SportDOG Brand Rechargeable In-Ground Fence - Underground Wire Electric Dog Fence - Tone, Vibration, & Static - 100 Acre Capability

Purchased the system being cautiously optimistic. We have a 160lb St. Bernard who is 4 years old. He is very playful and likes to explore, so I had no idea if the system would contain him or not. I will start by saying I did upgrade the wiring to 14 gauge wiring for durability and longevity. I mapped out doing approx. 2 acres of free roam for him around our home. I rented a trencher from the local equipment store and while this did save from hand digging the entire perimeter, it was still a meticulous process of packing the wire to the depth I wanted (approx 4-6in). This process took around 9 hours from start to finish and the receiver box showed that the loop was connected. I placed the given flags around the boundary and leashed him up. The first couple days we spent going out and about around the space, he'd get close to the flags, the collar would beep and I'd give him a tug back to safety. (The collar has 8 settings. The first 3 are only beep and vibrate, then from 4 up- the correcting gets stronger) After the fifth day I felt he was ready to check it out on his own. I set the correction level at 5 and fastened it to my leg. (Typical male, right?) I wanted to feel what he would possibly feel on the correction. He is a very big boy but he is also a pampered baby. Needless to say, I hardly felt a touch so I was convinced I had wasted my time and money. So later that night I went out with him and he saw a deer in the lower part of the field and he took off after it...the was no yelp, bark or anything but he immediately came back to my side and sat down. I was shocked by this....the next morning we woke up and I went to put the collar on him to go outside and he crawled halfway under the bed. This made me feel awful and I was afraid he was scarred for life. After a day of research I saw this was very common, that I needed to spend more time together outside and get him used to it. So this doesn't turn into a novel, fast forward 6 weeks and he wears the collar like a badge of honor. He knows he can't go outside without it. He knows his boundaries. I only have it set on Beep mode, and he runs and flops and rolls and has free roam and I don't know who's happier-Him-or my wife and I. It has given us complete peace of mind for him to enjoy himself and spend as much time as he wants outside. I think it almost makes him forget about his own queen sized bed inside.