the biggest limitations of the SpotOn fence is that, like any virtual fence, is that a dog can decide to simply push through.
If your dog is determined enough and has a considerable prey drive, or fear of dogs or similar, that could overwhelm your dog’s senses strongly enough to push through the static correction feature.
However! What does mark the spoton virtual smart fence from other collars is that it’s actually clever. It does not punish your dog for coming home.
It’s not pretty…
I hate to say it, but the spoton dog collar is kind of just a clunky grey collar. It’s totally functional! Waterproof, and dirt resistant and all that jazz, but it is… bland. Inoffensive! But kind of ugly. As far as I’ve found, there doesn’t seem to be any covers, or similar.
Training Could Be Better
Simply put, the training process could better. From experience, some dog guardians struggle to recognise the signs of discomfort in a dog (such as those in the ladder of aggression, or displacement signals) and it would be good if they had these resources more obviously available.
Would I Recommend?
If you’re limited in your options, the SpotOn GPS fence could be a great solution for you and your dog. This is a wonderful choice, and I’d actually trust it more than their competitors like halo collar, or an invisible fence that goes underground.
Security is one of those things that doesn’t have a price tag to me, and this could be phenomenal for you if you’re in a situation where a GPS fence is your best choice.
It’s solid, and reliable, which in itself is something that I value greatly.
Author, Ali Smith
Ali Smith is a professional, qualified, and multi-award winning trainer is the founder of rebarkable. She has always believed animals deserve kindness and champions force free methods. Believing that dog guardians will all choose the kindest options if proper information is provided, she aims to help all dog guardians who need it and make dog training as accessible as possible
Ali lives win Maryland, US with her husband and her three dogs.
