fencing question

Will this work for goats? I want a 5' fence, but can't find a goat fence that's over 4'.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/red-brand-non-climb-horse-fence-60-in-x-200-ft

Have used it and Good stuff. It would be perfect for anything and tough as nails.

That works, it is called horse fence just because it has the smaller squares. I horse will tend to put his hoof in a larger mesh and ruin it so they use the 2"x 4" configuration.

Stay Tuff makes a horse fence that is 61 inches high.

I only use Stay-Tuff---> Stay-Tuff

Fencing is named for its most common use, doesn't mean it won't hold up long term for other animals, you can use Horse fence for goats or whatever meets your height requirements.

I'd do a 6 wire electric fence for that. Better for keeping dogs, predators, etc out of the pasture. In the end it would probably cost less than a net wire fence. Just have to spray with Roundup twice per year to keep the weeds/grass off of it.

Excellent choice. I have literally installed miles of it. It is lots of work to install, and your braces can't be over 190' apart.

48" comes in 200' rolls, 60" comes in 100' rolls. You can stretch 200' of 60", but you will have to crimp two rolls together. They make splicing tubes, and the crimping tool is exactly like bolt cutters, but where the jaws are blunted and do not touch each other when closed all the way. You can crimp with bolt cutters, but you have to ease up toward the end so as not to go too deep into the crimp and accidentally cut it.

Holler at me if you need help on how to build that stuff, there are lots of tricks to it, especially on steel pipe braces. On wood braces it is easier, but lots of staples. 17 staples on 60" fence at each end. And forget about using fence clips, inevitably the vertical wires will be in the way. Buy a roll of the thick galvanized hot wire, pull off 15' and use it to tie the mesh to the t-posts. Everything about it is time consuming to build, but in the end it is outstanding fence, and it is very goat resistant. Don't forget you need 6' 6" t-posts instead of 6' t-posts.

It will work great for goats. I have installed quite a bit of it in places on my property to keep Deer out.

I think I am going it let someone else do the install. I want it to look clean and nice, so me practicing on my first install is not the direction I am heading. Got a price of $3 a foot with me purchasing supplies for the first short run - about 300 or so feet.

I have some around a pasture, but I didn't install it. It was there when I bought the place so I can't help on price. It does a great job for horses. Stx is correct about some hotwire. The predators and dogs will dig under or even climb over eventually unless there is something to deter them. I wound up running a hot wire above the top because the horses like to scratch their butts on the fence and that will do a quick job of messing it up. I don't see that problem with goats. My brother had his place leased to a guy that had sheep and he had trouble with coyotes. They'll dig under.

Won't a donkey or two usually solve the predator problem?

My neighbor has 4 donkeys and he's got more coyotes than anyone around. If you need protection using an animal get a Pyrenees. I had a Mastiff Pyrenees mix and he was a coyote killing machine. One of the best pets I ever had. The Mastiff in him would not allow for leaving him out just for the sole purpose of guarding the sheep. man I loved that dog.

If you are going to try a donkey make sure you get a young female to put in with the goats. She needs to be raised with them to become part of the "herd". Put another one with her and they will tend to stay off by themselves. If you want a donkey(especially the miniatures) just make sure you(and any neighbors) are going to be happy with the sound effects at any time of the day or night.

Thanks for the advice on a young female. I like the sound effects. I have one guinea who thinks she's a chicken.

They are much louder than any guinea...I had them next to my house for 3 yrs on a ranch I managed.
Also if you get one and have dogs as pets that run around with you or in that penned area, just be aware she could attack the dogs.

^^True story. Donkeys and Pea foul disturb the peace, constantly.

But, I've seen some mean azz donkeys and horses towards dogs.

High tensile perimeter fence with charge, step in graphite post. Why pay for metal? Look up greg judy on YouTube. Installing metal fence is old news

Seen goats learn to challenge electric fence at high speed. Go fast enough and maybe you won't get shocked.

That's wrong, if you train them to it they wont do that . You're wrong.

Iv seen more men spend money on metal than I have a racing goat run through electric fence.

