Find out what you will need to know before buying a fence for your dog. You have to take into account where you live and how much room your dog will need. The size of your dog is one of the first things to take into consideration, the next would be, if your pet is the type of dog who just wants to lie around or run around. Always check with your town to see if there are any rules about height, or even if you can have any type of enclosed space, and of course, how much room you have to devote to an area like this.

When considering a fenced in area for a dog, know for sure if you will be using it every day to keep your pet outside when you are not home, or if it will only be used as an area to let them out when you cannot take them for a walk. Knowing how long your dog is going to spend in there is important before you decide on a size for the area you are going to use.

If you have a small dog, it should not be a problem with determining the height of an enclosure, unless they can jump very high. When you have a large dog you will need to find out how high they can actually jump. Just because a breeder may tell you that your type of dog can only jump four feet high, doesn't necessarily mean that yours can't jump higher than that.

Consider if you want to fence in your entire yard, if you do, see what others in your neighborhood have surrounding their yards. If your neighbors all have high wooden fences, you might not want to put in a chain link one. By checking with your town, you will find out if there are any ordinances that prevent certain types of material from being used to enclose a yard

Fences are available in many different materials. There is wrought iron, vinyl, aluminum, picket, metal, and wood for you to choose from as the material. Make sure that what you like, will also match the type of house you have.

If your township says you cannot have any type of fence what-so-ever, than it is time for you to look at the invisible ones they have out now for dogs. This is a great solution too if you do not want to block any view that you may have.

An invisible fence has a wire buried in the ground, and comes with a special collar for your dog to wear. Whenever your dog tries to cross the wire, they will get a slight electric shock. This does really hurt your pet, but the shock is enough to keep them inside the wired area.

Consider all of these things before you make a decision on what type of fence you will purchase. These can be expensive, and you do not want to find out after you spent a lot of money, that your town will not let you have the material you purchased.

After you have checked with your town about having an enclosed space in your yard, or all around your property, and you are sure about the height you need, it is time to select the material. If your town says that you can only put up wooden fences, decide on what wood is best for a fence in your yard. If there are no specifications for the material than you have many choices.

                The materials you have to choose from are, wood metal, vinyl, aluminum, and wrought iron. Whatever material you do pick, make sure that it will look good with your house. This is not something that can changed easily, so you need to be sure.

               If your township says you cannot have any type of fence what-so-ever, than it is time for you to look at the invisible ones they have out now for dogs. This is a great solution too if you do not want to block any view that you may have.

             An invisible fence has a wire buried in the ground, and comes with a special collar for your dog to wear. Whenever your dog tries to cross the wire, they will get a slight electric shock. This does really hurt your pet, but the shock is enough to keep them inside the wired area.

             Take all of these things into consideration before you make a purchase. A fence can be costly, so you need to know all of the information you can about the rules in your town, and of course what you need specific to your dog.

There are so many different brands of dog fences available online and home improvement and pet stores — shoppers are often left shaking their heads, wondering, "Why should I buy this brand instead of that one? Should I just get whatever brand is cheapest?"

It's a shame, really, because buying a dog fence doesn't need to be so confusing! In fact, you can likely decide which brand is dog fence brand is best for you rather quickly, once you understand what features you (and your dog) actually need.

As a former pro installer, I've installed every major brand of dog fence on the market — from PetSafe to Innotek to Invisible Fence — and I can tell you honestly that they all have their pros and cons. After you finish reading this article, take a look at my individual product reviews to help make your final buying decision.

· What's the best dog fence brand?

You're probably not surprised to hear the answer to this question is: It depends! But, that answer isn't really as vague as it first seems.

The first thing you should know is that all of the major brands of do-it-yourself invisible dog fences are manufactured by one company — Radio Systems Corp. That includes the PetSafe, SportDog, Innotek, and Guardian lines. In fact, Radio Systems Corp. also owns Invisible Fence, which is the best-known of the pro-installed brands. So, unless you're considering buying a small-name brand, in the end you're going to be dealing with Radio Systems Corp. for any warranty issues you encounter.

Interestingly, while Radio Systems Corp. is the single manufacturer for most major pet fence brands, not all of the brands it manufactures are created equal; they each have different product features and warranties to consider as you make your buying decision. So, the real question you should be asking is not, "What brand should I buy," but "What features do I need?"

