Does it exist? Cats and fences.

[Sword]

Does anyone know of a kind of fence that will keep a pet cat IN a yard?

 

[Imp]

I believe it would need to turn inward, at the top to keep cats in. And too tall for them to leap over. And nothing close for them use as a launch.

Imp- tough but possible

 

[annaraven]

Yeah - there apparently are cat fencing systems that add a net that leans inward so there's no traction for them and keeps them contained. That's assuming there's nowhere they can tunnel under or push through in the rest of the fence...

 

[patandchickens]

Not with 100% certainty, unless you want to spend WAY more than any normal person does.

Google "cat fence" or "cat run", you will find a variety of webpages about systems that amount to (as previous poster says) tall fence that turns inward at the top, sometimes in a floppy way. Both DIY versions and moderate-priced commercial versions and at least one eyepoppingly-priced-up commercial version.

HOWEVER PLEASE NOTE that none of them really claim to be 100% catproof, just 'keeps in most cats except the very most determined'. Also note that there is frequent mention of problems with stray cats or raccoons getting inside and then trapped there.

I think about doing this for my own cats. Maybe I will someday. Here, the problem is not so much escape (my cats are lazy) or entrapped raccoons (although I know it'd happen, I'd be willing to check every morning and deal with it); my problem is that with the wind and ice and snow we get, I do not think that anything affordable would hold up. But maybe someday I will play with it.

If you are not comfortable with non-100%-catproofness, consider a large fully-caged run. I built a kind of fun one for my cats, there are pics around here somewhere (I bet if you used Search you could find the threads with pics), there are also lots of inspirational pics available online via googling. Mine has towers and bridges and so forth, not just a big boring walk-in cage, and the cats LOVE it.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Enchanted Sunrise Farms]

My next door neighbors are working on that now, as we have had problems with one of their cats coming over and going after our ducks. We already have a standard 6' fence. So at intervals they have fastened 8' tall posts, then on the top is a 2' cross post facing into their yard. The next step is to run aviary netting along it so it so when the cats jumps up on the fence they will have netting going up and over the tops of their heads. We think this will work. Will just have to see when it finally gets finished.

If your intent is to give your cats a safe place to be outdoors, we have a friend who put a dog kennel alongside their house. They made a cat door through a window opening that leads out into the kennel. So the cats can come and go as they please. Of course, the kennel has hardware cloth over the top.

 

[taraann81]

I know some one that uses invisible fencing for their cats. works well, they don't leave but has no protection for the cats from wandering dogs or other predators..

 

[Horsefly]

There are cat specific invasible electric fense systems. I think that would be the easiest way to go.

 

[welsummerchicks]

CATS can be trained with INVISIBLE FENCE??!@?!?!?!!!! Please tell me more!

wels

 

[taraann81]

Quote:
I will have to ask my friends, but it seeme dlike a hassle and time consuming, I think they stated by leash training the cat, and then walked them around the perimeter of the yard, basically the same way you would a dog.. After their first cat was trained their second cat didn't get the same amount of training. They basically kept the knew cat (aquired as an adult) in the house for a few weeks. Then just started letting it out with a collar on. when the cat felt the zap it would retreat to saftey(towards the house, backing away from the zap).

I'm not sure if they just got lucky, but the cat learned really quickly not to walk forward when it heard the beep.

Our whole property is invisible fenced, it was a pain training the dogs, don't think I'd even attempt the cat!

 

[spectrumranch]

We have enclosed pens for our kittens.