I am finally going to bite the bullet and build some pens for our feeders and a water station. Is 32'X32' big enough for the pen? Holes come very dear on our lease, we usually have to drill a 18"X1½” hole just to drive "T" post so I am going to build 4'X16' panels using 1½" square tubing and weld on cattle panels. Too big? Too heavy? Is this high enough to keep out cows?

On the water station I plan to use a horse waterer on a 250 gallon tank using gravity feed: http://www.miller-mfg.com/page/1/Product-Detail.jsp?groupId=654&prodId=64696
Any ideas on how long this much water will last or if this is even a viable idea? Any better ideas?

I have a round pen that is 40' diameter.You can do it with 8-16' panels and 20 t-post.I would use 34" tall hog panels unless you are going to cut some entry holes.48" is to tall IMO.

Circle works better then a square.

We have used multiple sized pens. 40' round for one, 15'-ish polygon depending on where the trees were, even an 8' square one.

Circle is best with a minimum of 6 16' panels. I have 3 of these and they work great!!

I don't agree with a circle being the best feeder pen design. I have some of each on my place. The round pens have a path beaten down around them where the hogs continue to go around in a circle trying to get to the corn. The square pens might have one path beaten down on one side, but some not even a path. I put my cameras facing different directions and found that the hogs trail off of a square pen and the round one they always have something to keep their nose against. With the square pen offering a definitive edge, I think this gives them reason to move along. The deer on the other hand, I dont think they care if it's round or square. As long as it's big enough they don't feel trapped. I have used 12 hog panels on all my pens round and square to make sure there is plenty of space. I've got a couple of pens a tad bit smaller than that just because of the area I'm working with, and deer still seem to be ok with them.

Good info on the round vs. square pens. Never thought of that but it makes a lot of sense. Thanks

If your just trying to keep cows out.. might want to look at making your panels out of sucker rod. Lot cheaper

Livestock get upset easier with square corners. With round corners, they move along the circle without feeling trapped. The bigger the pen, the better. Older bucks did not get old by hanging out in places that make them uncomfortable.

Take a look at the work that Temple Grandin has done with livestock pens.

Another vote for rounded. I use at least 8 panels. I don't care if the hogs go around the pen as long as they go around the outside of it. If you overlap each panel just a bit, rounded pens have much more structural integrity. Stand up pretty solid by themselves once wired/bolted together. I only use one post in the middle of each 16 foot panel and it doesn't move a bit.

As far as difficulty of sinking t-posts, with a decent sized hammer drill it only takes us a few minutes to drill a 1&3/8" hole (which allows snug driving a 1.5" post). And we have serious solid rock. It could be even faster if you substitute rebar rods since you could use a 3/4" or smaller bit.

I do see the advantage of welding together panels in frames if you feel you may want to move the pens around on occasion. If they are pretty much placed permanent like mine I'd never bother with that.