Is this fence adequate?

musashi

I'm getting my backyard ready for the arrival of our JA puppy and I wanted to get opinions on fencing. I am considering putting up an 4 1/2' to 5' foot aluminum fencing, do you all think this is adequate for keeping a JA?

Here is a link to the type of fence I am speaking of:
:
http://www.sentinelmfg.com/aluminum-fence/sierra

Thanks in advance.

lwroth

I'm not a fence expert, but it looks like that fence would give a dog good footholds to go over. I don't know your living situation, but I wouldn't like such an open fence where dogs could get muzzles through or people could reach through. Dogs are individuals about whether they want to escape; I don't think you can say for sure while your dog's a pup. It's a very handsome fence, though.

shibamistress

It's a nice fence, but I'd worry about a puppy getting through? I don't know about price either, but it doesn't look cheap, so if you can go with that, maybe you can go with a regular privacy fence? (Wood?)

It's true dogs are individuals, so you can't tell, but I will say my AA is for sure NOT a climber, so he'd never be able to climb over a fence. I have plain old stock fencing, which is 4.5 to 5 feet. It's not ideal and I'd get a new fence if I could, but can't afford to fence in the whole (larger) property. Still, none of my dogs or visiting dogs have ever tried to get out of it, even though it does provide footholds (it's just wire fencing).

One thing to be careful about is what lwroth notes above: can the dog get the muzzle through? Or do you live in an area where there are people and can a person put their hand through? I caught someone doing that a week ago--luckily it was my older male Shiba outside and not the Akita. Also, a few years ago my female Shiba was bitten very badly through the fence by coyotes (she had her head sticking out of the fence). We've had to reinforce the fence with a smaller grade wire so that can't happen anymore.

lwroth

I have a wrought-iron fence and gate on my small front porch, each about 3-1/2 feet high with 5 steps down to the sidewalk. I picked up a small thin Akita from a shelter who'd recently had pups. One the first day she somehow got through the bars, 5" apart! On the second day, with a little damage to herself, she got under a wooden gate at my side yard, which was on slanted ground, from about 3" above the sidewalk to almost no clearance at the hinge side. Fortunately, both days she waited for me about half a block away, and in her 6 or 7 years with me never made another attempt to get out.

Araks

I don't know how big of escape artists JA are, but I've heard that the vinyl fencing can keep most dogs in, as it's very hard to climb(slippery). Strangely enough, my min pin is a climber(won't dig to get out) and he hasn't been able to scale this fence yet(6 foot). And if you put cement around the perimeter of the fence, it should be pretty escape proof

musashi

Thanks for the comments. I should add that the pickets are 3 3/4" wide and I will be adding material at the bottom of the fence to make sure our dog doesn't dig out. I considered chain link fencing but read that its easier to climb out of chain link fencing.

tjbart17

It really matters on the dog. I looked at a place this weekend that had a fence like this.

http://www.prestigefenceinc.com/images/gal/farm fence.jpg

And honestly with Koda (Kai), I would be comfortable with that. All he needs is a visual barrier. I think if you are putting up the fence, and it is within your budget to do a 6' filled in fence, then that would cover all your basis.

sukoshi_mom

I'm not sure what sort of fencing you typically have in your area, but I would have some of the same concerns mentioned by others, such as puppies getting through, people putting hands through, etc. With an Akita, there may be other potential "liability issues" and, depending upon where you live, you may not want to have him/her totally visible (potential target for thieves). I have seen metal fencing such as you're thinking of backed up by heavy ranch wire attached to it. I personally would be inclined to do a 6 ft. solid wooden fence.

Another option would be heavy duty ranch fencing (6 ft.) with 1 ft. bottom wood boards and a small top runner board. This setup has worked well with my (earlier) Dalmatians and Shibas over the years. The dogs are not visible from the street due to 6ft. wood fencing facing the street. The fencing mentioned by tjbar17 could be modified to include the heavy duty ranch wire

musashi

Most of the fencing in our area is aluminum or wrought iron, however, there are a few homes with wooden privacy fencing. I am leaning towards aluminum (powder coated) fence due to its long life and lower maintenence. Wooden fences have to be power washed every now and again and I'm domestically challenged lol.

I think for the first year I might put up some type of chicken wire (tied to the fence) to keep the pup from squeezing his head and muzzle through the pickets. Later as the pup gets older, I would remove the wiring.

Also, my home is situated on a hill next to two other homes, one house has no children the other home has a single child but I think she is in school most of the day. I rarely see her out playing.

