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I just bought some apartments, and since I rent to pet owners I’m planning on building fencing for my tenants pets.
I’ve built fence before for my rentals, usually chain link, that’s not a problem. However these earlier rentals were duplexes, and I didn’t worry too much about “Rover” digging under.
In this situation I have the space to build everyone a separate “back yard”, but the layout will mean that each apartment will have a yard whose fencing butts up against one or two other yards and also shares a common area where tenants will access their private areas.
I’ve had dogs & they can climb and dig. I’m going to do wooden fencing 6′ tall, so climbing is possible, but not probable. The digging is what is worrying me.
My personal history with dogs includes having ones that dug through chicken wire we buried to keep them in, chewed through fencing wire, & moved BIG rocks we put down to block their holes. I can just see “Cujo” digging out and assaulting the kids playing in the next yard over.
I’m trying to devise a barrier I can put in place in the ground before I build the fences. I’ve thought about opening a very narrow slit directly underneath where the fences will run, 3 to 4″ wide and 12-18 inches deep & pour concrete with some kind of reinforcement. That sounds pretty effective, but the labor and materials required looks formidable.
The other thought’s I have had is using a strong meshed galvanized fence material, such as a cattle panel perhaps anchored to rebar hammer drilled in at intervals for support and then buried, again to the same sort of depth. I was thinking about back filling with SB2 or some other material that would harden over time. The only down side of this is that I’m not sure how long the metal would last buried. Have also considered using conventional chain link instead of the cattle panel or other heavy duty fencing.
Any ideas on suggested materials, their staying power over time, back fill material if any, cost effectiveness, and/or previous experience with dog behavior would be appreciated.
The Best,
Gary S.
Replies
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Might give vinyl-coated chain link a look for burying. Slats on both sides of the fence would help. Use longer fence posts to build an overhanging trellis, shaped like a 'T'. Most dogs can't climb upside-down well.
*How about using a trencher to open a narrow slot and put #3 or #4 rebar at the bottom. And another one every 4 to 6" as you backfill. Overlap the ends a foot or two. Cheap, easy. And Fido won't be able to budge a 20 foot length of buried re-bar. At to last a LONG time, but you could spring for epoxy-coated rebar they use around salt-water. I wouldn't, though. -David
*David's idea about rebar sounds good. I also like the thought you had about cattle panels. They can be bought in 16' lengths and various widths. You could maybe buy 16' long by 36" panels, and "rip" them in half or thirds with bolt cutters. (You really wouldn't need the full width) They aren't too expensive, and would give you a lot of bang fer your buck.
*I just finished having this problem with my dog after dogsitting for a friend whose dog taught mine to dig under. After trying lots of things, we finally ran an electric wire at the base of the fence. It was cheap, less than $75 for 500 ft. After my dog got hit a couple of times he had no interest in going out. We disconnected the power and just left the wire and haven't had any problems. The ideas above sound good when putting in new fence but seems like a lot of work for a tenant who might have a dog who might dig.
*buried fence will last practically forever - chain link, farm fence, welded hog panels, - all should work - roll or lay it out, build the fence above it, cover with 6" or so of fill - I'd suggest a 50/50 mix of pea gravel and limestone chips as the top layer - good for dogs feet, easy to maintaince, limestone keeps it fresh -
*I have a pycho lab that digs. I mean Digs, with a capital D. 24-7. So we pile up bricks along the base, and she tosses them aside and digs under the fence. We next tried 8" block and railroad ties. Lifted those off, and tossed the bricks aside and got through.Then we trenched about 10" down, and buried long strips of plywood. The darn dog dug up to and under those.We finally dug down a full 24" and buried 1/2 sheets of plywood. Cured the dog. What a drill. We have over 200' of fencing that was done.
