CERTAIN PRINCIPLES APPLY to keeping every type of livestock. The material in this chapter applies to housing and fencing for all breeds of miniature livestock. We’ll discuss species-specific needs in chapters to come.
You can certainly build an animal palace for your miniature livestock if you like, but a dry place to sleep in a draft-free shelter meets their basic needs. In fact, in all but the coldest climates, inexpensive structures called “loafing barns,” “run-in sheds,” or “field shelters” are sufficient.
Other basic shelters for miniature livestock include prefabricated barns; Port-A-Huts (our personal favorite; see Port-A-Hut in Resources); commercial calf hutches; hoop structures (the type designed for pasture-raised hogs); and for miniature kids, lambs, and piglets, Igloo doghouses from the pet store.
You’ll probably need enclosed housing, too. Late gestation females, females with newborns, and delicate bottle babies require dry, draft-free housing, especially during the cold winter months. Anyone who dairies, even on a very limited scale, also needs a covered, weather-resistant area separate from their animals’ living areas in which to milk.
Field shelters consist of a roof and three enclosed sides with the remaining side open and facing away from prevailing winds (a southwest exposure helps utilize the winter sun as a source of heat). They’re set up in, or adjacent to, pastures, paddocks, or exercise areas, so the occupants can come and go as they will.
Field shelters, also known as run-in sheds, make ideal housing for miniatures.
In southern climates, open-air shelters comprising a roof and sturdy framework provide essential hot-climate airflow, shade, and rain protection. For best results, enclose three sides with roof-high, welded-wire cattle panels. During the colder winter months, it’s easy to provide additional protection by covering the fenced sides with removable plywood panels or sturdy plastic tarps.
The rules of field-shelter design are simple: Allow enough floor space for each animal (see Factors to Consider When Choosing a Species on pages 8–11); provide adequate site drainage; and slope the roof away from the shelter’s open side so rain and snow cascade off the rear, rather than sliding off in front of the structure. In most climates, packed dirt or clay floors are better than cold, hard concrete. In some locations and with certain species, wooden floors work well, but eventually they’ll rot, necessitating periodic replacement.
Bed this type of structure with four to six inches of absorbent material such as straw, poor-quality (but not moldy) hay, wood shavings, sawdust, peanut hulls, ground corncobs, or sand. Continue adding just enough bedding to keep floors dry; then, periodically (in most climates a few times a year is adequate) clean everything out, back to floor level. This system, called “deep litter bedding,” is comfortable and warm, and it’s easy and simple to maintain.
Corrugated steel Quonset huts like the one made by Port-A-Hut make fine housing for pigs or a few sheep and goats.
When building field shelters in northern climates, it’s usually best to keep the roof height as low as you can, keeping in mind that the tallest individuals should never crack their polls on the ceiling, even if they throw back their heads. Low-slung roofs hold in body heat. However, squat buildings are harder to clean, especially if someone has to clean them by hand, so you may have to balance your various needs.
If you’re on a tight budget and need to build a small to midsize barn in a hurry, think pole barns (pre-engineered metal buildings with stout framework poles set in the ground). Pole barns are fast and economical to build; a no-frills, unlined, galvanized steel structure can usually be built in less than a week. Or build a fancier version with skylights, lots of windows, colored siding, and a cupola or two and you’ve got a structure anyone should be proud of.
Depending on the design, pole barns can be built with posts set directly in the ground (without a concrete slab foundation) or built with the posts fastened to a slab. Siding choices vary, but most pole barns are roofed and sided with galvanized or colored steel.
Steel I-beam packaged barns are another option, as are Quonset-style metal barns. What they have in common with pole barns is that they sell as packaged units designed to reduce construction costs through standardization. You can buy them built on your site or, if you’re handy with tools, as do-it-yourself kits. All three come in high-end and economy models with options to meet most any need, and each has its own special virtues.