Our home in McLean, VA is surrounded by huge oak trees and pines; there are many many squirrels and other varmints around (deer, raccoons, oppossums, rabbits and ground hogs) and I'm afraid that the puppy may give chase...thus the fencing.

Thanks again for the suggestions.

Rob

PoetikDragon

I personally am not comfortable with a public-facing fence that the dog can see through and neighbors or people on the street can see/touch the dog. It could be the neighbors I have and the area I grew up in, but it always feels like its asking for trouble. Hell, I have FOUR gates between my dogs and the street when I leave the house for a while. I also have a fence in my yard to keep them away from the wall we share with the neighbor on one side, who has threatened to leave out rat poison.

By the way, don't let anyone tell you Akitas don't bark. @jellyfart knows the joys of a reactive JA. So keeping them from seeing the street will keep your neighbors happier with your dog. Also, they're a large dog and they jump quite well - I would recommend at least 6' fence.

Also, someone I know recently lost an Akita they co-owned when the other owner left it tied up in a fenced run. The dog jumped the fence but didn't have enough length to make it to the other side - he hung himself to death. So yes they can jump and please never leave your dog tied up unattended, especially on a short chain in a fenced area.

sukoshi_mom

Standard chicken wire isn't much of a deterrent to a chewing dog. As a youngish puppy, one of our female Dalmatians would chew the chicken wire around my Dad's garden. Then she would get into the garden, pull up the roses, and prune them top and bottom. My older male Shiba chewed an escape hole through the heavier plastic covered wire of the kennel. I found him blissfully romping in the dog run, which has the heavy duty ranch wire. I repaired the kennel with several feet of strategically placed heavy gauge ranch wire.

You mention the wildlife in your area. I live in an area with much the same wildlife. The fence you're considering won't be much of a deterrent for deer, raccoons, possums, etc.

WrylyBrindle

I'd just like to second the idea of a solid (no-see thru, no reach thru) fence. It sucks to invest in a decorative fence only to realize everyone is happier, calmer and more secure with a solid panel fence. One of my dogs is reactive and he is MUCH better with a solid fence than a see thru fence. Of course, you dont know if your pup will be reactive, BUT to be on the safe side, I recommend a privacy fence, as Claire suggested.

All of our road-facing fencing is solid, forest-facing is see thru. Its really frustrating for many dogs to be able to see (joggers, cats, cars, insert stimulus here) thru a fence & not be able to get to them/resolve their arousal. This is especially true if you will not be outside to redirect your dogs attention/teach him/her and will leave the dog out by himself, hoping he will just relax and chew a bone or whatever. I dont even like people walking by and looking at Sage while he melts down, let alone talk to him or god forbid- reach over the fence. There is no accounting for idiots. At my sister's old house she had chain link fencing and people saw the dogs in there and once threw a hambone over the fence for them.

Our new, long-awaited tall cedar fence has been excellent. It requires no staining or maintenance, being naturally rot-resistant. At our old house we had a really easy-care (hose!) 6 foot vinyl fence that had a woodgrain look to it. This was also excellent and costs about the same as our cedar fence. In terms of family friction though, and finances, it is much more painful to say, "honey, we need to replace the iron fence with a solid one." than to just go solid to begin with.

musashi

@ Sukoshi's mom Good to know that I should use heavy gauge wire, I'll def keep that in mind. I've heard of deer clearing 5'-6' fences with ease but I'm assuming that if most of the critters pick up our JAs scent, it will be enough of a deterrent to keep them out.

@ Wryly Brindle When I did my research on fencing my understanding was that Cedar fencing has to be stained when installed or treated with some kind of weather sealant and this must be maintained every 3-4 years (depending where you live). Living near D.C. with the four seasons (the heat/humidity and cold/dry) the recommendation is to do stain/treat every year or two or the fence would turn a dull gray color. This was the main reason why I decided against it, however, I will get Vinyl fencing priced out.

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions.

WrylyBrindle

I live in Vermont, we have six seasons: Mud season, black fly season, trout season, foliage season, deer season, ski season I look forward to my fence silvering up, it looks really bright still. If you want it to stay bright and light colored, then youre right- you would have to paint it with some preservative, but color doesnt concern me (my house is grey anyway), only durability. My fence people said I should get 15 yrs out of it.

