Have you checked your fencing recently? You may not spend much time thinking about it, but good fencing is essential. Fencing affects your relationship with your neighbours. On a practical level, it keeps your property safe from intruders. If you live in a rural setting, your fencing can be even more vital, as it keeps animals off your land and prevents your animals from wandering onto your neighbours' property. If you are thinking about replacing your fencing, here are three questions you must ask before signing a contract with a fencing company.

What is the purpose of your fencing?

Before you start looking at fencing supplies, you must think about what you want the fencing to achieve. If privacy is your main concern, erecting a tall wooden or metal fence around your property may be the right solution. If preventing animals from escaping is your priority, dog fencing or something similar would probably work better. Whatever type of fencing you decide upon, there are certain factors that you must not ignore.

Is it strong enough? - Whether you pick dog fencing or something to contain larger animals, your chosen fence must be strong enough to fulfil its function. Animals can be stronger than you might expect. If they can bring down your new fencing, you will be wasting your effort. Standard dog fencing can contain dogs and most smaller animals, but if you must contain cattle or larger animals, talk to your fencing supplier to find out the exact specifications of any fencing you are considering.

Is it suitable for the area? - One of the problems with fencing land is that the boundaries rarely follow the local topography. With internal fencing, you can easily adjust the fenced area to account for changes in the gradient or any natural features that get in the way. When you are putting up boundary fencing, you don't have the same luxury. With boundary fencing, you must select a style of fencing that is easy to install on any gradients as well as the level parts of your land.

Can you build the fence? - Choosing the right dog fencing is important, but if you can't install the new fencing, it won't do you any good. To correctly install fencing, you must know how to avoid dangerous pressure points that could pull apart the fence. You must know the correct depth for every post, and where to place the strainer assemblies. If you struggle with fence installation or don't have the necessary time, it can be worth speaking to a company that specializes in the installation of dog fencing.

Contact a company that installs rural fencing to learn more.