PACKAGED BARN COMPARISON
The right barn is the one that provides for all your needs at minimum cost. Questions to ask yourself when choosing a packaged barn include:
What is the intended use of the building? Will it loosely house miniature beef cattle or provide stalling for miniature horses or donkeys? Will it incorporate an office or groom’s living quarters? How many specialty areas, such as wash stalls and feed or tack rooms, are needed?
Is your property zoned for the type of construction you want to build?
How big must it be? Do you need free-span construction to provide for a training arena? Tall doors so you can park your trailer inside in snowy climates?
Where will you put the barn? The right location may impose some constraints on the size and shape of the building you can erect.
Are you building a barn that full-size horses may someday use? If so, choose one you can easily finish inside by lining it with plywood at least as high as a tall horse’s back because horses have been known to kick through unlined metal barns, with dire results.
Do the aesthetics of the building matter to you? Will a Plain Jane galvanized steel building do? If not, choose a type you can customize with colored metal siding and roofing material (a plus: prepainted finish colors last 15 to 20 years without refinishing), wooden siding (it has better insulating qualities than metal, where that makes a difference), a solid-deck shingled roof, and fancy windows. And skylights make any interior more appealing.
No matter which species you raise or which type of housing tickles your fancy, keep these principles in mind.
Check into applicable zoning laws before erecting any sort of permanent structure, including fencing.
All animal housing must be adequately ventilated. Livestock housed in damp, poorly vented barns are prone to respiratory ailments.
Trees and hedges can provide sufficient shade, but animals raised in rainy or snowy climates need access to weather-resistant, man-made structures, too — no exceptions.
Build to endure. Breeding males are notoriously hard on housing and fences. Don’t scrimp; always build their stalls, shelters, pens, and fences out of stout, sturdy materials.
Protect glass windows, electrical wiring, and even lighting fixtures with screens or conduit and keep them well out of curious animals’ reach; this is especially true if you keep equines or goats.
Allow your critters to socialize. All livestock species are inherently sociable; they will fret if they can’t see others of their own kind or at least some other friendly livestock faces. Fretting equates with stress, and stress leads to lower productivity, illness, and even death. Make sure no animal is totally isolated, particularly for any length of time.
Provide getaways where youngsters or low-ranking herd and flock members can escape bullies. And if your animals don’t have access to pasture, they’ll all need a safely fenced, roomy exercise area to blow off steam and hang out.
Don’t mix horned and hornless livestock in close quarters where jostling and sparring typically occur. Mixing can work in a pasture setting, but whenever possible, horned and hornless animals should be housed and penned separately.
Provide plenty of fresh, clean water kept reasonably cool in the summertime and warm enough to prevent freezing when temperatures dip below 32 degrees (see page 86 for cooling and heating tips). Install running water and electricity to your barn or shelter, or barring that, place the structure within reach of existing utilities.
Provide multiple watering facilities instead of one big one; they’re a lot easier to keep clean. And if one water source becomes contaminated before you notice and clean it, there will be other, clean sources for your animals to choose from.
Build or buy sturdy, safe hayracks and grain feeders for your livestock; don’t feed directly on the ground. Feeding on the ground equates with excessive parasitism and a lot of wasted feed.
Don’t store feed where animals can break in and help themselves. Overeating, especially of grain or rich, legume hay, can kill. Store grain in animal-proof covered containers with snug lids (55-gallon food-grade plastic or metal drums and decommissioned chest freezers work well). And always secure the feed room door with an appropriate closure; there are Houdinis in every livestock species.
Dispose of soiled bedding in a responsible manner; don’t let it pile up and attract flies.
Learn from the experts. Visit the housing page on the Maryland Small Ruminant Web site (see Resources), hosted by the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension, where you can access scores of university- and government agency–generated bulletins relating to livestock housing and farm structures, feeders and feed storage, ventilation, bedding, pest and fly control, and manure management.
Touch base with your local county extension agent (see Resources) before building any type of livestock structures or renovating existing structures. He can help you assess your needs and provide material specific to your climate and location, and his expertise is absolutely free.
