oh well, i'll move this down

hi, one of our dogs used to do this under our fence. Of course we most likely don't have as much fencing as you!
We stopped him by just placing all the stones from the garden at the base of the fence where he was digging. He couldn't dig there anymore and then he stopped. I thought he would dig elsewhere but he didn't.
anyways, that is the only suggestion I can give you!

how long a fenceline do you think you will have to secure.
When my Akita started digging out I ran a strand of barbed wire along the bottom, stapled the fencing to some railroad crossties and then laid brick on the inside of the fence in about a two foot width. It was only about a twenty foot section tho that I needed to contain him at. If it's a long stretch then the electric fencing is probably your best option. Most dogs only have to touch the live wire a few times before they get the point and then you can disconnect the electricity, as long as they still see the wire they wont go near it again.

Lisa

What kind of dog is it and what is his daily regimen and duties? I think dogs get a lot of enjoyment out of digging, you might make a designated sandbox type area and bury some goodies in there and reward for digging in that area only. I'm thinking it will keep your dog occupied and will be too dug out after that to go near the fence. Besides it might train the dog to hang out near the designated digging area.

It's about a 5-year-old Shar Pei. It's not a 20 acre fencing problem -the fencing area to be controlled is much smaller.

I think I'll try blocking each area like dobes said and see if he moves or just decides to forget it.

thanks for the guidance
vicky

I've battled this problem before. There are several options.

For me, the cheapest and easiest was chicken wire laid down flat on the ground in front of and just under the fence. Tuck or tamp down the edges. It comes in 3 or 4 foot width and the grass or landscaping will grow right through it. I had to cut out around a couple trees. But eventually it kind of gets buried under the grass or the mulch the dog can't dig through it. YOu would have to pull up the chicken wire if you ever needed to dig in that area though.

My friends put an invisible fence in about 5' in front of their physical fence. It also adjusts out and around some of the landscaping to keep the dog from digging in the soft soil of their flower beds.

I've also used some barrier logs and barrier fence panels that were stiffer and tougher than the rest of the fence. I used them in the problem spots where the dog was pushing the fence up and away from the ground to get over the chicken wire.

My dogs are rarely in the fenced yard unsupervised, except when I step into the garage, the shed or the house for just a moment or two. It always amazed me how fast the escape artists could dig a hole, just enough to push the fence up to squeeze out.

Learning from my experience, newer pups are trained, from the get go, to stay away from the fence. Most of them are taught not to touch the fence. Stern corrections whenever they get near the fence have worked pretty good. I just wish I would have done this with my older dog.

And If I ever had to do build a dog proof fence over again, I would pay the extra money to have the fencing trenched a couple feet into the ground.

I actually have heard from trainers that if you bury that same dogs feces (poo) in the hole then cover it back up that they WILL NOT dig up their own poo. I guess they get that smell in their nose and don't like it. Try to put some in every hole, then he/she will just learn its not even worth trying to find a spot anymore... Again that's what I've heard, I have never had to do this before though. Keep us posted!! :-)

Thanks, Elycia

LOL!!! My dogs eat their own poo, so don't think burying it will help much! Chicken wire laid on the ground and a few inches under the fence really seems to do the trick, though!

Chicken wire is a good idea, but if your dog gets through that you can use an anti-digging barrier which is a lot like chicken wire but is a lot stronger.

Here is a link that might be useful: How To Keep Dogs From Digging Under Fences