GafferStaples Guide

Erecting a Dog Run

Pick a spot that compliments your landscape design and does not take away from the overall look of your garden or yard. Add a covered space for when it is raining or integrate a dog kennel in the space.

Overall your dog run is going to help keep your pet happy, you happy as well and your house and yard much cleaner.

The size of the dog run depends on the size of the dog or number of dogs and also the amount of space you have. For a small dog, the size should at least be 4 ft by 8 ft.

There are different types of dog runs e.g. a dog run with grass, a concrete dog run, a run with wood chips or a gravel run (if using gravel make sure it is not the sharp kind or you could end up with a dog that has cut paws).

If the dog run is on grass, it might not last long in that area. Dogs tend to tear up grass and, in the winter, can destroy it, simply by playing on it. A good solution is to put down wood chips to cover the mud and keep your dog’s paws clean.

The fence should be between 3ft and 8 ft high. Check what the specified dog breed is capable of jumping over. You do not want to go to all the effort of building a fence, only to find out later that it is one foot short.

dog fence

The height of the chain link/wire mesh that you use will determine the height of the posts you use.

Decide the height you want your fence to be and ensure your posts are tall enough. You will want to put the posts into the ground approx. 1/3 of the length. So an 8ft post will drop about 2.5ft leaving you with a fence post that is 5.5ft high.

Use 4×4 wooden posts for the corner posts, and 3×3 wooden posts for the intermediate posts.

Plan your fence by marking out where the corner posts will go, marking every 4ft distance for the intermediate posts. Also allow for a small gate in your overall design.

The post holes can be dug either using a spade or an auger. The depth depending on the length of the post being used. Put the post in the hole and pour the concrete round the post. Use a line to keep the posts level.

Once the concrete has set (after 6/7 days), carefully attach the chain link/ mesh wire to the corner post using Gaffer 8 Staples approximately 6 inches apart to hold the wire taught.

Screw the GafferStaples approximately 6 inches apart to attach the wire on the intermediate posts.

Make sure to attach the chain link/mesh with GafferStaples as low as possible at ground level to prevent the dog from burrowing under the wire. Sometimes chicken wire is buried in the ground along the fence line to make it difficult for the dog to burrow under the fence.

The gate can be easily assembled using a wooden frame and attaching the wire to it using GafferStaples.