Finally, buy or borrow How to Build Animal Housing: 60 Plans for Coops, Hutches, Barns, Sheds, Pens, Nest Boxes, Feeders, Stanchions, and Much More by Carol Ekarius (see Resources). If you live in the country and keep any sort of livestock, you need this book.
You’ll also need some pens. Pens can range in size from a length of cattle panel to an acre or more. You’ll use them for maternity housing; to hold special animals such as pets, old duffers, 4-H projects, and breeding males; for new animals fresh from quarantine that haven’t yet been turned out with the main herd; and for thin animals who need more grub to gain some weight. Pens are usually built using planks (for cattle and equines), stout woven wire, or welded-wire livestock panels. No matter how many pens you build, you’ll wish you had more.
Livestock panels are prefabricated lengths of sturdy mesh fence welded together out of galvanized one-quarter-inch steel rods; they come in an array of wire spacings and heights.
Livestock panels are ideal for creating pens and corrals.
Cattle panels are 52 inches (132 cm) tall and built using 8-inch (20 cm) stays; horizontal wires are set closer together near the bottom of the panel to prevent smaller livestock from escaping. Cattle panels are usually sold in 16-foot (4.9 m) lengths that can be trimmed to size using heavy bolt cutters.
Sheep panels are similar to cattle panels but manufactured in 34-inch (86 cm) and 40-inch (102 cm) heights, and their horizontal wires are set even closer together. Both cattle and sheep panels are ideal for fabricating pens and corrals.
Utility panels are the toughest of all; they’re fabricated using 4 × 4 inch (10 × 10 cm) spacing and are welded out of extra heavy-duty 4- or 6-gauge rods in a full 20-foot (6 m) length. They come in 4- to 6-foot (1.2 to 1.8 m) heights and are ideal for building extra-stout pens.
Premier1 (see Resources) sells panels designed specifically for goat and sheep producers in 36-inch (91 cm) and 40-inch (102 cm) heights and in 4- to 6-foot (1.2 to 1.8 m) lengths. These are perfect for building V-type hay bunks and round-bale hay feeders for miniature livestock.
A bad thing about standard cattle, sheep, and utility panels is that the raw end of each rod is very sharp. To make these panels more user-friendly, smooth each rod end with a rasp to take off its razor edge. (Premier1 panels are pre-smoothed at the factory.)
All good livestock feeders are designed to discourage animals from wasting feed. You definitely need them. Feeding grain or hay off the ground contributes to parasitism and disease, not to mention excessive waste. Sheep and goats won’t touch hay, grain, or minerals they’ve peed or pooped in, but they don’t mind peeing and pooping in their feed. Goat kids complicate the matter by “nesting” in accessible hayracks and grain or mineral feeders, and they don’t vacate their nests when Nature calls. It’s your mission to prevent these unsanitary and wasteful practices.
Combination hay and grain feeders save a lot of otherwise dropped and wasted hay.
At feeding time, make sure all of the animals in a herd or flock are fed at the same time; otherwise timid individuals may not get to eat. Here are some things to remember when considering feeders:
Choose feeders you can move by yourself. Several smaller feeders are more manageable than a single extra-bulky one, and rubber or plastic feeders are lighter than metal models.
Move feeders in wet weather. During wet spells a mud wallow will form around your feeders if you don’t move them every few weeks; this and manure buildup in feeding areas contribute to parasitism and disease.
For small groups of livestock, consider feeders you can hang on a fence and remove after the animals have eaten.
Mount grain feeders six inches higher than your tallest sheep and goats’ tails and provide booster blocks or rails for their front feet to stand on.
For feeding small rectangular bales of hay, V-shaped hay feeders with welded-wire sides or vertical or diagonal slats work better than models with horizontal slats or bars.
Make an effective, inexpensive fence-line hay feeder for small livestock by wiring the bottom of 4 × 4-inch welded-wire mesh panels, trimmed to size, to an existing fence and adding sturdy wire spreader arms at the top.
To reduce waste when feeding large round bales of hay, limit access to the hay with a feeder ring designed for your species.
