In a message dated 8/22/2006 2:08:41 P.M. Eastern Standard Time, brendangsd@xxxxxxxxxxx writes: We just moved back to my hometown in Ohio and will be putting a fence up for our dogs, but haven't made a decision which type. We had 5 ft. chain link fence at our old house and are now thinking of the vinyl type instead - something more attractive looking. Has anyone used the Lowes type of vinyl fence and how well does it hold up. 5 ft. or 6 ft? Racked or stepped. Our yard has a little grade also. We got an estimate on a better quality of fence, but the cost is outrageous. Help!! -- LuAnn Kennedy St. Clairsville, OH A subject near and dear to my heart since I spent many months learning all I could about fencing before doing my job at the new place... Your climate in OH is like mine in PA where the problem with vinyl is that after many changes in temperature, it becomes brittle. My sister looked into it for the horses, and while it IS attractive, horses have crashed thru and it shatters with pieces making a real mess of the horse. I asked if the same thing could happen w/ dogs, and was told, in fact, it can. At a minimum, it will crack over time. (There are obviously different grades of Vinyl too; I learned quickly that Home Depot and Lowes aren't carrying the better grades.) Vinyl may work better where there isn't so much climate change. Where I wanted solid fencing, I went with 6 foot stockade that was built on site. I couldn't do that for the entire area (acres/hilly/wooded) because I was told the wind would take it down. In fact, I expect over the years to have to maintain the stockade portion more than other fence on the property (but it sure is pretty!). I went with a combination of 1 inch 5 and 6 foot tall black, 9 gauge black vinyl coated mini-mesh, agricultural wooden posts every eight feet with 6 inch x i inch x 8 feet hemlock boards on top and bottom for the perimeter and interior paddocks fencing (6 foot on the perimeter, 5 foot for the paddocks. (I had it made by a security company). You can't see the black through the woods. The agricultural posts had to be pounded into the ground, (with a machine, sounded like the fence crew was looking for oil!) and those were 8 feet and 12 feet tall respectively. (They were sunk 2+ feet in, then the tops trimmed flush w/ the mesh). I spent a fortune for concrete for the posts and all the different gates and hardware, lol! The security fence solved the problem re the potential wind damage and I sure don't want anything spaced like horse/cattle/hog fence that a dog can pull and ear through. I love the heavier gauge security type fence compared to standard chain link. So...check out the security fence companies. Fencing has risen dramatically in the last few years, but it would be awful to spend all that money and not be happy:( Kathy member GSDCA, DVGSDC three generations of Dual Titled Champions live here! visit _Pine Hill German Shepherd Dogs_ (http://www.geocities.com/pinehillgsds/) ============================================================================ POST is Copyrighted 2006. All material remains the property of the original author and of GSD Communication, Inc. NO REPRODUCTIONS or FORWARDS of any kind are permitted without prior permission of the original author AND of the Showgsd-l Management. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. ALL PERSONS ARE ON NOTICE THAT THE FORWARDING, REPRODUCTION OR USE IN ANY MANNER OF ANY MATERIAL WHICH APPEARS ON SHOWGSD-L WITHOUT THE EXPRESS PERMISSION OF ALL PARTIES TO THE POST AND THE LIST MANAGEMENT IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN, AND IS A VIOLATION OF LAW. VIOLATORS OF THIS PROHIBITION WILL BE PROSECUTED. For assistance, please contact the List Management at admin@xxxxxxxxxxxx VISIT OUR WEBSITE - URL temporarily deleted due to AOL issues ============================================================================