Not sure this is right place..looking for info on cat containment fence

[trudy1]

My escape artist is well watched & I ussually catch him before escape. I will untangle him and he stops. If he escapes he is real good about letting me catch him & put him back in his harness (which I then walk him a bit so the twerp gets a positive reward for letting me catch him & it doesn’t end his hunting fun (since he escapes usually to chase a squirrel.) I don’t think most cats will let you catch them that easily, staying very calm & walking after them helps.

Like I said if I could I would just build him a catio.
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I built one with a cat door leading out my basement window. Pretty simple structure

 

[trudy1]

Used “cat-flap-fever” cat door on basement window. Then built simple box structure with ripped 2x4 and wire from Home Depot. Pretty simple.

Of course the relatives say the back of my place looks like “ peter tumbledown “....oops you have to be old to understand that one! Anyway if you need in-depth pictures let me know

 

[tarasgirl06]

Used “cat-flap-fever” cat door on basement window. Then built simple box structure with ripped 2x4 and wire from Home Depot. Pretty simple.

Of course the relatives say the back of my place looks like “ peter tumbledown “....oops you have to be old to understand that one! Anyway if you need in-depth pictures let me know

Looks like a nice catio! Also like the activity center next to it!

 

[trudy1]

Well, I have a triple story one on the other side leading out of the garage with a cat door. Yes, all 7 rescues are very spoiled!

 

[tarasgirl06]

Well, I have a triple story one on the other side leading out of the garage with a cat door. Yes, all 7 rescues are very spoiled!

And they know YOU know they richly deserve it.

 

[Dacatchair]

I think what reliably works to keep cats in the yard depends on the cat... I suspect it is more challenging if a cat is used to free roaming, especially if they are familiar with the area outside the fence, and have established a territory, as they often seem compelled to maintain this. I fenced a seven sided area that includes the front of my house and wood shed, a pond and a small orchard, and the fence works to keep an F7 and F6 Savannah cat in the yard. The fencing is about 450 feet, not including the area blocked off by the house and wood shed. The cheapest way I could find to do this, that I was reasonably sure would not constantly get holes ripped by raccoons, was using substantial 16 gauge galvanized fencing, with a 2 inch mesh. This is supported by metal T bar fence posts with 5 foot sections of bent 3/8 inch rebar tied to the tops. A 28 inch overhang is generally recommended, but my overhang is only 22 inches. As far as I have seen, neither of my cats has ever tried to climb out, but if they did, my fence is reinforced with a very very low powered pulsating type of electric fence wire that runs 4 feet up along the inner perimeter. (The wire along the top is still being worked on and is not charged- and my cats have had free daytime access to the yard for a year now, with no escapes. ) The bottom edge of the fencing is attached to scronged lumber and logs, and reinforced outside the fence with large rocks. Before I allowed my cats to have free access to this area, I spent about a month with them on a leash, seeing what unanticipated mischief they might get up to, and then I made them wear bluetooth trackers for a few months, just in case. As one of them has never been for walks outside the yard, if he ever got out accidentally, his lack of experience would be a big risk. My older cat was leash walked in the neighbourhood every day for a year and had good sense and basic survival skills worked out, but the fence protects him from being beat up by other cats...and they both seem really contented with the situation. My older cat who got used to being taken out on a leash, became completely obsessed wanting to be out in the yard most of the day, and close to 1000 square feet of linked outdoor enclosures and walkways did not help. The fenced yard has done the trick and although the fence isn't pretty, having happy cats is well worth it!

 

[tarasgirl06]

