"I bought the scat mat for my Springer Spaniel about 6 months ago to keep him out of our kitchen. It works!! He hasn't stepped foot in the kitchen since he was "shocked" the first time. The shock is not that bad. My family, including my kids, will sometimes forget and get shocked. We then bought a $4.00 plastic mat from the hardware store and placed it at another section of the house. Our dog thinks it will shock him and he doesn't step over that plastic mat. Best buy ever!"