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We live with five dogs on five acres and we need a new, bigger dog yard.

When we purchased our house, there was a modest sized dog yard that was perfect for Rodrigo and Sydney, who were only a few months old at the time. The fencing is post and rail and a few feet high; the yard is less than 1/4 acre in size. It was perfect for them as they grew up. It wasn't until Blue came along that we realized that it wasn't sufficient because Blue jumped across that fence with no issues. We used chicken wire purchased from the co-op to extend the height of the fence with plans to redo the yard. Plans that never came into fruition until now.

Today, with five dogs, we want to have a yard that gives them space to run, play, and relax. We want them to be have access to the third bay of the garage, where we have dog beds and raised water dishes. And we want a yard that not only prevents them from getting out, but it keeps wildlife (and strangers) from getting into the yard.

Requirements for Our Dog Yard

We have an escape artist in the family, therefore, our fencing needs to be at least 6′ high and because we have five big dogs, we would prefer at least 5,000 square feet or 267 feet of fencing material. We also need two gates to allow us to access from the outdoors, and at least one of the gates needs to be big enough to allow a riding lawnmower into the dogs' yard.

Just the fencing material alone, not the gates, will cost $20 – $40 per linear foot (this is cyclone fencing) or $6,000 – $12,000. The higher price point is better quality fencing and includes installation costs. The cost doesn't include the gates, demo of the old fencing system, land prep, and other costs associated with the installation of a new fencing system.

Thankfully, we have the tools and equipment to do the job, but how many people happen to have an excavator, tractor, and post hole digger on hand? And, would this expensive fencing system be escape-proof? Or are we going to have additional costs? We don't want our dogs to be able to dig under the fence (Scout) or climb over the fence (Apollo).

Finding an Affordable Fencing System for a Dog Yard

When we were introduced to the PetPlaygrounds Dog Fencing System I thought it was too good to be true. There's no way we can get a fencing system at an affordable price. I thought that if it was good enough to keep our dogs securely inside, then it would be unattractive cyclone fencing prone to rust or the Hodgepodge that we have going on now. I thought we should wait until we could afford a nicer fencing system? However, as I learned more about the PetPlaygorund fencing system, I realized that not only would it do a better job of keeping our dogs secure, we could build it in a way that it blends into our yard naturally by using the trees as corners without breaking the bank.

A 5,625 square foot yard with one gate would cost us $3,890. Yes, this is an investment, however, it's significantly less than $12,000.

Why We Chose a PetPlaygrounds Dog Fencing System

After pricing fencing systems at Home Depot, Lowes, our local farm stores and co-op – we decided to go with PetPlaygrounds for the following reasons:

• The PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system is more than 35% less than the cheapest option we found.

• The PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system was created to discourage escape from the yard by providing a dig guard and inhibiting climbing out of the yard.

• The PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system will be three layers (we chose the 6′ max), preventing our dogs from biting through the fence.

• The PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system is easy and quick to be installed; we can install the system over a weekend without digging holes or pouring concrete.

• The PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system can be changed, expanded, or taken down and moved if we sell the house.

Where We're at with the PetPlayrounds Dog Fencing System

We received 18 boxes of materials a couple of weeks ago and we're currently waiting for a series of dry weekend days to begin installation. We mapped out two versions of the yard using flags and decided on a game plan that requires little prep to the area of our property. Today, we'll be opening the boxes to see what we have, watching the installation video together, and I'll be mowing the area where the new yard will be installed. This week, we'll begin taking down the old dog yard. We've decided that our best path is to take down half of the old dog yard and begin building the new yard. This will allow us to stop if we get another storm, but there will be fencing in place (old and new) to keep our dogs secure.

We have three trees that we'll be using within the design of the new yard and we'll be planting shrubs and flowers along the outside of the yard to provide a natural privacy screen.

I'm really excited to get started. We just need a break in this steady rain that's been going on in Western Washington.

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Disclaimer

This is a sponsored post. I received a discount off of a 250′ PetPlaygrounds dog fencing system in exchange for sharing my honest thoughts on the system through a series of blog posts and social media updates. All thoughts shared on KeepTheTailWagging.com and related social media channels are true and reflect my experience with my dogs and the PetPlaygrounds system.