Loose mineral feeders should be placed where they won’t be rained on — either in a building or under a canopy. Since most mineral mixes are 10 to 25 percent salt, and salt is highly corrosive, plastic mineral feeders are the durable choice.
Build an effective gravity-fed loose mineral feeder for small livestock by gluing a Y-type PVC cleanout plug to the bottom of a 3- or 4-foot (0.9 to 1.2 m) length of 4-inch (10 cm) PVC pipe, with the Y facing up. Permanently cap the bottom of the Y and attach a removable cap to the top of the tube. Add minerals through the top, and hang it so it is at chin height on your smallest animals.
Most animals consume a considerable amount of water each day, and the amount varies depending on weather conditions (they require more water during the hot summer months), mind-set, and whether they’re females in the latter stages of pregnancy or in milk. Lactating females have the highest requirements, and to prevent urinary calculi (see page 141 of Health chapter), it’s important for male llamas, goats, and sheep to drink a lot, too.
When water supplies are contaminated with droppings, algae, dead birds or bugs, leaves, and other debris, animals drink only enough fluid to barely get by. If the water you serve your animals isn’t appetizing enough for you to drink, you can bet picky species like llamas, goats, and sheep will tend to shun it, too. Empty scummy or contaminated tubs, tanks, and troughs, and scrub or spray their inner surfaces with a one-part chlorine bleach to ten-parts water solution. Choose a series of small troughs or automatic waterers over one or two megamodel tanks; the littler ones are easier to clean.
Place water-filled tubs and buckets in a shady area during the summer months. This helps inhibit algae growth and keeps the water fresher, which means the animals will drink more, too. When temperatures soar into the 90s or better, freeze ice in plastic milk jugs and submerge one jug in each trough or tub; your animals will appreciate this treat. Refreeze them overnight, and they’ll be ready to use again by midmorning.
Another cooling ploy: freeze plain water or electrolyte products in “ice cube trays” made from 8- to 12-ounce plastic food containers such as yogurt cups and cream cheese tubs. Pop out the “cubes” and drop them in buckets of water to cool down the liquid.
During the winter, prevent water supplies from freezing by installing bucket or stock tank heaters. Encase the cords in PVC pipe or garden hose split down the side and taped back together with duct tape; if you don’t, animals (especially young equines or goats) may gnaw through the cord and electrocute themselves.
Reused cattle lick tubs are ideal water containers for livestock.
When lambs, kids, or piglets are present, the water should be no deeper than 10 inches (25 cm), lest a youngster leap or fall in and drown. Never use 5-gallon recycled plastic food service buckets or other narrow, deep-water containers in pens where neonatal livestock is housed.
Some folks think that because you keep miniature livestock you don’t need full-size fences. Not true. You have to think of what you are keeping out as well as what you are keeping in. Although it may (or may not) be easier to keep them confined, smaller animals are more vulnerable to predation than their larger kin. While livestock guardian animals should be part of every miniature livestock breeder’s menagerie (and we’ve devoted a whole chapter to that subject), it’s still important to fence out predatory creatures.
The type of fences you build on your farm will likely depend on their purpose (for example, permanent, perimeter fencing; cross fencing; or temporary fences to provide for controlled grazing) and the species of livestock you raise. Most types of fences, for instance, work with cattle, but barbed wire is unsuitable for horses, because they can sustain serious injuries when they run into it or catch their legs in it; nor is barbed wire appropriate for sheep, whose thick wool renders the barbs ineffective. Some species, such as pigs, require super-stout fencing, as do breeding males of virtually every species.
You’ll want to erect sturdy, permanent fences around the perimeter of your property. These establish your property line; they also prevent your livestock from escaping, should gates or barn doors be left ajar, and keep other people’s wandering livestock from joining your own. Permanent fences should be well constructed of high-quality materials so they’ll last a long time with minimal repairs.