*As E. Pinkston notes, a dog will learn after hitting an electric fence only a few times. I think they should be rented instead of sold. After the first 3 days, you don't need it anymore.Probably different in the rental situation where people and dogs come and go all the time. But if someone thinks they want to buy an electric fence, drop me a line. And then find someone else to pass it on to a week or two later. -David
*Gary,My wife is a dog trainer/breeder and we run a small (43 ac.) sheep ranch. So we have alot of experience dealing with fencing and canines, both the domestic and the wild variety.A 6' fence will keep almost all but the most athletic and motivated dogs contained. You'll very rarely encounter one that can clear that height. 6' seems to be the standard that kennels use.As far as digging goes, a simple and cost-effective thing to do is run a string of barbed wired, right at ground level, on the inside of the fence posts, and strung tight.This should discourage most digging. If it doesn't, what I think you have is mainly a behavioral and animal management problem, rather than a fencing problem. Maybe advise the renters that Fido shouldn't be left unattended and bored for long periods of time -- crating might work better (the dog'll just sleep; it's not a person, most don't mind getting crated once in a while). This is assuming it gets a chance to get lots of exercise and interaction with people when it does get out.If it was a hungry coyote, I'd run a 12 GA. steel hot wire a few inches above the bared wire, connected to a high power low-impedance charger, but I don't think this approach is appropriate for residential applications.
*Barry,I agree with the training/behavior issues. Just a note though, the electric fence i used was designed for small animals not horses and cattle. The voltage is way down and should have no effect on dogs or humans other than a temporary jump back response! The thought of cuts, infections, etc. from barbed wire would make me much more nervous than a quick shock!
*A friend of mine had problems with dogs digging out and he cured it by burying fencing under the floor of the pen in a plane perpendicular to the fence. In other words he laid the fencing (old woven wire down under the floor of the pen. That way the dog would dig down to the wire but couldn't get under, as they would try to dig out next to the fence instead of back the 3' width of the wire. Made sense to me and I filed it away in the ol' cranial file cabinet for future reference.
*Bamboo spreads underground. To control it, zoos, parks, etc usually trench around the area where they want bamboo with a ditch witch and slip sheets of corrugated roofing into the trench and backfill. I can't imagine any dog digging through steel roofing. Pretty cheap and I would think easier to handle then trying to roll out and insert chain link fencing into a trench.
*Guys, you have given me LOTS of good ideas on this issue, all in less than 24 hours THANKS! ...keep on thinking on this one! I'm learning a lot, and my brain is warming up enough that I'm beginning to put ideas together, and may even be able to formulate a couple of logical questions in another 24 hours or so.The Best,Gary S.
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I just bought some apartments, and since I rent to pet owners I'm planning on building fencing for my tenants pets.
I've built fence before for my rentals, usually chain link, that's not a problem. However these earlier rentals were duplexes, and I didn't worry too much about "Rover" digging under.
In this situation I have the space to build everyone a separate "back yard", but the layout will mean that each apartment will have a yard whose fencing butts up against one or two other yards and also shares a common area where tenants will access their private areas.
I've had dogs & they can climb and dig. I'm going to do wooden fencing 6' tall, so climbing is possible, but not probable. The digging is what is worrying me.
My personal history with dogs includes having ones that dug through chicken wire we buried to keep them in, chewed through fencing wire, & moved BIG rocks we put down to block their holes. I can just see "Cujo" digging out and assaulting the kids playing in the next yard over.
I'm trying to devise a barrier I can put in place in the ground before I build the fences. I've thought about opening a very narrow slit directly underneath where the fences will run, 3 to 4" wide and 12-18 inches deep & pour concrete with some kind of reinforcement. That sounds pretty effective, but the labor and materials required looks formidable.
The other thought's I have had is using a strong meshed galvanized fence material, such as a cattle panel perhaps anchored to rebar hammer drilled in at intervals for support and then buried, again to the same sort of depth. I was thinking about back filling with SB2 or some other material that would harden over time. The only down side of this is that I'm not sure how long the metal would last buried. Have also considered using conventional chain link instead of the cattle panel or other heavy duty fencing.
Any ideas on suggested materials, their staying power over time, back fill material if any, cost effectiveness, and/or previous experience with dog behavior would be appreciated.
The Best,
Gary S.