I think what reliably works to keep cats in the yard depends on the cat... I suspect it is more challenging if a cat is used to free roaming, especially if they are familiar with the area outside the fence, and have established a territory, as they often seem compelled to maintain this. I fenced a seven sided area that includes the front of my house and wood shed, a pond and a small orchard, and the fence works to keep an F7 and F6 Savannah cat in the yard. The fencing is about 450 feet, not including the area blocked off by the house and wood shed. The cheapest way I could find to do this, that I was reasonably sure would not constantly get holes ripped by raccoons, was using substantial 16 gauge galvanized fencing, with a 2 inch mesh. This is supported by metal T bar fence posts with 5 foot sections of bent 3/8 inch rebar tied to the tops. A 28 inch overhang is generally recommended, but my overhang is only 22 inches. As far as I have seen, neither of my cats has ever tried to climb out, but if they did, my fence is reinforced with a very very low powered pulsating type of electric fence wire that runs 4 feet up along the inner perimeter. (The wire along the top is still being worked on and is not charged- and my cats have had free daytime access to the yard for a year now, with no escapes. ) The bottom edge of the fencing is attached to scronged lumber and logs, and reinforced outside the fence with large rocks. Before I allowed my cats to have free access to this area, I spent about a month with them on a leash, seeing what unanticipated mischief they might get up to, and then I made them wear bluetooth trackers for a few months, just in case. As one of them has never been for walks outside the yard, if he ever got out accidentally, his lack of experience would be a big risk. My older cat was leash walked in the neighbourhood every day for a year and had good sense and basic survival skills worked out, but the fence protects him from being beat up by other cats...and they both seem really contented with the situation. My older cat who got used to being taken out on a leash, became completely obsessed wanting to be out in the yard most of the day, and close to 1000 square feet of linked outdoor enclosures and walkways did not help. The fenced yard has done the trick and although the fence isn't pretty, having happy cats is well worth it!
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What a beautiful description of your property, D Dacatchair and it looks beautiful in your pix. Your fencing scheme sounds great, too. Savannahs are extremely CAT cats! and it's good that you have a large property with varied topography to give them plenty of enrichment and interest.
So I don't want to rain on your parade but I have a question: Do your cats ever swim or enter the pond for any reason?
When I was growing up, we had a house with a fishpond and in the fishpond lived beautiful koi fish. But they kept disppearing. So my father wired a charge all around the pond, because there were raccoons in the area and they were the ones taking the fish.
We are a very caring family; so imagine my father's shock when he saw feet sticking up in the pond one time. A raccoon had ventured over there and, well, electricity and water don't mix.
He immediately cut the current and never added fish to the pond again.
A cautionary tale.

 

[trudy1]

I have about 1000’ ft of fence. 5’ft horse fence with 3 strand barbed at the top. Outer has two strand electrified toward the bottom to keep cows from rubbing it in. Only had one escape and I yelled “dolly oviatt, you get back in here!” At the top of my voice. Yep back over the fence she comes

But I have three rescues in our basement who have never been out. They do have cat enclosures to go out but guess I’m just soft....want them to play on grass, chase mice, etc.

Contacted one cat fence company. Great product, super people but $8000 for just the materials.

So back to the drawing board. Even if I managed to “Biden” the money I’m not sure I could do the install on 1000’

 

[Dacatchair]

Wow, tarasgirl06 that sounds pretty horrifying... People should always get professional advice before trying to set up any type of electric fence, as every situation is a bit different and it is important they are set up properly! Anything running on electricity can be dangerous if the current comes into contact with water, including many things inside our homes! I don't have an in depth understanding of how all the different types of electric fencing work... Mostly I just understand enough to keep my fence working! As I mentioned, my one charged wire is very very low powered... .07 joule and it pulses, so if something comes into contact with the charged wire, it will have a couple seconds to get away before another brief shock happens... which makes a pulsating type fences a lot safer than the old style that was a continuous current. And if they come into contact with it, the brief shock is probably a lot less painful than when our cats have to learn to leave bees alone. The charged wire is held firmly in place along the perimeter of the fence, by numerous plastic insulators that were made tough enough to keep cows and horses in. These hold the wire about 5 inches away from the fencing. At the closest point, the charged wire is about 8 feet from the pond, and 4 feet off the ground. Unless a tree fell onto the fence, there is no way for the current from the wire to come into contact with the pond water. I frequently have physical contact with the pond water as I use it for washing stuff, watering plants etc. Even in heavy rain there has never been any leaking current that I have noticed, and as far as my limited understanding goes, with a low powered pulsating fence wire that is properly grounded, this is not at all likely to be a problem. Freak accidents are always possible, but this is not on the list of the things I worry about... But I do appreciate the word of caution, especially if anyone reading this wanted to do something similar!

 

[tarasgirl06]

Wow, tarasgirl06 that sounds pretty horrifying... People should always get professional advice before trying to set up any type of electric fence, as every situation is a bit different and it is important they are set up properly! Anything running on electricity can be dangerous if the current comes into contact with water, including many things inside our homes! I don't have an in depth understanding of how all the different types of electric fencing work... Mostly I just understand enough to keep my fence working! As I mentioned, my one charged wire is very very low powered... .07 joule and it pulses, so if something comes into contact with the charged wire, it will have a couple seconds to get away before another brief shock happens... which makes a pulsating type fences a lot safer than the old style that was a continuous current. And if they come into contact with it, the brief shock is probably a lot less painful than when our cats have to learn to leave bees alone. The charged wire is held firmly in place along the perimeter of the fence, by numerous plastic insulators that were made tough enough to keep cows and horses in. These hold the wire about 5 inches away from the fencing. At the closest point, the charged wire is about 8 feet from the pond, and 4 feet off the ground. Unless a tree fell onto the fence, there is no way for the current from the wire to come into contact with the pond water. I frequently have physical contact with the pond water as I use it for washing stuff, watering plants etc. Even in heavy rain there has never been any leaking current that I have noticed, and as far as my limited understanding goes, with a low powered pulsating fence wire that is properly grounded, this is not at all likely to be a problem. Freak accidents are always possible, but this is not on the list of the things I worry about... But I do appreciate the word of caution, especially if anyone reading this wanted to do something similar!

