The earliest pest exclusion fences in Australia were created to protect small plots of cropland from the predation by marsupials.

Prior to 1948, the idea of a Dingo Barrier Fence Scheme had not come into fruition as a statewide project for which annual maintenance and repair were kept.

It has a violent history and it hasn’t really been acknowledged in these terms", according to Dr Justine Philip, who has a PhD on dingoes at the University of New England.

Mostly it is made of 180-centimetre (6 ft) high wire mesh, but some sections in South Australia comprise multi-strand electric fence.

[11] Parts of the Dingo Fence are lit at night by 86 mm (3.4 in) cold cathode fluorescent lamps which are alternately red and white.

According to Mike Letnic of the University of New South Wales, the dingo, as Australia's top predator, has an important role in maintaining the balance of nature.

[16] Although the fence has helped reduce the loss of sheep to predators, the exclusion of dingoes has allowed for increased pasture competition from rabbits, kangaroos and emus.

In a 2024 report conferred to the lands minister, Steve Kamper, the board chair, Andrew Bell, stated that fewer than 10 wild dogs were reported outside the fence, with a full review of the NSW side of the fence accomplished and shown to be in "very good order".

Furthermore, Department of Regional NSW spokesperson stated that the fence is "one of a range of tools used in the fight against wild dogs and other biosecurity threats", since it prevents the entry of many different animals, not just dingoes.

[7] Dr Tom Newsome, a researcher at the University of Sydney’s global ecology lab, stated that by locking dingoes out, the fence may render unique perception into how they interact with the land.