Well, I'm not wrong. Seen it with my own eyes many times, on my own land, with my own Boer goats.

Goes back to what my Ag teacher told me lomg ago. "If you can pitch a bucket of water through the fence, a goat can get out of it". It applies to hot wire, or hot twine, or hot ribbon. Non-climb is a mechanical stop, and 5' tall is very reliable. And especially for a goat, the grass is always greener on the other side. Let them think they're running short on browse or grazing, and they'll get out.

Only semi-successful training is cowboy in a can. Can full of feed rattling it to get them to come back to you. And that doesn't always work. Train and entire tribe to a hot wire only fence, that's a joke.

Again, you are wrong . Keep them in a pen and show them what hot wire is . I also have land and have seen it with my own eyes . You keep buying metal and stretching fence .

Have you ever been wrong?

Of course I have, but I'm not now.

Foliage grounds out the hot fence, fence is worthless. Tree limb falls on the hot fence, fence is worthless. Power goes out, fence is worthless.

5 foot of non-climb doesn't need electricity to work. I guess the ranchers all over the country that have steel fence for thousands of miles are all stupid and wrong according to you.

Go troll someone else.

If an electric fence didn't work at Jurassic Park it sure won't work on goats.

You may want to look at statite and stay tuff. They both make a 1561 with horizontal strands closer together toward the bottom . Can also consider a 1348 and add one or two strands of bar on top.

If you’re going to run hot wires, why run that high dollar horse fence instead of barbed wire?

Because I want chickens to free range there as well.

Where did I troll or say it wont work? I stated a better, more cost effective way .

Yes, it can get grounded out by foialage, that's why you clear it before you put the fence up, from there the fence will kill the grass as it will shock it.

Dont get mad because there's a different way to do it.

J.P. look into premier1 fencing. We free range our chickens in this, I can move the whole paddock in 15 to 20 minutes. Since iv started moving our chickens a couple times a week, our pastures look awesome . We move our chickens behind the cattle to spread manure and eat the parasites out of it . They do all the work for us and we no longer have s need to worm our animals.

I guess you're slow. If hotwire is "better" why isn't the entire continent filled with it instead of barb wire and mesh fence? Because it is constant maintenance, that's why.

Clear foliage, then clear it again next week, and the next, and the next, forever until the first freeze of the year.

You going to cut down all +12" trees within 40' of your hotwire? I doubt it. Not cutting them down, means they're going to drop limbs on the fragile hot wire fence. It grounds, it gets mashed down, goats get out. Pretty simple.

J.P. did not ask about hot wire, he asked about building permanent fence. You're the dog hanging onto the towel that's bolted to the wheel of the truck about the hot wire. Let go of the towel, you won't get hurt as badly.

I have a gut strainer and a gripple tool that I used one time. If you’d like to us them or buy them I’d live to get them out of my garage as I sole my property and don’t see a need for these in the near future.

If you’d like to know what these are just call me.

JG, if you ever want to meet up and talk about things I would be glad to . You seem to be an expert on everything and heck of a guy. I wont throw out insults like you do on a computer . However, I would be glad to show you around my small acreage and show you how this works. Like I said, If you clear the foliage one time, the fence takes care of the grass ( google it I guess).. As far as trees go, I don't neglect my land enough for them to become a problem.

Bite that towel

I'm an expert on a very short list of things, very short. But most certainly not everything, not by a long shot.

But one of the items on the list is fence building. Been doing it every year since 1996. It used to my sole source of income, that I did full time. I too have raised livestock, including goats. I too have tried to make hot wire work. And it is extremely handy for cross fences, but I learned the hard way to not trust it for perimeter fencing. Up until midnight trying to get goats and cattle back in the pasture due to hot wire fence failing to keep them contained, is not something I would wish on a livestock owner.

That's an actual educated response , thanks for no insults. Just because you use to do that for a living dosent mean there arent better ways . I poured concrete for 11 years before I got on the department, there's much better ways out there now than I used to do . I also use to till our dirt, is that a good method?

There are better ways than stretching wire. I asked you how I trolled you along with 5 or 6 more questions that you have no answer for . I know your type, I work with many of them. We laugh at you guys .

