GPS Dog Fence: Introducing the Tractive Virtual Fence For Dogs And Cats

Your dog or cat won’t stop trying to run away and explore the neighborhood and it’s making you sick with worry? Maybe you’ve even set up a physical dog fence or catio – but your curious adventurer is an expert escape artist. Sometimes, you don’t even know that your dog has jumped the fence until it’s nearly too late – and you have a lost dog on your hands. This is where a virtual fence like the one from Tractive GPS can be a life-saver. Learn all about the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence – and how it can help your peace of mind – in this post.

What is a virtual fence?

A virtual fence is a fencing system that allows you to create a digital boundary rather than a physical one in the real world using GPS and other technologies. Virtual fences are often used to contain animals within a space, or as part of a GPS tracking system which enables you know where your pet or animal is at all times.

Virtual fencing is commonly used in cattle or livestock herding, as well as by many pet parents who want to ensure their pet’s wellbeing as well as their own peace of mind. Most virtual fences use a collar mounted GPS tracker in combination with an app or software, where the fence boundaries can be drawn. Read more about virtual fences.

What is Tractive GPS?

One such example of a collar-mounted GPS tracking device which offers virtual fencing is Tractive GPS. The life-saving pet tracker can be worn comfortably on most dog and cat collars and harnesses, and gives pet parents peace of mind that they’ll always know where their furry friend is, no matter how far they roam.

The live tracking feature of Tractive GPS means that if your dog or cat ever runs away, you’ll be able to find them in no time. And have peace of mind that no matter where they go, you can follow their every step.

Sometimes, live tracking isn’t really necessary; for example if your dog is safe inside your home or backyard. In these cases, the tracker will detect the movement to determine how often it needs to update you of your pet’s position.

But what if your dog (or cat) gets outside and suddenly runs or wanders away? This is where the Virtual Fence comes in.

What is the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence?

With any Tractive GPS tracker, you can set up a Virtual Fence around your home, grandma’s house, the office, or any space that’s safe for your pet.

As soon as your pet leaves (or enters) that virtual safe area aka Virtual Fence, you’ll get a alert on your smartphone Then you can check on your pet – or go retrieve them – as necessary. What’s more, anyone you’ve shared the tracker with will also be notified and can help you look for your dog or cat if needed.

Unlike an invisible fence for dogs, the Tractive Virtual Fence requires no physical installation and does NOT administer a electric shock to your dog when the leave the fence. Making this GPS dog fence 100% safe for furry friends.

10 fun facts about the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence

• Tractive GPS is made by pet lovers, for pet lovers.
• It’s one of the many features you get with a subscription plan that costs as little as a cup of coffee a month.
• A Tractive Virtual Fence can be set up in under 5 minutes (or in 1, if you’re really fast).
• The system alerts you instantly if your dog runs away or leaves the Virtual Fence perimeter.
• Have a funny-shaped yard? No problem: the Virtual Fence’s shape is customizable.

• You can create up to 5 fences for each pet or tracker in your account. Plus, track unlimited pets from within the app.
• Manage your GPS dog fences and trackers from a smartphone, tablet, or computer (heads up: you’ll need an internet connection).
• Other people you share the tracker with can check to see if your pet is within the fence at any time.
• The Power Saving Zone (Wifi) works as a backup Virtual Fence to ensure you never lose your dog or cat.
• Pet ran out of the Virtual Fence? Track and find them in real-time using LIVE Tracking.

Always know where your dog is

Follow every step in real-time with unlimited range. Get alerts if they wander too far. Keep them happy & healthy with Wellness Monitoring. And let others – like walkers or sitters – keep an eye on your dog too.

Learn more

How to set up a Tractive GPS Virtual Fence

Once you have your Tractive GPS tracker and activated it with a subscription plan, setting up a Virtual Fence couldn’t be easier. Simply open the Tractive GPS app on your mobile phone or in a web browser at my.tractive.com and visit your pet’s profile or tap on the fence icon to get started.

Add a new fence and simply drag and drop the pink fence icon on the map anywhere you’d like to mark as a ‘safe zone’ for your dog, cat, horse, or other animal.

You can set up the Virtual Fence entirely in the Tractive GPS app. And voilà – you’ll be notified if your dog – wearing the tracker on their collar – leaves or enters the Virtual Fence aka doggy safe zone. This is all made possible thanks to GPS and other helpful location technologies integrated into the device.

The video below shows what the process of setting up a Virtual Fence looks like in the Tractive GPS app on iOS. Set up the Virtual Fence on Android.

10 pet parents share why they love the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence

Now that you know what the Tractive GPS virtual dog fence is and how it works, discover what these ten pet parents and Tractive GPS users love about the feature that helps them keep their dogs and cats safe.

1) This has been a huge life saver

We live very far into the country, and our dogs run away very often. This tracker has been a huge life saver for us. My husband and I are both notified quickly when they’re outside of the “virtual fence” at our home, and their location has always been very accurate. It’s a huge peace of mind for us. Without it, we would have no idea which direction to look for them.

