Dog proofing a garden

[Astridium]

Hopefully getting a lab puppy later this year. Currently our garden has a mixed hedge ( conifers, firethorn, hawthorn, brambles, elderflower, hazel etc) along one boundary. Does anyone have suggestions on the best way to dog proof this boundary, it's fairly dense and prickly in places but wouldn't keep a determined dog contained.

We used a layer of chicken wire around the base of the hedge, staking it in to the ground d and tying to the hedge with zip ties. Make sure it's lose when you put it in, then you can stretch it to fit over any openings.

Is there any way of fencing it off? I wouldn't trust a hedge of any kind to contain a dog long-term.

I fenced off the outside of my mixed planting that’s almost a hedge but not quite.

Just wire stock fencing, but with a 50mm gap so too small for a dog to stick anything through. It’s fairly unobtrusive.

I'd googled and I've seen images of stock fencing in front of hedges so could chop the hedge back, put the fence in and hopefully it would grow through a bit to blend in. I want to avoid any sort of solid fence so little creatures can still get through.

We wanted dog proof without looking like Fort Knox, lol. So it works for that, it still looks planty.

What height did you use for your stock fencing?

Just the 3ft... further up the branches and leaves are ‘bushy’ enough that I wasn’t overly worried about the gaps that are left, it was more the lower level.

A determined unsupervised husky could probably get out... but I’ve had a foster and adopted a puppy since being here and they’ve been fine.

Thanks. It's difficult to know how far is sensible to go. I've seen a friend's lab clear a 6ft fence so aware that the notion of secure is quite variable depending on dog temperament. Dog would only be in the garden when we were about so don't think we need to go full fort Knox, just a sensible compromise.

We've never attempted to properly dog proof the garden - I think that's actually very difficult to do unless you build solid five foot walls.
We create a puppy run for when they're young and outside unsupervised. They get to go in the garden when we're with them. Then when they're more or less full size we take the puppy run away. By this time they've been in the garden a lot with us and they know the boundaries. They don't try to get out because that's 'their patch'. But they could if they wanted to. There are places they could wiggle through, and tbh they could probably jump the fence.

This wouldn't work for escape artist dogs obviously, but by the time your dog is grown you'll have an idea of its tendencies in that department.

We live rurally. There are roads obviously, but it's not like we have a six lane motorway powering past the fence or anything. If we had that I wouldn't take the risk; I'd build that five foot wall!
Our dogs don't get out, but there are quite a few dogs in the village who walk themselves. They obviously have developed road sense though!

“We live rurally. There are roads obviously, but it's not like we have a six lane motorway powering past the fence or anything.”

I’m rural... it’s a 60mph road that they’d get on to. So I have a 6ft wooden (not panels) fence at the back, a 6 ft proper solid hedge (2ft wide) at the front with wire and posts over the bottom and the not solid hedge with the stock fencing at the side.

Personally I would look at fencing in properly. You dog will be around many years it's a good investment.

Personally I'd rather be safe than sorry.

Our beagle can easily clear a 5ft wall from standing - I've seen him do it and end up in next doors' garden (and kitchen!).

I wouldn't trust a hedge to keep my dog in - if he caught a scent or smelt a bitch, brambles wouldn't be a barrier and he'd be off and gone in seconds.

Stock fencing is effective because of the gradation in the hole sizes - you will have to think about the base though, as a determined digger will go under.

Regular checking of the perimeter is something I try to do. Easier in my new place, as it's smaller, still got a call over the fence the other day from the neighbours when little dog decided to go under and visit their little dog - and I was in the garden at the time, just not giving him my undivided attention 🤨

We had a hedge that I thought was secure enough between ours and our neighbours but pup got through and into our neighbours garden which wasn't fully secure and got into the fields behind us. It was very scary but luckily we saw her do it. She has a bit of the garden which is fenced off and also a gate to the main garden that she only goes through if we are with her. It was in the main garden which had a bit of hedge with a shorter bit of fence that went behind it. We actually got the huge puppy pen that we didn't ever really use and put it behind the trees before the little fence and tied it with cable ties. It took the barrier right up to the very hedgey part of it. Next time she went out there she ran straight over, saw she couldn't do it again and it was fully blocked and that was it. The one we have ran the 6 metres we needed. I was surprised she got through in the first place.

We use the pvc coated chicken wire - it's green so blends in with the bush too but you can peg it in at the bottom for those who like to dig!

We have a fenced off 'yard' for our pup, then they go on a longish lead in garden (either with us holding or secured to our concreted in washing pole).

I've seen people have created wattle fencing between hedges as you can use the hedge trunks to weave it, or chicken wire between the trunks is good (if you can get in enough).

If the higher parts are really bushy then you could block the lower parts with picket fencing which looks nice in front of the hedge.