Are you a firefighter? You mention it ever other post. You know how to look me up and where I work, holler at me if you want to discuss . I use my real name so it should be easy

I've given nothing but educated posts.

Livestock getting out of enclosures has existed as long as their has been livestock. What "used to happen" still happens. Nothing new under the sun. And nothing else is new on building a solid fence, unless you want to spend every week maintaining a hotwire fence. Some of us don't have time for that crap. Some of us like to build something and walk away, knowing it will need no maintenance, so we can move onto the next project. It is about as simple as water extinguishes fire. Some other guys want to add foam, and air, and make the water go farther, and just like hotwire fences, that crap breaks down all the time.

I know your type too. Know-it-all, my way is the best way, all the time, as well as always the loudest mouth in the room. And we crush their reason for living when they act like you do. You get laughed at by guys like me calling B.S. on your B.S. that everyone knows is B.S.

I mention my profession rarely, there's the trolling. I don't need to look you up, I've got plenty of friends and a big enough handful of punks already to deal with.

I'm sure you're praying your electricity doesn't fail for your chickenchit fence tonight.



(Sorry, J.P. )

And this my fellow THFers is exactly what the THF has become. For newer members, it wasn't always this way.

See, we really need a Like button boss

Oh now lets not be so dramatic. We need a little more pop corn action around here.

cyborg wallpaper

Sorry I just saw fireman response, I have a family to raise. I'm truly sorry for getting a little heated on here . Not trying to start drama on this site. You can tell from my 127 post I dont day much of anything . However, Fireman JG( you even mention it in your username), feel free to contact me by department, pm, telephone, Skype, Twitter, or whatever resources you have.

We can even talk about who's a punk if you wish

Sorry J.P.

I raise Ibex Goats. I tried electric fence. I did it to keep out predators. I had already gone the Llama, Donkey and Dog route without success. The electric fence was fine until the spring got here and the grass and weeds started growing. The fence can only kill the grass and weed growth so long. I tried spraying with Round Up and that was good until it turned dry and the ground shrunk and not having grass or weeds in the fence line made it shrink even more and loosened up the line and t post. Then came breeding season and the males on the outside fence gave a rats a** about electricity and destroyed it. I ended up using cattle type panels with a 4"X4" spacing and buried it 6 inches in the ground. I will get you a picture of what Ibex think about cattle panels.

I Like This !

i bought a lowboy from a guy down the road who runs 100 head of goats on on 100 acres. He has 3 Anatolian shepherds that live out with his herd. They do the job. He has the 2" x 4" x 4' wrapped mesh fencing with 2 close runs of Gaucho topping it. He keeps his animals in and his dogs keep them safe (according to him). He said the dogs had even killed deer that got into the field.

Now, a donkey story. I have a friend that lives over south of Rayburn and his neighbor has/had goats (12-15) and a donkey. One summer evening he was sitting on his back patio and saw the donkey going crazy and kicking up dust. Apparently it was killing the goats. He called his neighbor. Now,he says, there are no goats nor donkey !

The guy we bought this place from had raised goats. Started out with electric and wound up with a net wire fence with a barbed wire top wire. Even with that he had trouble keeping the goats inside the fence. And when I bought the place there were a few ‘loose’ goats in the area. Wasn’t a problem till I started feeding corn for the deer, and then I found out how well those goats could jump. The fence that couldn’t keep them in couldn’t keep them out. They sailed over it effortlessly. I suppose that explains why a buddy of mine keeps goats behind a high fence (racks aren’t getting bigger though).

As for other guys with electric fence, my old buddy Pete had a lot of electric cross fencing. The deer kept it torn down.

If I was going to raise goats, I would sure try to find some non-jumping goats.

As for the ones that kept jumping my fence and eating the deer corn, I bought them cheap and shot them. That gave me enormous satisfaction.

Inside trap where I keep the females. The Billies from the outside and the Billy I had in the inside worked on the panel.

Used that exact fence for my goats and never had an issue.

Then I guess I can assume you don't have this type of goat.

