I have two one year old GSPs, male and female.   We live on a 50 acre farm that includes a 1/2 acre fenced in back yard.  Occassionally, one or both will climb the fence and head for the woods, and will not return no matter how long and loud we call (at times they may be chasing an errant rabbit or deer seen out in a pasture).  Eventually they return, dead tired and thirsty.  The anxiety when they are out is stressing my wife and me, not to mention my two daughters.  We have tried to train them to come when called which they do well in the back yard...yet when they "escape" nothing will get them to return until they are worn out.  Not sure what an E-Collar is or if it will help.  I am open to any suggestions!

Thanks!

I agree with Texas Belle . . . I work and well, I cannot watch them all the time and once they get that reward of escape, they take the moment you turn your back.  I did not use a hot wire, instead had the radio wire and my lab wore a collar.  My issue was not climbing the fence, but my chocolate lab would dig out in a second.  I did all sorts of contraptions at the fence bottom (we had an acre fenced) to no avail.  She learned rapidly not to go near the fence.  She was trained only with a leash on was she allowed to go through the gate.  No leash, she was no way heading through that gate.

I would be relunctant however to have a novice person go get an ecollar.  First, to get a good one with several levels, is not cheap.  If you are trying to keep them from escaping the fence, put up some other barrier such as the wire.  If you want to learn how to teach your dog the recall among many other things that make you and your dogs so much happier, find a local trainer to help you out.

I have seen videos on Youtube of gsp's and the climbing and jumping they can do and our female can jump an entire flight of stairs and land at the bottom no problem. She can also jump up and skip 5 stairs at a time - she's a leaper. When we fenced the yard a standard chain link wouldn't work because it is only 5 or 6 feet high so we got deer fencing and that is 8 feet high. The holes are also smaller so they can't get their paws in there to climb up and over. We did this when Windsor got loose and ran and didn't want to come back - he almost bought it at rush hour with all the cars on the main road behind the woods. Since you already have the fence extend it higher w/ the wire but I'd also get the e collars because they would work well if you want take them off the property to go somewhere. There is a lot of info about e collars in here. Recently I had a little accident because I did NOT train my dogs properly w/ the collar and they dragged me on leash but I learned alot in here on how to use it but still recovering with my right hand - it's still not good enough to hold two of them just yet. You gotta know how to use the collar before you put it on them - and the cd's that come with the collars - they make it look like a walk in the park - not true!

There is not only a lot of info here about e-collars, there are many good books. TriTronics is what I use.  They publish their matterials online (as I am sure other manufacturers do).

Try:  www.tritronics.com/content/customer-service/owners-manuals-product-guides/ for the manuals, and guides.  I have used the following on multiple dogs with good results as well:  www.tritronics.com/content/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/manuals/basic_training.pdf

I found transitioning to training with a collar pretty easy.  I made a couple of predictable mistakes, but the hardest thing (boilded down) is choosing the right intensity.  All my dogs have been different.

Good luck (if you choose to go this path).

http://www.gpsdogcollartracking.com/

I can relate to the distress that can arise when  Hanna is off lead running free  . I let her roam at a couple of my work places were there are large expanses of fields  dotted with dwellings. If Im not wondering where she is all is well. I had a hearty laugh when she zoomed in  Friday, gave me a quick toungue out smile , dashed to her pool,  and then took off again.  A while later I heard a dog barking  way across some train tracks . All I could think about was what if someone  has her and she can't get back to me. I called and honked my horn and no sound of her collar bell. I had to drive to find her . Had another time where she did not return when I called and I heard chickens in the distance. 

SO.

 Im getting a  GPS tracking collar. . They are costly but It will help alot when I need to track her down.

Im looking at the 220 astro and the sportdog tec.

You can get the GPS and ecollar together , The site at the top of the post has a low price for the combination. I already  have an  Ecollar..

My biggest fear is she'll find a snake. Next fear in line is she'll find a person who will snake her away.