Be absolutely certain you know the exact location of your property lines before installing any type of permanent fence. And check with adjacent neighbors to see if they’re interested in pooling resources to build a better fence than what you can afford by yourself. In many states adjacent landowners are required by law to foot half of the bill for erecting shared fences. (Forcing the issue, however, may not be worthwhile if it leads to strained relationships between rural neighbors.)
Movable fences are considered temporary fences. They are, by nature, easy to put up and take down, so planning where to put them isn’t as important an issue as it is when planning permanent fences. They are usually used to break larger pastures into paddocks to provide for controlled grazing conditions. They should never be used for perimeter fencing, especially along roadways or in situations where animals that breach them can damage adjacent properties.
The most common types of fences encountered on today’s small farms are board, barbed wire, woven wire, cable, and electric.
Board fences, also referred to as post-and-plank or post-and-rail fences, are popular on many farms because they’re attractive, highly visible, and relatively safe. This group includes fences constructed of treated or painted 1- to 2-inch (2.5 to 5 cm) thick, 4- to 6-inch (10 to 15 cm) wide wooden planks nailed or screwed to the inside of wooden posts; split wooden rails that slide into holes in wooden posts; PVC plastic boards and posts; and wooden boards coated with vinyl. Board fences are usually supported by wooden posts set 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3 m) apart. They can be built to any height, though heights of 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 m) are most common. The primary disadvantage to board fencing is its cost, but with proper upkeep, these fences last 20 to 25 years.
Wooden planks are usually made of rough-cut oak or treated pine. Treated pine has a more finished look, it accepts paint, and the treatment it undergoes resists rotting and discourages animals from chewing — at least until the treatment wears off. Keep in mind that pine isn’t as strong as oak, so thicker boards are needed.
Rough-cut oak lends a rustic appearance, has high-tensile strength if animals lean or scratch their rumps on it, and most animals prefer not to chew oak planks. Oak boards warp when freshly cut, however, and some spots on some boards weather and rot faster than others (where the tree was weakened by natural processes). Rough-cut oak can be stained but not painted.
Solid PVC plastic fences cost more than wooden planks and rails, but they don’t require painting (they’re the same color throughout the material), which means they cost considerably less to maintain. Vinyl-coated plastic fencing is crafted of boards dipped in vinyl, so unlike solid PVC products, they can warp. White fences built from either type of vinyl fencing require washing with mildew-removing products at intervals, especially in the humid southern states.
Barbed wire is made of two or more strands of smooth, galvanized steel wire twisted together with two or four sharp barbs spaced every 4 to 5 inches (10 to 13 cm). It’s sold in 80-rod rolls (1,320 feet, or one-half mile [402 m]) in a variety of sizes and barb patterns. It can be erected on wood or steel T-posts, and it’s sometimes reinforced by installing twisted wire or plastic stays between each set of fence posts. Fences usually consist of three to seven strands of wire stretched between posts set 15 to 25 feet (5 to 8 m) apart.
Barbed wire, invented in the mid-1850s, was the first wire technology capable of restraining cattle. It was (and is) widely used on vast Western ranches where wood was (and is) scarce and the cost of alternate fencing prohibitive. It’s still the only legal fence in many states.
Barbed wire for agricultural fencing is available in two styles: soft (mild) steel and high-tensile. High-tensile wire is made with thinner but stronger steel. Its greater strength makes fences last longer because cattle can’t stretch and loosen it. It also supports longer spans, but because of its springy nature it’s hard to handle and somewhat dangerous for inexperienced fencers to install. Soft wire is much easier to work, but it’s less durable.
Barbed wire should never be used to fence an area that contains or may contain equines (full-size or miniature) now or in the future. Equines have trouble seeing barbed wire and may run into it at full speed, causing horrific injuries; they also tend to catch their legs in it when pawing at equines on the opposite side of the fence.
Barbed wire shouldn’t be used to fence any type of livestock in small areas such as pens or paddocks, where animals could jostle each other. Although a barbed wire fence is fairly cheap to build, vet bills incurred by using it usually offset any money saved.
