Why not just construct an actul dog run it will always work and you also need to post pics and some info as to the dogs too.

I really need help with how to construct wood posts that are sturdy, and where the wood does not touch the soil, and where the wood can be changed out when it goes bad. I know how to do it with concrete footings using forms and simpson metal braces, but that is very expensive. Posts buried in concrete can rot and the concrete is difficult to remove if you need to replace the post.

There are a lot of fencing products out there and I was hoping someone would know an economical way to put in permanent wood posts. I can scrimp on the connecting material initially and build more posts to expand the space over time. I am also open to alternative posts as long as I can connect them with wood slats eventually. For example, metal posts might be easier but I don’t know how you clad them or attach wood to them. Or could I build posts with concrete blocks? I don’t want to invest thousands of dollars in a cheap looking fence.

I don’t think a traditional dog run would work for us because there is a 12x16 deck at the rear entry. I need to construct something around that, because I want to let the dogs out the back door onto the deck. There are no balusters and there are steps on both sides. I don’t plan to change the deck since it is solid and the design is fine as is. The dogs would be able to exit the deck at any place on the deck.

Pics won’t help as there are a lot of trees. The final fence will be a rectangle. A height of 4’ would be ok for the temporary solution, but long term I want the posts to be able to handle a 6’ fence in case I adopt bigger dogs in the future.

You have to just keep walking them until you can get a permanent fence put up. Anything ‘temporary’ won’t be safe and you won’t have a gate to access the yard from the perimeter. The best solution would be an aluminum fence with puppy pickets so you have a completely safe and attractive fence for any size dog. But do you live in an HOA with restrictions? If not, a chain link does the job in a pinch until you can afford the fence of your dreams.

Aluminum might be a good option for me if I can do some of the work myself and if I can get the costs down. There are no hoa or neighbor issues - I just need a survey to define the back border of the property. No one lives behind me. I’m in a rural area and the fence will be far from the side borders. I am surrounded by woods. It’s pretty cool except for the bugs. Poor dogs shouldn’t have to be on leash because there is a lot of property, but there are a lot of other animals who live here, so the dogs will always be supervised when they are outside. I just want to give them more freedom to move. We plan to walk the unfenced property on-leash a couple of times a day even with the fence.

Until you can get a fence up--if you contact your local cable tv company and ask for an end of the spool length of cable you can make a long dog run from 2 trees. Screw 2 eye bolts into 2 trees about 10 feet above the ground. Cut correct length of cable and attach a SWIVEL SNAP HOOK 3/4-in BRASS

Model #BH7625404 lowes to each end with WalkerU Bolt Clamp

Model# 35793 home d. You can use the same walker u bolts as stops to keep the dog from getting close enough to wrap themselves around the end trees. You can buy any length wire cable from box store and put swivel snaps on each end to hook dog to the run. We had to do this when we first moved and it was a quick safe way to let the dog have a little freedom. Make sure that there is shade and plenty of water within your dog's reach. This is a for exercise only and not to be a permanent situation.

Thank you for the idea. I’m nervous about leashing the dogs because at least one will take off after an animal, and she’ll be scared when she suddenly stops.

I had her tethered to a guardrail baluster on the porch steps once while I was outside with her. She saw something, took off and broke the wood baluster. (It was rotting but I didn’t know it.)

I think she might hurt herself with a leash system. I think we need a barrier. She won’t jump a 4’ fence because she is also afraid of barriers. (The other dog is old.)

I’m thinking about trying to rig posts with metal poles and possible partially buried cinder blocks/fence blocks and maybe gravel or contained concrete that can be dug out. Or rebar, IDK. There are assorted posts left in the yard. I’ll see what’s secure. I’d like to do as much as possible without pouring concrete. Trying to find something cheap that I can undo. I bought 100’ of wire fencing which a lot of people use around here as farm fencing. I could buy another roll of that if I can figure out the posts.

