I thought about a fence but my dog would have burrowed under it to escape and an enclosure large enough for him to run would be very expensive. Worse,I'd have to trim around it and it wouldn't have looked very good in my yard. The solution was the invisible fence This company is excellent. They have a machine to dig the slit and lay the cable so it was installed in less than two hours. Then he instructed me with my dog on how to train him to avoid the beep before the shock zone. After ten days of walking the lot line on "Beep" the trainer came back and we did it with a shock setting. I held the collar in my hand and walked across the line to see if it would really hurt my dog but it's more like a surprise and an intense itch. Annoying, unpleasant and an experience I'd avoid repeating but certainly not cruel. Training is essential but the support of this company and knowing my dog is safe in the yard is well worth the time and money. I highly recommend this to anyone!