Pet Enclosure Systems

Ok, I haven't ever had to use one of these systems, but here's my 2 cents anyway! I think the angled fencing could work - as long as there was literally no other way out of the garden, i.e. a gap where there are some hedges, or under a gate, or any unobvious little corners etc. I would say the more angled type of fence (in the 2nd and 3rd pics) would be better, I'd be afraid they'd be able to jump up onto the top of the fencing in the 1st pic, especially as it's not any higher than the original fence!

Safety would also be important, i.e. no barbed wire or electric fencing of any sort. If it needs that to keep the cats in, it's a no-go from the start. But assuming it's plain strands of wire, and it's angled enough/high enough that your cats can't jump it, it could work! Also watch out for anything they could climb on that might be near to the fence, e.g. a tree/BBQ/kennel etc.

Otherwise, the enclosed run would probably work out well, but I'm presuming they would be smaller, & more expensive?

I'd imagine it could work very well op. You'd need to be sure there is nothing close to the fence which would allow the cats to leap it, and no holes/gaps or that they could climb and drop from. If they are determined enough, they could come up with amazing escape plans.:D

If it's really expensive maybe you could do a diy job?

I've currently got the Aussie equivalent of the Katzecure product on order for my fences - www.oscillot.com.au. I'm doing over 100m of fence line with it, and it works on all but the most unusually clever cats. (I've heard of one cat that does parkour-style richochets between the water tank and the fence to be able to bounce clear of the oscillot fence-capping - but these are exceptional cases).

The angled wire will work - it needs to be loose mesh, not taut wire - a cat will still climb over taut wire.

FastFuse wrote: »

Iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinteresting. Some great replies, thanks. I am now very interested in the two roller-type fittings.Thanks Zapperzy. Do you have personal experience with this system? The aesthetics are certainly more appealing but I would have some concerns such as installation (I am not the most DIY type person) given the way the individual elements are sold on the site. Though they do have an Irish number to call for an installation quote. My other main concern would be - do the rollers actually roll efficiently enough for it to work long term. And, most obviously, does the system actually work? I understand, given the wiliness of the creatures, that nothing is guaranteed to be 100% effective. However I will probably give these guys a call.
Thanks Sweeper. One of our cats is extremely agile but given the very basic, standard layout of the yard I am confident that, with the right system, we can secure the place.

Did you ship the Oscillot from Oz or can be be bought locally? Also, it would work perfectly while fixed flush on top of the fence? i.e. not jutting out?

Summary:
* Like the look of Katzecure. Concerns over workability/quality, effectiveness, care, DIY installation, cost of installation.
* Like the look of Oscillot. Concerns over effectiveness, DIY Installation, local availability, shipping.

I am torn between these two options which both look good, with the spring loaded mesh now languishing in third. Any further advice you folks could give would be greatly appreciated

>>Edit: sorry Sweeper,just realised you are probably in Oz.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZYLwlfK7S8 This video I find explains the system very well. I have no personal experience of any of these systems, but I had looked into doing something like this before but never got around to it (may build an enclosure at some stage in the future, we have a big garden which would be very expensive to install something like this).

Heres some views from others who have experience with some of these systems. http://www.petforums.co.uk/cat-classifieds/127615-keep-your-cat-contained-your-garden.html
http://www.petforums.co.uk/cat-chat/134023-anyone-here-have-purfect-fencing-katsucure-other.html

I bought and fitted the fence shown above by OP from purrfectfence.com when we moved into our new house as we had two ex-feral cats then, one of whom was FIV+. I wanted them to be able to experience the garden and to be able to spend time out there with us if we ever got decent weather.

We live in a mid terrace house so I ordered the attachment set that you fix onto your existing fence rather than the free standing kit and added two extra spring loaded arms. Our garden is about 50ft long by 20ft wide with a shed in the bottom right hand corner. The two sides are concrete posts with wooden fencing panels and the back wall is concrete blocks.

It was a bit pricey but I think it's the best money I ever spent.

The fence arrived promptly as they have a distribution warehouse in the UK, and between myself and OH, we had it installed in about 3 hours in total. We ran it from the house, all the way around the garden and attached it to the shed in the corner (coming out from the wall and using the shed walls to attach the arms to) rather than behind it as I didn't want the cats using the shed as a launch pad to get over the fence. I then used chicken wire to block the vertical space between the shed and the walls so that they couldn't sneak in there t try and et up on the wall.

It has been the best investment ever and although it's not the most attractive looking thing in the world, it more than makes up for it as it has managed to confine our tribe which has now extended to four. Our original male tried several times to get over it in the beginning while I watched with my heart in my mouth but it worked every time and eventually, he just gave up and settled in and enjoyed himself, chasing his mate around like a lunatic. We don't leave them out in the garden nor do they have any access when we are not home as they are predominantly house cats but I now have no worries opening the back door when we are home and letting them out for a run around without having to watch them constantly and worry in case they get out and we've planted shrubs and tall grasses in the garden so that they have plenty of places to play hide and seek and to ambush each other. They also have the deck to sharpen their claws on
Our fence panels are about 6ft 6ins high and we attached it so that the arms would come out just about level with the top of the fence so it wouldn't intrude on the neighbours gardens or interrupt their view and although I was sceptical about the fact that it might be too low to do it's job, this has not been the case. It also works to keep other cats out of the garden as cats will only jump straight down from any height and will refuse to take that 'leap of faith' that it would require to get over the extended arms and netting.
From personal experience, I think it is an awesome product and from personal experience, OP, I can't say enough good things about it.

We've had it for almost two years and from what I can recall, it cost somewhere in the region of €450 including the additional netting we used on the shed as the 100m supplied wasn't enough to do both the walls and the shed and also the corner posts we used beside the shed.
We attached the arms to the fence posts along the sides as it was easier than drilling into the concrete posts and used a staple gun to secure the bottom of the netting to the fence panels. We put in two wooden posts at the corners of the shed for the angled corners. The back wall didn't need any arms but we attached some wooden battons to the wall to allow us to secure the netting.

I don't have any decent pics here as I'm at work but I found this one on my phone and it gives you a bit of an idea what it looks like. Apologies for the quality. Also, bear in mind that it looks more stark against the bright white of the snow and under normal circumstances, it's not so obvious in the garden.