Steel posts come in U bar, studded Y, punched channel, and studded T types, but they’re all called T-posts. Although they lack the eye appeal of wood posts, T-posts are fireproof, long-wearing, comparatively lightweight, and relatively easy to drive. They also ground the fence against lightning when the earth is wet. They do, however, tend to bend if larger livestock lean against them. Unbent T-posts last 25 to 30 years.
Wooden fence posts come in treated and untreated varieties. Treated posts last 20 to 30 years; the longevity of untreated posts depends on the type of tree they’re made from. The strength of wood posts increases as its top diameter grows larger; a 4-inch (10 cm) post is twice as strong as a 3-inch (8 cm) post, a 5-inch (13 cm) post is twice as strong as a 4-inch post, and so on. Corner and gate posts should have a top diameter of at least 8 inches (20 cm), brace posts 5 inches (13 cm) or more, and line posts can be anything 2½ inches (6 cm) or greater, but the bigger the posts the stronger and more durable the fence.
Step-in fiberglass and plastic posts are used to string up temporary fences, particularly fences made of electric string or tape. If you use them, buy good ones; low-end step-in posts don’t last.
U bar, T-post, and studded Y post
Woven wire, also called field fence, is the fence of choice for many farms, except in high snowfall areas where deep drifts tend to pull it down. It’s made of horizontal lines of smooth wire held apart by vertical wires called “stays.” Horizontal wires are usually spaced closer near the bottom of the fence. The vertical stays in standard woven wire are 6 or 12 inches (15 or 30 cm) apart.
Correctly installed, woven wire is the most secure form of affordable sheep, goat, and llama fencing, making it ideal for perimeter or boundary fences. Four-foot-high (1.2 m) woven wire will contain most animals. Installing one or two strands of barbed or electric wire above woven wire helps keep predators at bay.
One drawback is that some animals, especially goats and miniature horses, lean in to wire-mesh fences and then stroll along from post to post, scrubbing their sides. It’s a great way for them to shed winter hair or shoo a vexing fly, but it’s very, very hard on the fence. To prevent this, install a strand of offset electric wire at shoulder height on the inside of woven-wire fences.
High-tensile woven wire costs more than regular woven-wire fencing; however, it’s rust-resistant, sags less, and is lighter in weight.
Woven wire comes with galvanized (zinc) or aluminum coatings. Both are further classified as I, II, or III wire; the higher the number, the thicker the coating and the more durable the fence. Class I galvanized woven wire generally shows signs of rusting in 8 to 10 years, while Class III fencing begins to rust in 15 to 20 years. Aluminum-coated wire resists corrosion three to five times longer than galvanized wire with the same thickness of coating. Since a major part of fencing cost is installation, it’s best to use the longest-lasting wire you can afford.
When buying woven wire, read the tag; the numbers printed on it will tell you how it’s made. For instance, 10-47-6-9 fencing has 10 horizontal wires; it’s 47 inches tall; there is a 6-inch spacing between stay wires; and the fence is made of 9-gauge wire. Woven wire is sold in 20-rod (330-foot [100.5 m]) rolls and is generally supported by wood or steel posts erected at 14- to 16-foot (4 to 5 m) intervals.
Next to livestock panels, woven wire works best for most species.
Cable fences are strong and attractive, but because of their cost they’re usually used only to fence arenas and corrals. They’re generally made of K-inch smooth steel cable made of seven heavy wires twisted together. Cable is stretched between sturdy anchor posts with heavy-duty springs installed between post and cable to absorb shock on the cable caused by animals running in to or pressing against them. Along the length of the fence, cables usually pass through holes in wooden or heavy steel posts.
Standard electric fencing wire is sold in aluminum, regular steel, and high-tensile steel varieties. For permanent fencing, high tensile is the way to go.
High-tensile smooth fencing wire is installed using wooden or T-posts and plastic insulators. It comes in 11- to 14-gauge wire and has a breaking strength of roughly 1,800 pounds (816 kg). High-tensile fencing is durable and relatively easy to install, and it can be stretched tightly without breaking. Strong corner and end braces are needed, however, along with tensioners and strainers to keep it bowstring-taut.
