Question
I'm buying a house with a partially fenced back yard.  There will be a couple little dogs living there with us.  I'm thinking of putting up a little, maybe 3-foot-high, picket fence.  My dad (Mom and Dad will be living with me.) has a great workshop and can provide expertise.  He's just not able to do the work anymore, so I'm thinking of doing it myself.  Money is an object.  How feasible is this?  And where do I start in finding out whether I can afford to do it?  If not, we'll just put up a little fence inside the yard for the dogs to use for a potty-place and leave the rest unfenced.  I'm female, but pretty handy and fairly strong, if it matters.

Answer
It is VERY feasible, no matter what sex you are!  Handy & strong is good...you'll save on labor cost.  Materials costs are VERY iffy, depending on your area.  Fencing materials & labor costs are outragious where I live.  About $20/foot for a standard, ho-hum fence - your costs for a smaller, do-it-yourself fence will be much less!  It also depends on HOW you plan on putting this fence together. (Paint, special hardware, how far apart the pickets are, etc.)  

You may want to consider pre-fabricated panels (usually 4, 6, or 8 feet long) that bolt onto posts that are installed into concrete footings.  These posts can be either metal, vinyl, or wood.  The easiest/cheepest is to work with wood parts.  Also available are pre-fabricated gates.

I zipped over to Home Depot's site to see how much the panels are, but since its fall, they were not stocking them.  A little poking around, however, and this could be a quick, inexpensive, & time-saving method for you.

There has already been a lot written about fences & fencing, and I have found GREAT resources at the local library.

So, onward to on-line ideas.  Here are 5 websites...

General overview: http://www.wise4living.com/hgfence/picket.htm

Pictures: http://www.ufpi.com/product/wfence/spapict.htm

Inspiration & details: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060331/COL07/603310364

How to do it video (from DIY Network). They抮e putting in a low, panel fence, but the method is the pretty close to the same: http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/hi_fences_gates/article/0,2037,DIY_13913_2269633,0...

Other fence ideas:
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/hi_fences_gates/0,2036,DIY_13913,00.html

Hope I haven't over-loaded you with info.  For more accurate cost information, take a walk around your local lumber yard, with a plan in hand.  That's usually how I figure out how much it will cost my clients.

Marc