Goat fencing help

Shade26000 · #1 03/01/11, 06:06 PM

Ok first off we have never had goats so this will all be a new experince to us. We live on the side of a mountain so our land is a bit steep, it is also wooded. We have brush cut a 10' wide row around the property so that no vegation will touch the electric fence once we set it up. The plan was to set up a high tencil electric fence but after talking to the guy at the hardware store I'm starting to lean a regular electric fence. I'm using trees as my fence post becasue there free and already there =), but I do have to deal with alot of uneven ground. So now that you know the whole story I'm very intrested in your advice. Any input you could give me would be great! I would also love to know what type of fence you would use for our type of property.

Alice In TX/MO · #2 03/01/11, 06:48 PM

I am highly opposed to using trees as posts. It damages the trees and leaves metal in them that someone finds with a chain saw years later.

We have part of our Ozark forest fenced with electric net fencing, and that has been HIGHLY successful.

We were not successful containing goats with strand electric fence.

This is what works for us.
http://www.premier1supplies.com/goats/species.php

Cannon_Farms · #3 03/01/11, 07:29 PM

if it will hold water it will hold a goat in... One of my favorite quotes.

check into the portable netting for goats I hear great things about it. I had tensile fence at 9,000 volts and once the goat learned they could escape with a zap on the back end it was all over and we had to go back and use goat fence.

Trees grow so not only are the above mentioned factors, but also your fence in a couple years will be really off kilter

colemangirly · #4 03/01/11, 07:35 PM

Alice, how did the electric netting work for you in the ozark forests? I am also in the ozarks, like national forest tye area, lots of brush and shrub woods, but am thinking that the fencing would touch too much stuff and not work. What is your take on it?

Rosina

RiverPines · #5 03/01/11, 08:35 PM

I too feel that using trees for attaching fence isnt a good idea. For one big reason it leaves them vulnerable to pest and disease. A few years later you can easily find yourself with sick dying trees and a whole new problem.

Best to use fence post.

The only thing I found to hold goats in 100% is heavy chain link not the cheap flimsy stuff. Second is cattle panels. Third is wood pallets.

Everything else has ended up failing with at least a few goats escaping. They are amazing in their ability to find away out, be it under, over, or through. Any fence they can bend with their body pressure they will eventual bust.

If your goats have horns never use anything electrical! Horns get caught and tangle in electric fencing.

Alice In TX/MO · #6 03/01/11, 08:38 PM

We did what you mentioned. Cleared a swath through the woods and fenced it with the electric net. I keep after the weeds under the fence itself and along the path, and I disengage the bottom three wires, primarily to protect the box turtles. Everything above that is hot.

It's wonderful.

That link to Premier 1 Goat fence is the fencing we use. One area has four lengths of electric netting around it with a six joule charger.

We also use it in open areas for the does yard and milk house next to the hay field. I'll have to look for pics.

We have no horned goats.

Alice

PACrofter · #7 03/02/11, 06:15 AM

Cannon_Farms - how many strands of wire did your tensile fence have? I'm looking into fencing for goats and debating wire vs woven right now...thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cannon_Farms

I had tensile fence at 9,000 volts and once the goat learned they could escape with a zap on the back end it was all over and we had to go back and use goat fence.

Cannon_Farms · #8 03/02/11, 06:43 AM

I had them spaced about 6 inches apart and up to 4 ft high, did that for my boer goats then switched to nigerians and ran an additional wire for making the first three feet ever 3 inches. On the acre my goats are on, I was using a 50 mile charger

Bfly Farmer · #9 03/02/11, 11:00 AM

We use a variety of fencing depending on the area and purpose. Woven wire, cattle panels, pallets, high tensile, and electro-netting. All work wonderful as long as they are properly installed, well charged (if electric), and the goats are trained to them.

For a hilly area, I personally would go with electro-netting or high tensile. The uneven ground makes it tough to properly install other types of fencing. Been there, chased the goats, modified the fencing.

We use Premiers poultry netting. It is taller and has smaller holes than the goat fencing. We personally use this for creation of smaller pastures within the boundary fencing.

Our boundary fencing in uneven areas is high tensile - 8 strand, 60' high. Spacing - 6' (off), 12', 18', 24' (off), 32', 40', 48' (off), 60' (off). We use this spacing because we run hogs, small goats, and LGDs.

I would encourage you to use t-posts instead of trees. They won't move or be damaged by attaching insulators to them. They will allow you to run a staight line which is important for many of the fencing styles.

Good luck!

PACrofter · #10 03/02/11, 09:56 PM

Wow, and they still got out?!? Maybe I need to go with stuffed goats or something...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cannon_Farms

I had them spaced about 6 inches apart and up to 4 ft high, did that for my boer goats then switched to nigerians and ran an additional wire for making the first three feet ever 3 inches. On the acre my goats are on, I was using a 50 mile charger

freedomfrom4 · #11 03/02/11, 10:16 PM

I have electric, but it is to deter the dogs, not really to keep the goats in. The barn is safe and they don't stray to far. Now that said mine avoid the electric fence at all costs. When I had new goats that I didn't want running everywhere I set up a small square area and ran alternating hot and ground wire, then placed the feed bowl under the fence. They were quick learners except for one who went through a few times when the fence was shorted out. I shocked myself good through rubber handled pliers fixing it, but the next time she went jumping through it shocked her. I never try and touch the fence with anything when on now and all my goats keep a respectable distance from the fence.

Oh and so the dogs learn to respect it I leave it on with goats penned up. They don't like going near it now either. I am going to run woven wire with electric on both sides eventually, but for now this is good. My new doe and her babies are in chainlink paneled area to keep them safer. Fencing is hard. The woven wire is so heavy and hard to work with. Blahh. I wish there was a fence fairy who would come and fence our property while we slept at night.

motdaugrnds · #12 03/03/11, 01:08 AM

We, too, use a combination of fencing all due to the lay of the land. If we are going up and down hills/gulleys, we wind up cutting the fencing so it will stay even with the ground. (This is regular 48" woven field fencing.) If the fencing will run near forestry, we either double stack this fencing or add additional posting because goats will stand on it to lean over to eat whatever they believe they can reach. If the fencing is to keep the does and buck separate, we use cow panels.

As for posts, we like the 8' treated fencing posts (buried at least 2 ft deep with concrete & stabillized with rocks both at bottom of hole as well as a top of hole. We place these every 10 ft. In between we like to use the 8' long metal posts. (We NEVER use electric fencing as I don't want to take any chances of our "curious" goats getting stuck in it.)

As for using existing trees as posts, they will eventually die or become diseased due to the nails/staples being driven into them. If you're using those, you could run some wire through an old water hose as a conduit, wrap the tree and attach the fencing to that conduit. This works fine and does not invite damage to the trees.