Fence them in

If you’ve just brought a new property and or animals then you may be in need of some basic information on fencing.

This entry explains some of the types of fencing you may need depending on your stock. 

On a lifestyle block or farm you’ll need a fence for two reasons, one is to keep your animals in, the other is to keep the neighbours herd away from the vegie garden! 

---

Farm fences can be split into two catergories, electric (hot) or conventional.

The  difference between the two types of  fences from an animals point of view is as follows:

Electric or Hot fence: That hurts me if I go near it so i will stay away. (Mental Barrier)
Conventional fence: That fence is to hard to get through or over so i will leave it alone. (Physical Barrier)

An electric fence can vary from a one wire fence on fibreglass standards to a six foot high deer fence where every wire is live or hot.

Your  conventional fence usually has 7,8 or 9 wires or netting and 4 or 5 battens between each post.  Sometimes a combination of the two is used where your conventional fence has one or two hot wires or an electric outrigger.

Fence type also depends on the sort of animals you have.

Cows are easily contained, they will rarely escape from a well maintained paddock and can be effectively contained by one electric wire provided there is sufficient current flowing through it.

Sheep however, require more wires at closer spacings, closer to the ground , to keep them in. Most sheep farmers use a 8 or 9 wire fence with battens, or netting to keep their sheep contained.  This fence will keep most farm animals contained.

Temporary fencing or break-fencing is a great way to control you stock and regulate feed intake.  IThis can be used in times of feed deficit to limit animal feed intake.

All you need is: 

• A fence reel - I prefer the geared reels they make winding up long runs a lot easier. 
  
• A roll of either wire or tape - the main difference is tape is easier to see, but you get more wire on a reel ( up to 500m for long runs).
  
• Some fence standards - steel or plastic, plastic allow multi wires to be set up ideal for smaller animals, I prefer the steel pigtail type for larger animals, they are strong and last longer.
  
• I use one wire for cows, two wires for calves and sheep.

Keep an eye out for my up coming breakfeeding blog for more hints to make your job easier.

Happy Fencing

Euan