# Inexpensive fencing ideas needed



## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

I want to fence in some pasture area for my goats. I don't have alot of money for materials right now, but I do have access to a lot of scrubby trees I can cut down for posts. Does anyone have any ideas for rustic fencing that would keep in goats (nigerians) or any other ideas on how to create an inexpensive fenced area for my girls?


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## Randi (Apr 22, 2011)

I've been fencing with old posts and woods logs. I started with electric ribbon--very cheap but goats will figure out how to get past the shock in time. I started with a small space and little at a time I am switching to wire fabric and expanding my fenced area. It is working for me except the bucks are a bit harder to fence. I've had to put boards at the top and bottom of their fence.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

I just ordered a electric net fence made for goats that can be moved around. It was just under $100 for 164feet from Premier1. You can hook a few together and get a bigger area. Then you also need a electric charger. I am hopping it will work for my nigerians so I can move them all around the yard; if it doesn't work for them it will for my horse. I cant think of any less expensive fence for pasture...as long as it works with them.

My current fenced areas are fenced with welded wire which we found easier to work with than woven and less expensive. But we just had a escapie push her way thru and pop the welds right off. Fence has had no issues since we put it up in May until now. I actually think she was trying to get to the buck; you would think it would be the other way around!


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

Electric fencing would be hard, not many outlets in my barn as it is, and the area to be fenced is far from barn. Besides my neighbor's dogs sometimes come over to visit and flip out the goats, I would worry that they would panic and go thru the electric fencing, as a kid our horses generally respected the electric fence, but when they'd panic, it was like nothing was there, and they'd go right thru it, so not a big fan of electric fencing.

I had welded wire fence last 6 years with chickens, not quite one year with the goats (same fencing, but the section the goats were in "suddenly" started deteriorating, welds popping, and the fence getting saggy) Had to replace it with woven wire this past summer. Seems to be holding up so far.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

Yep you would need power. I use a solar charger for my horses area now but I have heard that goats require a much higher output of charge (because of hollow hair). Yea I do agree that if scared they may bolt but at my place with a big enough area I think they will stay in and it is only for part of the day to graze. 
Agree in the future about the welded wire we will be spending more and using woven. 

My only other idea is to take pallets and place them end to end and secure them to each other with wire or wood & nails. May not be to pretty but you could get the pallets free.
Those were the only things I could think of but good luck.


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## iddybit acres (Feb 18, 2011)

freedomstarfarm said:


> I just ordered a electric net fence made for goats that can be moved around. It was just under $100 for 164feet from Premier1. You can hook a few together and get a bigger area. Then you also need a electric charger. I am hopping it will work for my nigerians so I can move them all around the yard; if it doesn't work for them it will for my horse. I cant think of any less expensive fence for pasture...as long as it works with them.
> 
> I bought mine from kencove for my quarter horse he jumped right over it!! So i thought i'd use it for my alpine/ nubian wether's and they just pushed it right over!! Definately need stronger stake's and level ground !!!
> I posted a flyer up at the grocery store and got lot's of responces, my fence is all mismatched  And pallet's work pretty good too i use them on the front


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

My horse has been in electric most of his life and does just fine as long as he has a good size area. The fence is 48" high at its lowest points otherwise I am sure he could dump right out also.  
Did the net fence you tried for your goats have a double spike? The one I got does... I guess I will give it a try and see. If my goats ever get out they don't go anywhere anyways. Other than to wait by the feed barn in the hopes that the door will magically open. :slapfloor:


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## iddybit acres (Feb 18, 2011)

http://www.kencove.com/fence/Electric+N ... l_NP7G.php this is what i got


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

Here is the one I got. http://www.premier1supplies.com/fencing.php?mode=detail&fence_id=103 Looks pretty similar. Well if it sucks :idea: I can get some ducks and maybe keep them in. Yes I think some ducks would be a nice addition to my farm. :dance:


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

the key with any electric fencing - be it regular strand or netting - is to teach the goats to respect the fence.

They need to learn its HOT. You can put something near it that they want to eat or even put something yummy on the wire or dangle a treat near it so they touch it with their nose. This way they get that respect level before they topple it over


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

Thanks Stacey I'll try that it makes perfect sense. with my horse he had been on electric with the previous owner but we had him in split rail. to reintroduce him to it we stood out side the fence with a feed bucket not looking at him just talking ..well he of course thought it was for him and started coming until he hit the fence. never touched it since then.


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## milk and honey (Oct 31, 2010)

I fenced in my first 'goat area' with wood pallets... they worked really well for my Nigies, cause they were just tall enough to keep them in. I was able to pick these up at various locations around town for free! I just had to buy a few cheap (low grade) 2 X 4's and screws and brackets to keep it all up and together. I have since increased my space and bought field fence.. but the free pallets worked really well for starting out.


