Building a Better Cat Fence

This is our version of a "better" cat fence. We installed this barrier after trying fence extenders, which were worthless and failed to keep my cat, Mouse in the yard. Mouse is a polydactyl cat, with 6 toes on his left paw and 7 toes on the right. He's a kitten in a cat's body, and is able to leap tall fences in a single bound. So far, despite only one feeble attempt, he has not escaped.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• cat
• fence
• polydactyl
• cats
• funny
• chihuahua

[bluegreen307]

OK, you're right, I set the fencing too low and when he grew a little larger he hopped right over it. If the fence was in better shape I might have placed the barrier higher and extended the the hardware cloth further which may have delayed him a little. And I agree, these rascals can climb so if it's made of something they can't grab, that would certainly help.

A new house went up next door, and the fence came down, so did my cat fence, but watch for my sequel currently in production :)

[gypsie877]

I love this idea and want to try it for my cats, any suggestions for a modified version for chain link fence? I don't think wooden dowels will work.

[bluegreen307]

@gypsie877 You may have to install seperate posts to hang your netting. You may also have to cover your fence with some type of privacy cloth, as cats are pesky little climbers and might find a way to climb over. The trick is the angle and the color of the netting. If they can't see through it, they can't find a landing spot.

[Xotikouli]

Hi, at what height did you put the net? It looks a little low in the video, but I'm not sure...

I've read about at least 6 feet, but this one looks like maybe 5feet?

I guess it is effective after all, right?

How much did it cost?

Thanks for the video! :)

[bluegreen307]

The material I used is called Hardware Cloth which is like plastic wire fencing. It was costly. but looked nicer and will last better than netting. The dowels were cheap and the laborer invaluable. It only sits about 5 feet up, but would probably do better higher. Mouse is older and much more agile, yet doesn't escape over the fence, but I keep plants away from the perimeter to prevent him from launching over the top. Hope that helps. Good luck :)

[WRP813]

So, how's it been working? Awesome vid.

[bluegreen307]

The fence is working great...and I hardly notice it. Thanks for watching:)

[realisticHomeboy]

It's a cat. Why would you ever think a fence could keep it in? And why would you want to keep it in anyway?

[astock27]

It looks like you drilled a hole an inch and a half deep or so into the horizontal fence supports and stuck the dowels into the holes. Can you clarify what you're using to hold the dowels into the wood? Thanks!

[twocentsCanada]

Have you looked at Critterfence? They sell just the netting or post extenders (Retrofit an existing fence) plus netting. You can get ideas there too. One of their sites is kittyfence (dot) com Their fencing material is reportedly really durable. The only thing is an ideal system would also keep other cats & raccoons out of the yard too.

[willpower101]

Yeah my cat routinely climbs upside down to scale awnings and stuff. The only solutions is solid hard plastic that she can't get her claws into.

[xGregoryCormierx]

kitty jail. LOOL, good idea, need to do this for my cat.

[acurose88]

great music, good idea

[jaceepc]

Our cat could clear that netting and land on the top horizontal wood support or the top of the fence in one easy leap. The neighbor cat jumps our 6 ft. fence with the barrier netting at the top and angled up 2 more feet. No problem. We have not found a good solution to keeping other cats out, but our cats don't leave the yard - they like it too much - lots of birds and mice to keep them busy.