Part of responsible dog ownership is making sure your dog is safe. No one wants to have to stand outside in the morning holding a leash while a dog goes to the bathroom, especially if it’s pouring rain or snowing heavily. That’s why many pet owners opt for fencing in an area of their yard. Fencing options vary, and some dogs are more clever than others and can escape what seems like the most fool-proof dog fence.
When you’re looking at easy-to-install dog fences, the cost can be a major factor. Adding installation to any fence can drive up the price. To save money, you may want to tackle the dog fence as a DIY project. Not every fence is easy to install.
Factor the Cost Differences in Dog Fencing
An in-ground invisible fence isn’t always the best option. First, it’s expensive. Angi’s contractors estimate the average cost is just over $1,300. There are GPS options that are almost $500. That’s for an average yard. If you live in the country and have acres of land, it can be far more expensive.
While this type of underground fencing can be appealing as you can’t see it, there are a few things to consider. First, not every dog feels the electrical zaps or obeys the warning beeps. Dogs with thick fur may never notice that the collar is issuing pulses of electricity. They’ll escape with ease.
Second, some dogs will charge through the fencing even if they can feel it. If there’s a biker or pedestrian walking a dog, they won’t care. Once they’ve escaped and realize they’re being zapped, they may not want to return due to the zaps they’re experiencing. The discomfort makes them run farther away.
Third, underground fencing requires you to dig a boundary around your yard. You’re going to need Dig Safe to come to mark where underground cable, phone, and electricity lines are located, especially if you plan to fence your entire yard and not just a section of it away from the side of your house where your electricity meter, cable box, and phone box are located.
You have vinyl fencing that may look attractive, but It’s also an expensive option with the average cost for 200 feet of fencing coming in at over $3,700 installed. Wooden fencing is around $5,200 for 200 feet. The average cost for 200 feet of installed chain link fencing is about $3,700. All of these estimates are based on a five-foot fence. If you need a taller fence, the prices increase substantially. Escape artist dogs can dig under any of these with ease, so that’s something to consider.
You could get rolls of thinner steel farm fencing and do it yourself, but you need to securely set posts that can handle the weight of the metal. You also need to check local laws as fencing that’s over a certain height may require city or town approval and a permit. You also need to hire a surveyor to ensure you’re building the fence fully within your property’s boundaries.
With any of those options, there is still the chance your dog will escape. Dogs running at full speed may be able to jump a fence. They may use the spacing in a chain-link fence like a ladder. Once your dog escapes, there’s the risk of getting hit by a car, attacking or being attacked by another animal, or being picked up by animal control, leading to costly fines. What if there was an easy-to-install dog fence option that even the trickiest escape artist can’t get out of?
Discover the Pet Playground Dog Fence
Pet Playground fence is flexible, strong, and easily installed. You don’t need special equipment like post-hole diggers. Our online planning tool helps you order the right amount of fencing for your dog area.
When you order a Dog Fence Kit, almost everything you need is included. The tools you need to have available are a hammer, sledgehammer, screwdriver, pliers, a ratchet set, and a metal cutting blade on a hacksaw.
A kit contains the fence posts, a driving cap, corner post braces, a hog ringer and the D-rings, polypropylene mesh fencing, and rubber-coated welded steel wire to install along the ground to prevent digging. It includes the nails, a level, eye loops, cam locks, ground stakes for the no-dig fencing, tension cable, and post collars. You even get a pair of wire snips.
These fences are easy to install, and you can even attach them to existing trees to make the process even easier. If your property is lined with trees, all you need is a tree every 20 to 25 feet to attach the tension cables and polypropylene rolled fencing.
How Is It Installed?
To start, you want to place the post sleeves every 20 to 25 feet. If you hit a rock or have an obstacle in your way, it’s okay, you can move the sleeve a couple of feet one way or the other. If you have trees, you’re welcome to use them as posts. The post sleeves go right into the ground without digging a hole. You put the driving cap over the post sleeve and use a sledgehammer to drive it into the ground. Once it’s in the ground, you can slide the galvanized steel post into the post sleeve with ease. Cut off any excess if needed.
Post corners are included and use angled posts to brace the corners. You can also attach fencing to your home and eliminate the need for some post corners. Once the posts are in place, run the tension cable from one post to the next to create the top and bottom rails of the fencing. The polypropylene mesh fencing is connected to the tension cable using the D-rings. Overlap some of the mesh fencing to create the dig guard. Stakes brace the dig guard flat to the ground. You can also place rocks or bricks until grass grounds into the dig guard and secures it to the ground.
If you order a gate kit, you’ll have everything you need for the gate, too. It includes the gate, the latches, the turnbuckle, hinges, and the gate posts.
As the Dog Fence Kit comes with everything you need and clear instructions, it’s an easy weekend project. You just need a few extra hands to help hold the fencing in place while it’s connected to the tension cable.
What If Your Dog Is a Chewer?
You might worry that your chewer will chew through the polypropylene mesh fence. Pet Playgrounds has MAX Strength fencing that has a third layer of 19-gauge steel mesh making them more than twice as strong as chain link fencing. They can withstand up to 4,000 psi, making it impossible for a chewer to damage the fencing.
Pet Playgrounds fencing makes it very hard for a dog to escape, and it’s also harder for other animals to climb into your dog’s play area. You may have seen videos where coyotes scale wooden or metal fencing and make it into pet owners’ yards to attack dogs and cats. The flexibility of our pet playgrounds creates safer play areas for your pets.
Our online tool helps you determine exactly how much polypropylene fencing you need, and you can get everything you need for a DIY pet fence. Explore real-time pricing using our online dog fence pricing tool. If you need installation services, we help with that, too. Do you still have questions? We’re happy to help. Reach us by phone or schedule an appointment with our pet experts when it’s convenient for you.