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## Steve (Mar 12, 2011)

First choice for me was woven wire,the type with the 6X12 squares so they dont get stuck in it.Barb wire would work if all strands are tight and are close together with many stays between the wires.
You can also use it in small areas instead of buying a roll of woven wire for a spot you only need a piece 50' long for.Make sure you buy good wire no matter what it is.There are many cheap brands that are junk and hard to work with.

I recently patched a hole in an old fence with a wild rose bush i had cut and feed to the goats.Stuffed it in the bad part of the fence with some other limbs to old it and they havent tried it since.


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## Randi (Apr 22, 2011)

I think horses stay put because they choose to. I have not had my electric fence on for the last 4 years and my horses don't go through it. If Sadie really wanted to get out she can jump the fence at 4'6". Pretty good for a 13hand pony.

My goats free range every other day. Bucky Boys on the odd days and the girls on the even days. The fenced portion used on the other day is huge with plenty of browse. But I am still finding the places they are breaking out. Then I just plug the hole.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

> First choice for me was woven wire,the type with the 6X12 squares so they dont get stuck in it.


 Just be aware that kid Nigerian Dwarfs can go right on thru this size no problem. For ND kids I would say 2x4 or maybe 4x4.


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## Steve (Mar 12, 2011)

yeah my boer kids can go through it too,they come back though.


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## Randi (Apr 22, 2011)

Mine is welded wire 2x4 for Nigi's. I just switch 50ft with the electric, and when I can afford it, I do 50 more. But I can let my goats free range because there is no where to go. They just eat the woods.


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

My road is intermittently busy (during morning/evening rush hour) but the rest of the time the cars go REALLY fast. Someone hit our cat last month going about 90 judging by how bad he looked - he was very light colored, it was on an open stretch, and he was always wary of cars, so it may have been on purpose. 

I don't let my chickens wander either. I don't want them to get hit, and even more I don't want to cause an accident. Plus we have neighbors on 3 sides and I doubt goats respect others' good plants - esp the vineyard that my neighbor started - good way to promote bad relations.


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## Randi (Apr 22, 2011)

Sounds like free range is not a choice.


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I'd think the woven fence would be the cheapest as well. The smaller squares are the best, not sure how good of a deal you can find. We buy field fencing for our boers, we get about 300ft for $150...call around, if you have a Lowe's store you can check them out, I think they were cheaper than TSC.


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

Yeah, i wish i could free-range them. I love my house, and my property is a nice size esp as we get older, the neighbors are great, but the road can be a problem. 

For the fencing, I had a friend suggest craigslist - even if all the fence doesn't all match if it does the job and looks halfway decent................I am searching now. 


I know DH would go nuts if i put up pallet fencing. I have all these old windows to make a greenhouse and he didn't like that plan (not that i am listening too hard, i'm still collecting windows) I thought i could arrange them by size, paint all the frames alike and it would look pretty good. Spring pickup is next week so people will be dumping more stuff like that this week.


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## freedomstarfarm (Mar 25, 2011)

Love that greenhouse idea!! :thumb:


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I agree the greenhouse idea sounds very cool! You'll have to get pictures for sure when you do get it done! 

If you don't need a huge area since they are small breed, the pallet fence could very well be the answer! We use pallets for EVERYTHING they are great to have. They are temporary not permanent too....Just tie them together with something strong - I like using clothesline rope myself that I get at a local 5 and dime store for about $2.00. It's amazing what you can do when you put your mind to it.....pallets are 'free' and if you pick up some decent looking ones they aren't going to look too bad


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## Froggy (Feb 27, 2011)

I ordered Estop net from Priemier1 cost me about $400 (164ft roll, battery, energizer). 
I was so excited when I got it yesterday. 

This morning, I tried it. I set it up, and tested it out with a goat (I have ND crosses). Then put the rest of the herd in there (about 5adults plus babies) Then I sat out to watch them. The babies got zapped and jumped away. 

Then one of the babies, after being zapped twice in 10minutes, decided to throw himself into the net. Rightaway, he got tangled up and kept getting zapped, so I had to turn off the energizer. :shocked: Okay, now I was a little worried. What if this happened while I was gone?
But that wasn't enough. Shortly after, when I had put the babies away, My most annoying adult doe (she is a very ''special'' goat) decided that she HAD to get back to the main pen, and promptly dove into the net, getting zapped and knocking a lot off fence down. as if that weren't good enough, she tore the net. :hair: 

I wouldn't use this for baby goats (under 4months of age), wild or escape goats. just my :2cents: 
Of course, my goats (an my other animals) are very ''unique''. :GAAH: 

I'm sure it works for a lot of people & their herds/flocks.


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

maybe the netting would hold in chickens................


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## OhCee (Feb 26, 2010)

I use woven field fence. it's not cheap, but it works well. don't use welded fencing- they can just break through it.