What features do I need in a dog fence?

This is where things get pretty simple: No matter what brand of invisible dog fence you buy, you should purchase it with the following considerations in mind.

1) Does the dog fence include a receiver with multiple correction levels? The receiver is the device your dog wears around his neck that corrects him if he decides to venture out of his containment area. Some dog fences include single-level receivers that deliver only ONE level of correction, regardless of your dog's size, age, and temperament. In my experience those single-level receivers just aren't worth the money you'll pay for them. In fact, if you take only one thing away from reading this article, let it be this: Only buy a dog fence that includes a multi-level receiver! This holds true regardless of brand.

Think of it this way: Like people, every dog has a unique temperament. Some dogs are pretty sensitive, and it just doesn't take much correction to convince them to respect their invisible dog fence. In fact, if you DO use more correction than a sensitive dog requires, you'll likely scare that dog so that he no longer enjoys his yard. Not only is that unfair (I'd even go so far as to say mean), but it can also provoke a variety of training problems that are no fun to fix — for example, peeing on the patio instead of in the yard. So, if your dog has a "soft" personality, you'll need to use only the lowest levels on the dog fence receiver.

On the other hand, if your dog is stubborn or stoic, the correction of a single-level receiver probably isn't going to be enough to keep him in the yard. Then, you'll end up dealing with a completely different set of no-fun-to-fix problems, like finding your dog when he breaks through his invisible barrier.

Lastly, as you'll learn in our Training Guide, the right way to train any dog to understand an invisible dog fence is to start with very low correction levels. As your dog begins to learn what you expect from him, you'll gradually increase the correction until you discover the level that your dog finds aversive. This approach serves two purposes: 1) It gives your dog a chance to understand how the invisible dog fence works before he gets a significant correction and 2) It allows you to dial in the correction that is appropriate for your dog's unique personality. You simply can't use this training method with a single-level receiver.

2) How big is your dog? Another issue to consider when choosing an invisible dog fence is your dog's size. Some receivers are much larger than others, so if your dog is very small (I'm thinking Chihuahua/Yorkie-sized here) you should choose the smallest, lightest multi-level receiver that you can find.

3) How big is your yard? This may surprise you, but not every brand of invisible dog fence covers the same amount of space. If you have a regular, suburban-sized yard, it's likely that any brand of dog fence you choose will get the job done. If you have acreage, however, you should make sure the brand you're considering is able to power the entire area you intend to contain.

4) What is your dog's temperament? If your dog is particularly stoic or stubborn and you think that training him to respect an invisible boundary might be a challenge, then you need a product that offers the option to upgrade to a more powerful receiver — like PetSafe's Stubborn Dog receiver.

Note that you shouldn't START training your dog with a Stubborn Dog receiver — you should only upgrade if you realize it's necessary after following a well-tested training program like the one outlined on this site.

5) What does the warranty include? At the very least, purchase a product that includes a one-year warranty with full hardware replacement. If your dog fence hardware is defective, it will likely fail within that window of time.

FENCING

All fence companies are NOT the same.

A Murfreesboro homeowner hired a local home center to install their PVC fence. After paying $35 for an estimate the fence took over two weeks to build. When they home center installer hit rock, they asked the homeowner to go rent a jackhammer. When he didn't, they only dug the post holes (the foundation of the fence) about 6" deep (instead of 2 feet.) This caused the fence to lean and sway. It looked so bad that the homeowner had them remove it and cancel the order...before it was even completed. This story gets repeated every year. Read on to find out what you should and should not look for when embarking upon your fencing project.

Before You Buy a Fence, Ask These Important Questions:

About Sales :

Do they offer free estimates?

We will come out and custom quote your project free of charge. Even if you are doing it yourself and only want materials. We will figure up the job and order the material for you so you know you will have everything you need to install your new fence. Or we will take care of the whole project for you. We give you one price to pay and that is all you will pay. Unless of course you decide to hire us to do that deck you have always wanted after we finish your new fence.

Will they sell you something you do not need?

There are never any high pressure sales tactics with us. We have been in the fencing business for a long time and we will be able to give you solid advice on every aspect of your project. Each fence is different and unique. We try never to sell you something that will not work for your needs. You can't fence in a 150lbs of guard dog with a 4' tall picket fence.

