What to Consider When Building a Fence for Your Dog

Introduction

You got a new puppy and are concerned about its safety. You want to be within the safe lines of your property and not just go out to the road with fast cars. That means you need to rethink your fence. To build a fence you can search for a “fencing company near me” and hire professionals for the job. However, it’s important to figure out what kind of fence is best for your dog. Let’s figure it out.

The Considerations

1. Things to ask yourself before thinking about the fence – Before you start conceptualizing the fence, it’s important to answer a few key questions. When you answer those things, you’ll have a better time selecting the materials and choosing other design elements of the fence. Let’s check out those key questions:

• What’s the breed of your dog?
• What’s the size of your dog?
• Jumping power of your dog?
• Is your dog an escape artist and likes to dig his way out?
• Will the fence style affect your safety?
• Do you need a privacy-focused fence?
• The number of access points on the fence?

You may even have more things to consider even before you start thinking about the fence. Either way listing those questions and factors will help you achieve the perfect design for your dog fence.

2. Height of the fence – This is the first consideration for your fence. The minimum height required for the fence depends on your dog’s breed and the local regulations. If you have a breed with great jumping power, you may need to build a fence that’s over 8 feet tall.

For instance, if you have a German Shepherd that can jump as high as 6 feet, 8 feet is the necessary fence height. For breeds like Australian Kelpie that can jump as high as 10 feet, you’ll need an even taller fence. On the other hand, for breeds like Rottweiler or Bull Terrier with a jumping height of just 3 feet, a 6 feet tall fence is enough.

However, you’re not the only one that gets a say at your fence. There are HOAs and other local authorities that have their own regulations about fence heights. While most local authorities allow for an 8ft or even 10 feet tall backyard fence, most have severe restrictions on the height of the fence in the front yard.

Most local regulations are designed to make you build an ornamental front yard fence that’s short and looks brilliant but is very impractical. While this helps to keep the selling prices of homes in the neighborhood high, it doesn’t stop your dog from jumping over. In such cases, you need to make sure that your dog doesn’t get to the front yard without your supervision.

3. Restricting your dog’s senses – Even if your dog doesn’t have a lot of jumping power, you may want to go with a tall fence. While your dog may not be a jumper it may be a barker. Some dogs are vigilant and bark at intruders and suspicious people while others like to bark at everything from butterflies to moving air. If your dog belongs to the latter camp, you may need to build a tall fence.

If your dog is easily distracted and a barker, building a tall fence helps to obstruct your dog’s view. This way strangers can go about their day without attracting the wrath of your dog. Moreover, tall fences also act as sound barriers. While humans can listen to sound frequencies up to 20kHz, dogs can listen up to 65kHz. They have several times more sensory fibers in their ears.

Combine that with a barker and everything from the sound of a crushed soda can to loud honks from cars can make your dog show the power of its lungs at full force. That’s why it’s important to restrict both the vision and hearing of your dog with a tall fence if it’s a barker.

4. Panel size – You also need to carefully think about panel size while building a fence for your dog. Dogs are curious and like to stick their head and paws in things. If the panel gaps on the fence aren’t too small or too big, they may get stuck in those gaps. On the other hand, if the panel gap is too big and you have a small breed, your dog may successfully escape the perimeter. Fortunately, you can avoid all that by making the panel gaps as small as possible or completely getting rid of them.

5. Durability – You need to choose the material for the fence very carefully. It needs to be strong and constructed with a deep foundation so that it doesn’t get broken by your dog. If it’s not strong enough, your dog may easily break a few panels and run off to the road. When it comes to durability and strength, nothing beats a wrought iron fence. However, a wrought iron fence is far from ideal. It has gaps that may trap your curious dog and also have many points for the dog to climb over. The best option would be a tall fence made from dense timber or strong vinyl.

6. Ground clearance – Dogs like to dig the ground to hide their stolen treasures. From a chew toy to a broken iPhone, everything gets into the hole. However, the digging isn’t limited to hiding treasures. If there is enough gap under the fence, your dog may make more room for a safe escape by digging into the ground. You need to make sure that there are no such gaps under your fence.

Conclusion

When you build a fence for your dog make sure it is tall, strong enough to handle impacts from your dog, and also make sure to cover up the gaps under the fence. When you have everything figured out you can search for “fencing company near me” and hire professionals to build the ideal fence for your dog.