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

I had welded wire fence last for 6 years with the chickens, and it would probably have continued to last, but it shares a side with the goats and they weren't satisfied with breaking the welds on their section, they had to break the welds on the chicken's fence also. Last summer i upgraded to the no-climb woven horse fence. Little monsters!


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

Here is something like what I was thinking

http://www.allotmentforestry.com/fact/srf.htm

If I lined it with chicken wire, would that work? Or if I did my idea of mismatched fencing from craigslist, this would add some continuity to my design. I have sturdy black locusts for the main uprights and horizontals, and between my property and my mom's I have plenty of black locust 'twigs' - they grow like weeks and have nasty thorns, but apparently they make good fences, the wood is very durable.


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

Locust is a common wood for fence posts....they last forever too...literally! The farm I grew up on still has the same locust posts in use that were there long before I was born.
It does look nice, time consuming to gather and tack the "twigs" but it would work, and depending on how far apart you space the uprights, you may not need to attach wire.


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

I was thinking about that - they tacked them on with nails (which the goats would push off i would think) but if i wired them on, and spaced them close, I might be okay. I just thought chicken wire would add extra support. (although when i consider my time, and the cost of chicken wire, I should probably just buy a giant roll of field fence)


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## liz (Oct 5, 2007)

If you tack the uprights on the inside of the rails, the goats will be less likely to push them off, once tacked on though you can go back through and reinforce them with a wire twist.


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## Hollowdweller (May 5, 2011)

I would suggest that you unplug anything else and get an electric fencer, one that is LOW IMPEDANCE.

You may be able to buy one locally.

Then get some steel T Posts and pinlock insulators and some polywire from your feed store and run yourself a fence.

There's really not any true alternative.

I too use the premier electric netting mentioned in this thread and it is great. However you HAVE to keep the weeds off of it.

I raise my kids in a pen using a calf hutch surrounded by stock panels to start.

Then I leave stock panel in the front to hang feeders off of and the rest of the enclosure is the electric netting. That stuff is so tight as long as it is properly energized there is no way a kid can touch it and not get shocked. Also no way a dog can get in.

If baby goats are trained using this fence you can keep them in with a 3 strand polywire fence no problem.

However my main pastures are 5 strand 14 gauge hi tensile with the bottom 4 wires being at 6" 12" 18" and 24"

But just plain T Posts and polywire works great as long as you put the bottom wires low.

This is 2 pics of the kidding pen one stock panel and one once the netting was added. The beauty of this system is you can move the pen easily (note the limed area in the one pic where the kid pen was moved from) By raising them pasteurized and moving them to fresh ground you can eliminate cociddia and frequent worming since they are not exposed to adult animals and the sun disinfects the pen.


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## iddybit acres (Feb 18, 2011)

My hubby bought me the electric net fence two year's ago for mother's day .......... Spent forever hooking it up and laying out put the goat's in they got tangled and ZAPPED over and over and over again!! I'll never do that again!! All of our fence is "pieced" together we have snow fence, welded wire, field and just started running electric fence yesterday! Needless to say yesterday i traded my net fence off for 2 pure bred goat's a lamanche and pygmy!!


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## Hollowdweller (May 5, 2011)

iddybit acres said:


> My hubby bought me the electric net fence two year's ago for mother's day .......... Spent forever hooking it up and laying out put the goat's in they got tangled and ZAPPED over and over and over again!! I'll never do that again!!


 Iddybit,

When I first put them in it I do it on a weekend where I will be there all day to watch in case the kids get tangled in them. Which is rare.

But you DO want them to get shocked or they will never learn to respect the fence.


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## iddybit acres (Feb 18, 2011)

We were home!! thank goodness!!!


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## PznIvyFarm (Jul 25, 2010)

Yes, but you missed the part where I said I have an old barn, there is electric for lights, fans in the summer, water heaters in the winter, but not a heck of a lot else. And it is far from the spot i want to fence in. (yes i know there are solar panels but i live near Rochester NY where the sun rarely shines)

And I am not a fan of electric fences anyway. I got zapped MANY times as a child b/c i would be petting the horses and the dummies would touch the fence and i got the brunt of it. I still have an extreme aversion to electricity - i will tackle just about any home improvement project BUT electrical ones. The two times I did

1. the contractor said there was no power to the antique ceiling box, I got tired of waiting for DH to take care of it, so my contractor said i could just cut the excess and cap them off. WRONG! I got zapped and almost knocked off the ladder.

2. The power was shut off to a room I was renovating. (i checked myself with a lamp) I was moving electrical boxes out to match the new drywall. Unbenowst to me someone in the distant past had made 7 boxes in the room and the ceiling box on one circuit, and the 8th box was on a different circuit. ZAP! 

That is the end of of my playing around with electricity. I think i am a magnet for it. 

Plus, whenever the horses would get freaked out, they'd go right thru the electric fence anyway.


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