Actually if you are trying to fence in a large dog a four rail wood fence with wire is a good option. However if you have a dog that does not want to be fenced in...there is no fence that will keep them in! For all you cat lovers out there we have found over the years as with a dog if the cat wants out of the yard good luck keeping them in. However a PVC privacy fence seems to be the best option, the material helps prevent them from getting a good enough grip to climb out.

Some companies will make claims about their products that simply aren't true in an effort to gain your business. Ask to see samples! This is very important when you decide upon a PVC/Vinyl or an aluminum fence.

Install:

Do they guarantee their work?

All of our fences come with a one-year workmanship warranty. PVC & aluminum fences have lifetime manufacturer's warranties on materials.

Do they charge a rock fee?

I'm not sure if you have looked around at Middle Tennessee lately but it sits upon solid ground. That ground is made up of rock. Some fence companies charge you a fee for having to bust through rock or they do not set the post deep enough. It takes equipment and time to bust through rock. However if you do not set your post deep enough your fence will begin to lean. Putting fence up in middle Tennessee means dealing with rock. We have decided to make peace with the rock. After all it does make for a solid foundation to build upon. We do not charge an extra fee for rock.

Make sure they will set the post deep enough and not set it short because of rock! We set our post 2' deep whenever possible. If you try to shorten that your post can begin to lean. We simply do not want our name plate or our name associated with a fence that leans over therefore we set our post down deep in the solid ground.

Material

What kind of materials are they using?

We've seen this time and time again. Some material is inferior to other material in most all styles of fence. Chain link is regulated to a standard so when you buy chain link you usually get the same material everywhere. However wood, PVC and aluminum is a different story.

Some PVC sold is a lighter-weight PVC. We've seen several prefabricated panel fences installed around that have entire pickets broken off. Some companies use wood inside the PVC posts to stiffen them, since the PVC material isn't as sturdy. Ask to see samples of the fence before you buy!

Some inferior PVC/aluminum panels sold at home centers are usually fixed and not "rackable", meaning that they can't be angled to follow the contour of the ground. If your lot is flat, you don't have small children or pets, or if you don't mind gaps under your fence, then it shouldn't be a problem. Ask about the rackability and if the fence will follow the contour of the ground before you buy!

We look around all the time for the best wood. Wood can be vastly different depending upon where you purchase it from. We purchase our wood from local lumbar yards and wholesalers always looking for the best wood at the best prices so we can pass that along to our customers. Some lumber is just too knotty to be a good post or your boards are so wet when you hang them that they warp as they dry.

Company

Are they a legitimate company?

Mid-Tenn Fencing has been in Middle Tennessee since 1980. We are fully licensed (Home Improvement Contractor License #00006409) and insured. In the spring you will see many fencing companies pop up. Be very careful who you hire to install your fence. If the company is not licensed and insured and someone gets hurt on your property you could be held liable. Ask if the company is insured. If a fence company tears somthing up, such as a septic pipe, and then disappears you could be left with a bill in the thousands of dollars.

How do they want to be paid?

We ask for a 50% down payment and the balance upon completion. The 50% down payment goes towards material for the job, this down payment will NOT cover the entire cost of the materials. The down payment protects us from customers ordering large fence orders and then changing their minds. All fence jobs are custom and unique. Generally jobs under $500 and/or repairs require no down payment.

We accept all major credit cards, PayPal, cash & check.

Are they an ethical company?

We are!

We will not try to sell you something you do not need or cannot afford. We show up when we say we will and give a great service at a great price. We will not tell you we can do something we cannot or that we will do something that we will not do.

Some companies will cut cost by paying a low wage to installers. We do not do this. We have employees and subcontractors and we feel like they are part of our family and we hope they feel the same.

We are a family owned and operated company on a mission. Our kids and dogs play safely in our yard and we spend many evening hours with friends and family on our patio. We want to help you improve the value of your home while increasing the safety for your family and pets.

We would love to have your business but, most of all, we want to make sure that you know what to look for and what to ask when it comes to fencing. We get many calls from customers who need repairs because the install was done incorrectly or the materials were inferior.

What You Need to Know Before Buying a Fence For a Dog