For the pretty fence, I’m even wondering if I can find a way to clad metal posts above ground with wood, then I can do the horizontal wood slats attached to 2x cladding.

The aluminum fence is definitely a possibility. What I have found so far is expensive, and I haven’t found a style that seems appropriate here. This is more of a ”cabin in the woods” property even though the house is not a cabin (more like a chalet?). Also the fencing I found comes in systems where parts are designed to work together, which implies that I need to buy everything up front.

The good thing I learned about one system is that only the corner posts need to be reinforced with concrete. The others use gravel and I guess the metal fencing reinforces them.

We've been dealing with a permanent/temporary fence solution for 10 years. We're almost to permanent. Where we knew we needed a permanent fence we started by drilling holes and installing 4x4 treated wood posts. For a portion of that (on the road side) we made it pretty with slats etc. For the rest we just added cross pieces top and bottom and stapled on wire mesh. For the rest we banged in steel t-posts and zip-tied on wire mesh. I believe I've moved those t-posts twice now. We're now getting around to setting new 4x4s for the final runs. So you can do a combination. A treated wood post lasts a long time.

If you need a fence I would prioritize a fence and safe and get one as soon as you can. We had to wait a few months for ours to be finished due to weather and timing issues. We just kept dog leashed and walked her. But boy am I glad it’s done now!

What do you have going on for your brush? If you got some good and straight stuff you might be growing your own fenceposts already. If you have vines or stuff that grows long and thin, you might have materials to make wattle fence panels or hurdles.

Takes some time, but if you got the materials growing at least it's free. Depending on what you got going on, you could try coppicing the wood so it keeps producing more fence materials for you.

To help slow down rotting on wood in ground, use a wood preservative on your posts before you use them.

I have a dog run from the back of my house to the garage. It works well. Dogs learn quickly the limits. Stay with them, though. Do not leave them out for extended periods.

Pics won't help? Pics WILL help. It's called Puppy Tax. We would like to see your dogs.

If you already bought the wire, look up "hog wire fences" for how to make posts and panels.

I have lots of tall straight trees. How do I attach the wire fence to the trees so that I don’t harm the trees?

Part of the reason I want to do something pretty is so that I’ll spend more time in the backyard with the dogs. Coffee and treats on the deck was always our thing in the morning. They miss it. It doesn’t work when they are on leash. That coffee time is supposed to help me relax and balance, and I can’t relax holding two leashes and a cup of coffee and swatting bugs. (I’ll work on the backyard bug issue later.)

The backyard will be beautiful once I clear the ugly brush out of the way. But the wire fence will make it ugly again… unless I can hide most of the wire fence behind trees - maybe. There is a lot of ivy - maybe I can train the safe ivy to grow over the wire.

It’s looking like I should invest another $100 in wire fencing and see what kinds of numbers and suggestions my fence guy comes up with. My money is tied up in more vital improvements right now. Another 100’ of fencing should get me half of the area fenced in even if it is a little haphazard by going around the trees. I bought some metal posts too. This is the fencing I bought:

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Red-Brand-Actual-100-ft-x-4-ft-Welded-Wire-Silver-Steel-Welded-Wire-Rolled-Fencing/1094819

i probably should figure out how to make a gate from one of my wood pallets. I could stain it dark - I have to buy a lot of stain for the house anyway.

Eventually I want as much room as possible for the dog to run, but she may be able to bounce around a little bit in a 50’ square area. There are a few stairs too, and she loves stairs.

Puppy pics after I get the project done. Ha! (My property is kind of a mess right now - I haven’t even finished moving in.)

I have a field fence, hardly noticeable. I like the hog fence you found much better, though.

I have loose, sandy soil with a very high water table. we coated the bottoms of our fence posts with roofing tar to keep them from rotting out. None of our posts are set in concrete.

We have a split rail fence with wire mesh attached to it. It keeps the dogs contained and isnt terribly expensive.🤷‍♀️