ELECTRIC FENCE SAFETY
In most cases, being shocked by an electric fence isn’t fun, but the pain quickly passes. There are, however, exceptions to that rule. To prevent injuring yourself when dealing with electric fencing and electric fence chargers:
Never electrify barbed wire fencing; the chance of an animal or person becoming entrapped in it is much too great, and multiple shocks over a long period of time can kill.
Take care not to touch electrified fence with your neck or head. Don’t crawl under live electric fences. Step over low ones, turn off the charger, or find a way around.
Don’t tamper with or try to repair a fence charger; take it to an authorized service agency or replace it.
Never charge a battery on a battery-type fence charger while the charger is connected to the fence.
Never attach electric fence wire to a utility pole. High-voltage current leaking down a wet pole can be very dangerous.
Where high-tensile fences aren’t needed, standard steel or aluminum wire works well. Aluminum wire is the better of the two; it’s rustproof, so easy to work with, and it conducts electricity better than steel wire.
Electric fence failures happen when the fence chargers (also called “fencers,” “controllers,” or “energizers”) that power them aren’t up to the job. Chargers are distinguished by voltage (4,000 volts and up will hold most livestock) and the number of joules they put out (a joule is the amount of energy released with each pulse). One joule will power 6 miles (9.7 km) of single wire fence; a 4½ joule fencer will energize 20 to 60 acres, depending on the length of the fence and the number of wires that are used in its construction.
When building an electric fence, choose an adequate charger. The box will tell you how many miles of fence it charges, but that’s the greatest distance for one strand of fencing operating under tip-top conditions. Think big. The more powerful your charger, the fewer problems you’ll have.
There are two types of chargers on the market: high- and low-impedance models. High-impedance chargers put out a relatively high voltage with low amperage. When these short out — and even a weed or blade of grass can do it — they don’t work. Low-impedance chargers put out a lower-voltage, higher amperage charge resulting in a short, intense pulse and more energy that isn’t as easily shorted out.
According to University of Maryland sheep and goat expert Susan Schoenian, an estimated 80 percent of the electric fences in the United States are improperly grounded. Follow the instructions in your charger’s product manual; they vary between brands and models. Here are some other important tips when installing electric fencing:
Use quality insulators. Sunlight degrades plastic; choose high-quality insulators, preferably a brand treated to resist damage done by ultraviolet (UV) light.
Don’t skimp on wire. The larger the wire, the more electricity it can carry. And don’t space wires too closely. To get the most from your charger, place them at least 5 to 7 inches (13 to 18 cm) apart, even near the ground.
Train your animals to respect electric fences. Electric fences are psychological rather than physical barriers. Place untrained animals in a small area, then entice them from the sidelines with a pail of tasty grain till they get zapped.
Buy a voltmeter and use it. A good one costs in the neighborhood of $50 to $100, and it will help you keep your fences nice and hot. Check voltage every day. If the fence runs low on voltage or shorts out, you need to know it and correct the problem right away.
Polywire, polytape, and rope-style electric fencing that is used with step-in plastic or fiberglass posts make fine interior fences and can be moved around with ease. Wide, flat tape offers high visibility — especially important when your fences hold horses. However, flat tape whips around in the wind more than rope-style temporary fencing. To minimize whip, twist the tape once or twice between fence posts rather than installing it flat.
Net-style portable electric fencing is used to subdivide pastures for rotational grazing; to keep coyotes and stray dogs out and livestock guardian dogs in; to erect small pastures for special needs animals; to create lanes for moving livestock without assistance; and to fence steep, rocky, or otherwise uneven land. There are two basic types: brands with built-in posts and those without. Most roll up onto easy-to-use reels, making moving them a breeze. However, horned sheep and goats have been known to tangle their horns in the mesh, go into shock, and die. The same thing can happen to the heads and necks of curious llamas, lambs, and kids.
Strands of electric fencing used to contain miniature species must be set close together to keep livestock in and predators out.