No I don't Don, those are some big animals you have.

Just a word to the OP. The less square a piece of property is, regardless of square acreage, the more fence it will take. Measure every run as best you can. Think about fencing in 16 square feet. One is 4x4', the other is 16x1'. Same square footage, very different perimeters.

Well look at that, all this experience chiming in.

Turns out I wasn't wrong after all.

Ego much?

LOL

Nah. Pretty much everybody (but one) knew the deal, they were just letting me make the argument all by myself.
That's cool...

Jg still havent heard from ya. I get it now, you're an Internet hero . Expert on saws,fence, house building , side by sides , tools, blade sharpening, shooting things at 800 yards ( aim a couple feet higher than you did at 600 yards ). Stop being a loud mouth and contact me . Are you so country and such a firefighter you dont get that ? 30,000 post , Thf hero

Don’t see how calling you would fix a thing here Brad.

When the [censored] did you become sensible?

I have my moments, they’re usually too short lived for anyone to notice

DonK, RUN! It’s Goat-ZIRRA!!!

When they get that size coyotes are no longer a problem

What’s he weigh?

And I see you lack the ability to admit when you're wrong.

Yeah, I'm a smart person, and I know lots of things, but not everything. Turns out you are standing on this fencing island all by yourself. But, clearly you cannot see that.

Chainsaws? Not an expert. Used them every week since 1996. Doesn't mean I can always fix them. Worked with a guy on the FD that could though. And when he wanted to teach me stuff, I paid attention. House building? No, maybe you saw the house I'm building and you're calling me an expert. Thank you but I don't deserve it. Lots of things and house building methods I don't know. Side by sides? No, I've owned exactly two. The first one wasn't so good, the second one was highly recommended by lots of THF members and I paid attention, took their advice and mine is as good as they said theirs has been. Tools? Yes, used them tons, own tons also use them weekly. Blade sharpening? Nope, we have expert knife makers on this forum, they are also experts on sharpening. I own an 800 yard range, and have for 7 years, it is soon to be in my front yard. Maybe I know lots about it. Why wouldn't I?

Don't put your short comings in life at my feet. It is not my fault you feel insecure about yourself

What do you do when you find yourself at the bottom of a hole?
Quit digging.

Alright y, i am going to chime in and take both sides, i have goats. I installed 6 wire high tensile electric 5 years ago. The goats have never got out. It is small acerage. Here is what makes it work, Install properly, 3 ground rods driven 6 plus feet into the ground. Every other wire on the fence should be hot, the others should be connected directly to your ground field. Oversize the charger and do not use solar. I have a 100 mile charger on roughly 5 miles of wire (not fence but total wire). It packs a helluva punch. The goats are scared to death of it, The coyotes, hogs etc have all learned to stay the hell away.
I live on the property and the charger is in my shop so i can pop in there every day and hear it clicking like it should and know its all ok. It has gone out a few time (branches, broken insulators etc) but i caught it quickly. So having said all that i know that if i had large acreage and could not check the status regularly i would not go with an electric only system. I would go with 4 x 4 goat fence with a couple strands of barb on top and maybe even a single strand of electric low on the inside to give them a little reminder to stay back.

Brad you told fireman he was flat out wrong in your first post, he is not. And all this look me up and call me crap is pretty ridiculous. Both of you need a hug

Pitman, it sure sounds like you got it right. I sure hope Brad is Ok with it.

All I know is this fact: I am NOT testing ANY of talks electric fencing if that’s what you go with.


Dad and his freakin jokes still got my hair standing up!

Well you can bet i ain't going to get a stinking goat !!!!!


Can anyone tell me how to square a circle?????

I don't care what the forum rules say.......................EVERYBODY likes to watch a fight/arguement on a forum. Its the only reason to keep coming back

Why is JG always the one getting trolled

I think Brad and JG should put on some boxing gloves, and settle this once and for all like real rednecks. We can have a THF watching partying/GTG.

Have each build half of the fence for JP, and see which part of the fence first lets a goat escape. THF members could have a pool on the winner and which goat makes the first successful escape.