Wire fencing for dogs is one of the lowest cost and easiest to install options there is. In this article, we’ll cover 8 awesome styles that you can build plus we’ll show you how to build them.
First, we’ll start with the cheap and easy then progress on to more elaborate, framed methods that look gorgeous.
Table of Contents
Chicken Fence Wire for Dogs
Chicken wire is a classic for quick, easy, and cheap woven fences for small animals. You can use it for dogs and we have an entire article on how to build a chicken wire fence for dogs.
Benefits include:
- Cheap materials
- 16 gauge wire is lighter so its easy to install and harder for dogs to climb
- Easy to cut the wire with smaller pliers
- Easy to install wire either using metal t posts
- You can staple chicken wire onto wood frames for a better look
- Great for small animals
Cons for chicken wire:
- Not so pretty
- Thin gauge wire
- Rusts (if not galvanized)
- You need to find or build the wood frames
- Doesn’t look as good as welded wire
Need a quick cheap chicken wire fence for your dogs? Use a post driver to nail t-posts into the ground about 8 feet apart. Then tie the chicken wire to the posts using both the clips on the post plus extra metal wire.
Want to make that chicken wire look a bit better? You’ll need to build some wooden frames.
The video below highlights how to stretch chicken wire over 1″x1″ framing and staple it down. You need to measure and build the framing on your own.
This second video uses welded wire; however, it offers a better-looking framing system you can use with chicken wire as well. Framing is build of 2x4s and 2x6s with a nice x-style hinged gate.
Welded Wire with Fast Metal Posts
This is the standard super cheap and super fast welded wire and metal t-post setup. Installation is significantly easier than with wooden posts which are more commonly used (since they last longer).
We’ll cover the wooden post option next.
To install metal t-posts all you need is a simple post driver.
Then you’ll roll out the welded wire and attach it to the metal t-posts with baling wire.
In the video above you’ll notice they also dig a trench along the bottom. You’ll need to do that to prevent your dog from digging under the fence.
Digging the trench is a bit of a pain but it’s necessary.
Is welded wire fence good for dogs?
No, welded wire is not an ideal long-term fence material for dogs. Dogs can get injured trying to bark through or climb the fence when distractions are near (e.g. other dogs, animals). Dog paws can and have gotten stuck in between the welded wire or cut on sharp pieces of metal at the welded joints. Children (or adults) can also easily stick their hands through when trying to pet your dog who in turn might bite them causing a lawsuit.
The same issues are not true of chicken wire which has smaller openings so it’s harder to stick hands or paws through, is much harder for dogs to climb, and is just as easy to install. The only downside is it doesn’t look as nice!
Welded Wire Dog Fence Kits
To build a welded wire fence you need the following parts. We were hoping to find a dog fence system that includes them all but sadly such a thing isn’t easily found.
Instead, you can order all these parts together through Amazon and make a kit of your own.
At a minimum to build a welded wire fence you’ll need the following:
- Roll of Welded Wire
- Metal T-Posts
- Post Driver
- Bailing Wire or Metal Ties
- Line Level
- Chalk line to keep your fence line straight
- Heavy Duty Wire Cutters to cut the thickest wire
- Pliers
Welded Fence Wire With Wooden Posts
Now we’re starting to move up in the world with style. This type of fence is easy to build but it takes a fair amount of work to dig the holes and set the posts.
You can install the above slow and cheap using a post hole digger:
Or you can spend a little more and use a powered post hole digger:
Hog Fence Wire for Dogs
Hog fence wire is another style of wire fence that groups the horizontal lines closer together near the bottom and farther apart at the top. They also use a thicker gauge wire.
Hog fence is heavy duty and was designed for hogs and cattle though of course, it works great with dogs.
It both looks better than classic welded wire fencing, it also helps keep small dogs and small animals in.
Barbed Wire Warning – A lot of hog wire built for hogs has barbed wire woven into the lower lines. This is to keep hogs from pushing through. You may or may not want that for your smaller dogs. Check for this before you buy.
It’s also great as a trellis as it will make it easier for young vines to climb up as they grow and get stronger.
Install this type of fence as you would any other welded wire fence.
Yes, you could use metal t-posts but we recommend using at least wood frame posts or preferably one of the wood frame methods shown above and below.
The video above demonstrates framing that uses quality materials that compliment the hog wire.
If you’re going to pay extra for a hog wire fence you may as well make it look good!
What gauge fence should you use for dogs? (welded vs woven)
12 gauge or thicker fence is ideal for dogs. It’s both impossible for them to chew through and looks the best of all the options. 14-gauge welded wire fence can be used as well but we find that these fences are more likely to harm your dog if they like to climb. Woven chicken wire, at 16 gauge, is the lightest of them all but since the holes are the smallest it’s much harder for your dog to climb and get entangled (plus it’s flimsiness makes it harder to climb). All options are even better if you frame them with wood so your dog is less likely to get cut along the edges.
Wood Frame Wire Fence
We cover this type of fence in-depth and how to build it, including all materials, in our DIY Dog Fence article. See the video below for an overview then head over to the article for a step-by-step rundown on how to do it.
We like this style of wire fence because of the following:
- Looks better than a plain wire fence
- Still easy to build and fairly cheap
- Much cheaper than a full wood fence
- Stands up to dogs leaning on the top of the fence better than plain wire fences
Electric Wire Fence for Dogs
Electric dog fences are most commonly used to prevent your dog from jumping over the top of a low fence.
They aren’t typically used as a style of fence alone. Instead, install the electric wire on top of your existing fence.
We created a full article on how to install electric wires to prevent jumping. You can read it here.
We also have a full article going over how to train your dog with either an electric, wireless, or underground fence.