Yes, because it's not the degree, it's just the fact of electrocution when someone who is wet contacts and electrical charge. The charge my dad wired was low powered, too, I'm sure (though I don't have the factual information now). He would have absolutely installed it correctly, being concerned for all living beings -- both the fish and anyone who might try to get them. The idea was that anyone who tried would step on the perimeter, where the charge was, get a mild shock, and retreat. We new knew what actually happened, but obviously the fact that the racoon was inside the pond meant that (s)he either stepped all the way over the perimeter of the pond and then got electrocuted by stepping on the charge on the way out, or (s)he stepped in the water with one or more paws and on the charge with one or more, completing the circuit.

On the other hand, when my ex and I moved to our property in the Mojave, he disconnected the charge the original owner installed around the fence in the chicken yard. There were about 3 dozen chickens in the flock, and they told us that they were all old, so we wouldn't be shocked when they started to pass on. During the three years we were there, many of them did. The survivors were attached during the night/early morning by dogs or coyotes, and I documented the remains of the massacre, hoping to find the killer(s) and shoot them, which was legal there. I asked neighbors if they had seen/heard anything; they denied any knowledge, so I was never able to find out which canid(s) was/were responsible. The tracks in the soft sand were not sharp. When we moved, a neighbor adopted our last 4 hens. She said one of them immediately established herself as head of the flock.

 

[tarasgirl06]

I have about 1000’ ft of fence. 5’ft horse fence with 3 strand barbed at the top. Outer has two strand electrified toward the bottom to keep cows from rubbing it in. Only had one escape and I yelled “dolly oviatt, you get back in here!” At the top of my voice. Yep back over the fence she comes

But I have three rescues in our basement who have never been out. They do have cat enclosures to go out but guess I’m just soft....want them to play on grass, chase mice, etc.

Contacted one cat fence company. Great product, super people but $8000 for just the materials.

So back to the drawing board. Even if I managed to “Biden” the money I’m not sure I could do the install on 1000’

Well, you wouldn't have to cat fence the entire property -- you could have a large cat run fenced off with chain link or something, and just cat fence that part.

 

[Dacatchair]

tarasgirl06 As the OP mentioned they were NOT wanting options that rely on electric fencing, this has gotten a bit off topic... and I don't want to be argumentative .... but as appropriate, properly installed, electric fencing can be the only practical affordable way to allow cats free access to a large yard, but still keep them contained, and as this can significantly improve their quality of life, I think it is important to make sure people have correct information, before ruling this out. I don't know what sort of electric fencing was available when you were a kid, and it may be your Dad did not have access to the safer fencing that is available today. But the main thing I wanted to say is after a couple months of research, my own conclusion was that a correctly installed and situated electric fence wire is no more likely to kill anything, than an electric radio or coffee pot in your kitchen... I did a couple months research and asked a lot of questions, discussing this with numerous knowledgeable people, before I decided this would be a good option for us, in our situation... And my cats are much much happier and healthier having access to the outside. So for some people this can be a good and reasonably safe option.

 

[tarasgirl06]

tarasgirl06 As the OP mentioned they were NOT wanting options that rely on electric fencing, this has gotten a bit off topic... and I don't want to be argumentative .... but as appropriate, properly installed, electric fencing can be the only practical affordable way to allow cats free access to a large yard, but still keep them contained, and as this can significantly improve their quality of life, I think it is important to make sure people have correct information, before ruling this out. I don't know what sort of electric fencing was available when you were a kid, and it may be your Dad did not have access to the safer fencing that is available today. But the main thing I wanted to say is after a couple months of research, my own conclusion was that a correctly installed and situated electric fence wire is no more likely to kill anything, than an electric radio or coffee pot in your kitchen... I did a couple months research and asked a lot of questions, discussing this with numerous knowledgeable people, before I decided this would be a good option for us, in our situation... And my cats are much much happier and healthier having access to the outside. So for some people this can be a good and reasonably safe option.

No arguing from here! Just sharing info. It wasn't fencing my dad installed, but a wire on the top of the wall that formed the pond. It was a very low wall, about 8" tall or less.