Fencing for livestock guardian dogs?

I was wondering what height and type of fencing other permies use for keeping their maremmas or other large livestock guardian dogs contained?

We built some fencing that was around 4 1/2 feet high chicken wire, stretched tightly with plenty of stakes, and they are able to get over that. Internet says that large dogs need either 6 feet or 8 feet fencing, but there is a big difference between those two heights as far as cost and effort goes, so I am wondering if 6 to 7 foot high fencing will contain them?

Hi Kate;
My mastiff would climb 6' fences, I had quite the battle with her.
Liz called the pig pen stalag 13, 6-foot fences for 24" tall piggies...
She still got in!  However, at bedtime, she could not manage to get back out...
Then the incessant barking would start... if you ignored that then the pitiful howling would commence...
Good luck...

I have a German Shepherd/Border Collie mix that can clear a 6ft fence with ease. Fortunately, she is exceptionally well behaved and won’t dream of doing such a thing unless there is a crisis.  

Unfortunately it depends on ability, intent and training.

I have German Shepherds in a 5 ft fence currently. They could get over it but these haven't been trained to do that nor have they tried.

I would ask folks that have your specific breed and go with what the majority (or the most authoritative) say.

If you have issues, you can string an electric wire along the top for deterence.

If you are raising the dogs in this fencing, that will give you a good foundation as i have observed that dogs raised from puppies in an environment tend
to regard the perimeter as absolute.

I've never had an LGD, the dogs I have had would be contained in 6 ft fencing.

Not an LGD, but our dog can easily clear six foot fences. I don't worry about it though because she doesn't go far and there isn't anything for her to get into. She just does it so she can come around to the front door and surprise us there lol.

I would recommend the eight foot fence if it is a concern for you. There is a reason why a lot of kennels and other canine facilities have 10 foot fences buried into the ground.

Not sure what type of fence your thinking, but perhaps find a solution that you can increase in height without too much effort if a shorter fence fails to do the job. I'd hate to erect a six foot fence and then have to tear it down to put up an eight foot fence.

Karen Lee Mack wrote:...If you have issues, you can string an electric wire along the top for deterence.

Recently I had some concern that my shepherd might be able to get out my 1m80 fence (it's on a concrete footer, so effectively 6 feet). I've seen him jump as high as the top-- though he's not trained for this sort of stuff, I've seen dogs of his type go VERY high.  not seen his hind end get over the fence but I'm sure the right motivation would help him figure it out.
I added the structure for electric fencing over the top of my fence, but didn't hook it up. It's a good, cheapish visual deterrent that adds another foot. I figured if I saw him make any moves in that direction, I'd electrify it, but so far so good.

We've had too many escapes and too much fence to patrol, so my wife opted for the "Invisible Fence"  [ https://www.invisiblefence.com/ ].  It's not a foolproof deterrent and still requires some hands-on training of the dog to the 'no-no' perimeter, but they eventually respect it quite well for inhibiting the urge to chase things past the fence.  We've had mostly Anatolians and it works even through the thick neck fur.  Good luck!

John Weiland wrote:We've had too many escapes and too much fence to patrol, so my wife opted for the "Invisible Fence"  [ https://www.invisiblefence.com/ ].  It's not a foolproof deterrent and still requires some hands-on training of the dog to the 'no-no' perimeter, but they eventually respect it quite well for inhibiting the urge to chase things past the fence.  We've had mostly Anatolians and it works even through the thick neck fur.  Good luck!

When it works, it works well.

I had boxers when I have an underground fence.
One stayed it in all the time.
Another only went through if she perceived a threat to our kids (this was in neighborhood setting).
Our next boxer could not be trained to it. Boxers are not the smartest dogs but they are stubborn.

This was decades ago now, I would just highly recommend you go through all the training steps.

Tereza Okava wrote:

Karen Lee Mack wrote:...If you have issues, you can string an electric wire along the top for deterence.

Recently I had some concern that my shepherd might be able to get out my 1m80 fence (it's on a concrete footer, so effectively 6 feet). I've seen him jump as high as the top-- though he's not trained for this sort of stuff, I've seen dogs of his type go VERY high.  not seen his hind end get over the fence but I'm sure the right motivation would help him figure it out.
I added the structure for electric fencing over the top of my fence, but didn't hook it up. It's a good, cheapish visual deterrent that adds another foot. I figured if I saw him make any moves in that direction, I'd electrify it, but so far so good.

I wish I knew more about this.
It is just my observation that even dogs who can, don't usually jump or scale a fence if they haven't ever done it before.
I think they see it as imprenetrable in their mind therefore it is. But I don't know this for sure.