# Permanent fencing or not? Pros, cons?



## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

We are trying to decide if we want to have electric netting we can move around for the goats or if we want something permanent. What kind of fencing do y’all have? What do you like/dislike about it? Thanks!


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## thefarmgirl (Jul 13, 2021)

We have electric fencing with wires. And I like it a lot better then what we used to have. We used to have chicken wire panel thingys and they were a mess. We were a lot of the times repairing the fence or doing something. For my preference, I choose electric fencing all the way!!


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## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

Ah! Ok, we were looking at getting netting. That’s good to know. Do you move it very often? If you do, how long does it usually take to move it?


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## thefarmgirl (Jul 13, 2021)

Ya I don’t use the netting type. We have moved it before and it really doesn’t take that long if you have a dad to help you like I do


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## thefarmgirl (Jul 13, 2021)

Depends on how much you would be fencing in too.


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## thefarmgirl (Jul 13, 2021)

But no. We have only moved it once


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## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

Ok thanks! We’d be moving it every two weeks about so it wouldn’t be huge.


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## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

What about babies going under the strands?


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## 21goaties (Mar 13, 2018)

We have 4 wire electric strands but we have no kids and no bucks (pets only) and they can go through it if they really want to. I would choose permanent fence at least 4 feet high (preferably 5 ft) with a hot wire on top and maybe on the bottom too if you have a problem with them digging out or animals digging in.

But if it is going to be temporary fence (ideally, you put them in an area with permanent fence at night) then the netting should work. Just be warned that if babies get stuck in the netting they can get shocked to death.


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## 21goaties (Mar 13, 2018)

KY Goat Girl said:


> What about babies going under the strands?


When we had kids 5+ years ago they would go under the strands all the time so no they do not keep kids in. Maybe if you had a ton of strands that were all an inch apart.


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## fivefeatherfarm (11 mo ago)

So I have the PermaNet plus setup from premier one. Its 48in tall with smaller spaces than the listed for sheep and goats. I haven't had super little kids in it yet but I have had does, a buck, and an 8 week old buckling use it with no real issues. As long as the fence stays charged, it works fabulously and all the goats respect it. The problems arise if I don't notice that battery has been dead for a few days or something like that. Its not the kind of set up where you can keep it charged for awhile and then turn it off because you think the goats are trained to it - not a thing lol. So it just has to stay on. We use the solar charger the starter pack comes with and have a couple extra batteries just in case. 

We have two rolls of 100ft that we use. I can move them and set them up by myself but it takes awhile and isn't the most convenient. My particular netting is meant to be moved seasonally so its made a little sturdier and therefore heavy for just one person to move. My husband and I have no problems doing it together though. We have used the netting for about a year and have built a permanent pen for the bucks. Now that I have the two, I definitely trust the netting a lot more because the goats respect it more and I don't have issues with escape artists. Not the case with the permanent pen. 

So I would say, netting if you have a few goats and plenty of space to move it around - it does not do well in wooded areas as it just gets tangled on things so easy so keep that in mind but if you have a lot of pasture you want them on it would work for that. If you don't have a lot of areas to move it then a permanent pen may be the way to go as its easier to dry lot versus something you're moving around frequently.


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## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

21goaties said:


> We have 4 wire electric strands but we have no kids and no bucks (pets only) and they can go through it if they really want to. I would choose permanent fence at least 4 feet high (preferably 5 ft) with a hot wire on top and maybe on the bottom too if you have a problem with them digging out or animals digging in.
> 
> But if it is going to be temporary fence (ideally, you put them in an area with permanent fence at night) then the netting should work. Just be warned that if babies get stuck in the netting they can get shocked to death.


Ok thanks! I think we might try the netting until we decide if it’s coming to work or if we absolutely need a permanent fence. And thank you for telling me about babies getting stuck and shocked to death. That we’ll help my plead my case to my parents and older brother. I’m like the only one who doesn’t want electric. I don’t like using it around babies.


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## KY Goat Girl (12 mo ago)

fivefeatherfarm said:


> So I have the PermaNet plus setup from premier one. Its 48in tall with smaller spaces than the listed for sheep and goats. I haven't had super little kids in it yet but I have had does, a buck, and an 8 week old buckling use it with no real issues. As long as the fence stays charged, it works fabulously and all the goats respect it. The problems arise if I don't notice that battery has been dead for a few days or something like that. Its not the kind of set up where you can keep it charged for awhile and then turn it off because you think the goats are trained to it - not a thing lol. So it just has to stay on. We use the solar charger the starter pack comes with and have a couple extra batteries just in case.
> 
> We have two rolls of 100ft that we use. I can move them and set them up by myself but it takes awhile and isn't the most convenient. My particular netting is meant to be moved seasonally so its made a little sturdier and therefore heavy for just one person to move. My husband and I have no problems doing it together though. We have used the netting for about a year and have built a permanent pen for the bucks. Now that I have the two, I definitely trust the netting a lot more because the goats respect it more and I don't have issues with escape artists. Not the case with the permanent pen.
> 
> So I would say, netting if you have a few goats and plenty of space to move it around - it does not do well in wooded areas as it just gets tangled on things so easy so keep that in mind but if you have a lot of pasture you want them on it would work for that. If you don't have a lot of areas to move it then a permanent pen may be the way to go as its easier to dry lot versus something you're moving around frequently.


We would have it out in the big pasture to move it around. The goats can can through most of the fencing out there so we need something more goat proof. It would mostly just be used to the does. The bucks are going to be in a smaller goat proof pasture.


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