Abby, USA

2) I know exactly where my dog is!

I bought the dog tracker three and a half years ago and I can honestly say that it is one of the best purchases I have made.Primarily it gives me peace of mind, but there have been occasions when it has helped me locate her when she has got stuck and I wouldn’t have had a clue in which direction to start. Putting it in “live” mode means you can see where you and your dog are and tracks it’s movements. You can also draw a “virtual fence” (usually around your house) and it will notify you when your dog has left that fence. For me that means that she is being walked by one of the children. I wouldn’t be without the tracker. It makes me more relaxed.

Catherine, UK

3) Benefits of a FitBit + an electric fence without any of the downsides

We have a large outdoor cat who tends to wander, with coyotes frequently spotted in our neighborhood. Tractive lets us see where he is at all times. Think of it like a pet Fitbit + an electric fence, without any of the downsides that come with a fence. You can set boundaries at whatever distance you’d like, and get notified when your pet leaves that boundary. (This is what enables you to have an electric fence type scenario without having to use a shock collar.)

Emma, USA

4) Happy to have our cat back

We’ve only had Tractive for a week but it’s helped us so much. Our cat was being kept and fed by somebody but within a couple of days we learnt who was doing this. I use the virtual fence to tell me where my cat is so I can collect him if I need to. We also love seeing where he goes as he’s very active we can’t believe he walks between 5-6 miles most days!!

Stuart, UK

5) She’s learning her boundaries… I don’t worry

Well the new puppies 11 months old and we don’t have a fence at the property we have a 14-year-old that knows the boundaries and won’t runoff. The neighbor has the tracker and said he really enjoyed it so I bought it for my youngest dog. Once I put it on I let them out together and now she’s learning her boundaries from the older dog and I don’t worry about her because I look on the tracker and know where she’s at. It’s pretty neat, love this unit and peace of mind.

Joe, USA

6) An incredible way to get peace of mind

We got our tracker about three weeks ago and it has been life changing! We would often worry and wonder about where a cat was getting to, now we know exactly where he is at any moment. I love the leaderboard feature and that we get to see how active he is. It’s also awesome having a virtual fence that alerts us when he leaves the neighbourhood. For any cat owners with adventurous cats, this tracker is an incredible way to get peace of mind.

Lauren, Canada

7) We can’t always be there with him and with Tractive, we don’t have to be

We got our Bluetick Coonhound about 8 weeks ago. My husband and I had a conversation regarding how we could keep an eye on him, and if he goes off of the property, how we might find him. So we got online and researched gps tracking and invisible fences. By far Tractive was the best one that offered what we were looking for, small and portable, we could either put it on Hanks collar or harness and set the fence and gps to where he plays and as soon as he gets into or out of the fence area we get a notification! It’s great because we can’t always be right there with him and with Tractive, we don’t have to be!! We love this and would definitely recommend to anyone who would like to make everyday a little easier with your puppy or adult dog!

Crystal, USA

8) It’s so easy to use

My Tractive dog tracker has been great for my Dalmatian who can sometimes wander off, it alerts me when he leaves the virtual fence and it’s so easy to use. It does seem to be the best of those out there, and it’s a great size not big and bulky at all. The customer support received has been outstanding – on the odd time it’s been needed. Certainly recommend and wouldn’t be without it now, thank you.

Lucy, UK

9) When he goes to his granny’s house, we know he’s safe

Tractive is great peace of mind for us. We live in rural location backing onto the sea. My golden boy is very active and loves to go off exploring and paddling. We know where he is and when his left the virtual fence. Love the live tracking as it lets us track where he is in real time. Tractive also lets you set virtual boundaries at other locations, so when he goes to his granny’s house we know he’s safe. –

Michelle, Ireland

10) This little device is a game changer

This little device is a game changer for me and my 1 year old, adventurous Golden Retriever. I reside on 75 acres and had the need to know the location of my Golden when she was outside. She was never in danger, but now, when she leaves the virtual fence, I get a notification on my iPhone. I can open the app and see her location, real time. If she enters the virtual fence, I also receive a notification. I send her a “sound” and she immediately comes home, no matter where she is. The app is easy to use and I recommend Tractive GPS to everyone that has a pet. We place a GPS on our keys and luggage, why not our dog! 🐾🐾

Brenda, USA

Start Tracking

Conclusion

So, in this article we covered everything you need to know about the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence, a.k.a the best cat virtual fence and gps dog fence. This virtual fence fits on your dog’s collar or harness, and to get started all you need is a Tractive GPS tracker and subscription plan. Starting at $4.99 per month, it’s a small price to pay to get peace of mind about the safety of your four-legged, furry family members.

What’s your favorite benefit of the Tractive GPS Virtual Fence? Let us know on Instagram or Facebook!

Want more helpful pet tech and safety articles like this delivered to your inbox? Subscribe to the Tractive newsletter.