Fencing

[1bc2r]

I'm planning on getting a few sheep this spring. We have rolls for 48" plastic hazard fencing. Would that be OK to use for fencing? I would be fencing an area for the sheep to stay in the evening, the area is roughly 25 x 100 feet.

diane

[Cynthia P]

I'm planning on getting a few sheep this spring. We have rolls for 48" plastic hazard fencing. Would that be OK to use for fencing? I would be fencing an area for the sheep to stay in the evening, the area is roughly 25 x 100 feet.

diane

 

As a visual barrier yes...as the only fence no. You will need standard page wire, small openings are better; Mine would stay in that for about 1 minute before they figured it out. It also depends on the type it is but I wouldn't bet the farm the sheep would stay in it.

 

Cynthia

[Bill Fosher]

It will only keep them in if they don't want to get out.

 

What will you be doing with them during the day, and why is that inadequate at night?

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

We use that stuff for temporary pens for clinics and whatnot - inside secure fenced areas. Our sheep actually respect it, amazingly, but that's only because we've never given them the opportunity to find out how flimsy it is. It's nice for this purpose because it's easy to set up and tall. We can also cut it in half and fence off barnyards and such, quickly and easily.

 

The big problem with it is that for long stretches, to keep it reasonably upright, you have to install so many T-posts (the step ins don't cut it), that you may as well have bought field fence and one quarter the number of posts.

 

I am so excited. We are finishing up a new area for the mamas and lambs - this will make one of two new paddocks we are (we hope) putting in this spring, more than doubling our secure grazing area. It just doesn't pay to cheap out on fencing, I know now for sure. And my hubby has finally accepted this, also - buying hay and feed is not a good swap for fencing in grass!.

[1bc2r]

Thanks for the replies on the plastic fencing.

I was going to use it just because we have soo much of it. Wishful think!

We used it when we had horses with an electric wire across the top, it worked keeping them in a 1 acre corral. I was hoping we could redo the fencing for the sheep using the same set up.

I'll get the woven wire fencing.

I always put my horses in the barn at night, so I figured it might be good to keep the sheep in a smaller area at night, too. We will need electric on the outside of the fence, neighbor's dogs could be a problem.

I'm not getting the sheep til the spring or til the correct fencing is up & a shed is built for them, so I'll be asking lots of questions regarding sheep.

I owned horses most of my life & worked on a horse farm for several years, just wish I had a Border Collie for every time the cattle got loose & we had to get them back home on horseback from the Great Swamp in NJ.

thanks

diane

[bcnewe2]

It's a challange for my sheep. They see it, they go through it. I used to use it on gates that I wanted to block off spaces that were big enough for young lambs to go though. I never lasted more than a month or so.

 

For my sheep, since they were "trained" to go though it, I don't think I could even use it as a temporary holding fence for trials or the likes, but if they had never learned that it was easy to go though it might be a option.

 

I wonder what running a hot wire around the bottom might do. My sheep respect most hot fences except the one I'm finishing up. We haven't stretched it tight so it's easy to short out, but by the weekend it should be done and they will be once again back on thier own turf. I could see it working with electric at the bottom but why bother? How bout electronet for small spaces?

 

Kristen

[Bill Fosher]

I'd recommend using Premier's Electronet to subdivide to improve pasture utilization and for night penning. It's very quick to pick up and move around, and it's the most predator-resistant and sheep-tight temporary fencing that I've found yet.