The vinyl fence we bought thru Home Depot, and it was perfectly adequate, esp if your land is pretty flat. Ours is on a mountainside and very slanty, so I have had to add welded wire fence strips and rocks to the bottom of some panels over a steeper grade because the fencing doesn't 'rack' very much and there were spaces under the lower side. The vinyl fence can go right to the ground, since it isn;t absorbant, whereas wood should technically be raised a bit about the ground/grass to keep the moisture factor low.

We also looked into bamboo fencing- it looks quite cool and isnt expensive, but I felt I wanted less peek-thru than it provides. Enjoy your fence hunt!

jellyfish

I can tell you right now that fence probably won't work until your pup grows up, though they seemed pretty spaced together. Still, don't underestimate the small holes a 10week old puppy can put their heads in an get stuck. I learned the hard way, ha.

At my apartment complex, we have those kind of fences, and when Toki was 8wks to about 4 months, he could fit his whole body through the bars. Now he is 6 months, and only head will fit through, not his shoulders. Luckily he has always been on a leash, but that isn't going to stop him from trying to chase a cat through the fence, literally.

Good looking fences, but I wouldn't feel comfortable having them.

jellyfish

Oh, and yes, @poeticdragon is correct, Akitas can very reactive and bark a lot, I got the noisy one out of the litter! :P
With Toki being so vocal, it'd be best if he couldn't see the other side of the fence. A fence that is opaque....that's what I'll be looking for or installing when looking for a house in the next few months,

sukoshi_mom

If you do the solid wood privacy fence, get the metal posts and sink them in the concrete in the post holes. They will last so much longer. They are more expensive, but worth it.

Some of the wild animals may avoid the area due to JA scent. Some may not. A couple of years ago I went out in the dog run. Sukoshi was looking very intently down the hill though the fence at something. So I went to check. Coming up the hill was a very large, cheeky coyote. He was intrigued by Sukoshi. I clapped my hands loudly and yelled at him to leave, which he did, bounding down the hill.

shibamistress

@WrylyBrindle....we're going to put up some of that bamboo fencing in the corner of the yard where our diagonal neighbor's yard meets ours. She has labs that she lets bark at dogs all the time. Our dogs ignored them at first, but are now getting worked up, and since pretty much all of us out here have shortish stock fencing, I worry quite a bit about a pissed off Akita finally going over the fence. Since you can buy panels of the bamboo stuff at Lowes, we're going to use there.

As for dog smells chasing off critters? Ha! As I said, my Shiba was pretty badly hurt by coyotes. We have seen coyotes IN the yard too, though having the bigger dog out with the Shiba is a bit of a deterrent. But anything else? Nope. We've seen it all: snakes, lizards, rabbits, rats, mice, gophers once even a bear. Except for the bear, the Shibas pretty much catch and kill them, but....yeah. Animals don't seem at all intimidated by the dog smell.

musashi

Coyotes aren't prevalant here but some kind of hybrid coyotes have been spotted in VA not too long ago. We have red foxes around here and everybody makes a good point about them able to get in and cause trouble.

hotarujishin

I use sheep fencing. It's wider squares at the top, and smaller at the bottom.
I used to have chain link fencing which was fine and at 6' it worked for my Japanese/American Akitas.
I remember a coyotes den with pups, 25' away. My Akitas never climbed the fence, as a Singer would do, but they were interested:-)
I wouldn't mind farm fencing, but it would have to be 6' and have a heavy gauge wire fence put on the inside of the wood. I also put my fence 12" below grade and then, put stones against, no lack of stones here in the Granite State!

shibamistress

Just a note about fencing. Not that musashi was talking about this kind of fencing anyway, but since a lot of us do have stock fencing, it's worth noting. Be really careful to get a kind dogs can't get their muzzles through. I already said Bel got her whole head through one time and was bitten badly by coyotes.

Well, we fixed that, we thought, but putting wire with a smaller holes over that, so she couldn't get her head through. But she can still get her muzzle through and was fence fighting with loose dogs today and her muzzle got ripped open pretty badly. At first I thought she might have gotten bit, and she may have, but it looks more likely that her muzzle caught on a bit of loose wire and the wire ripped her open. (Not sure--I found blood inside the fence and found a place where we'd wired more fencing on and the wire could have caught on her, though there was no blood on it).

anyway, my poor little girl is a mess, again, and so I thought I'd share my experience in the hopes that someone else can avoid these problems.

Poor Bel!

musashi

Ouch, sorry to hear about your Bel. I will definitely keep that in mind. Hope your girl heals quick.