Electric Rope Fencing v Electric Netting

Our new sheep came from a farm that used electric netting to split up paddocks. Since I didn't know how they would respond to the electric rope I have been using I brought out the roll of electric netting I have used for the chickens for the past few years.

In trying to set up the electric netting I realized that I have become spoiled with the electric rope system I have devised. The electric netting was always difficult for me to move around mostly due to the shear weight of the roll and the bulkiness. We bought the 48" poultry netting (164 ft long) which weighs nearly twice as much as the 36"  sheep netting (at 100 ft long). The videos of people holding the netting in one arm, walking along and sticking each post in the ground never worked for me. First, I could never carry the entire roll in one arm; second, our soil is shale with lots of little rocks. The spikes never go in easily.  Third, our ground is very uneven so the netting would never sit quite flat to the ground. There would be areas where the netting sagged onto the ground and areas where a determined chicken could climb under the bottom wire.

With the roping system I am using now I use a tough step in post to make the holes for my cheap poles. Since the rope strings through the open loops on the poles I can move the poles to wherever I need them versus the netting with the poles attached. The rope requires a little more walking but is easier for me in my situation.

And our new friends figured out the electric rope very quickly and have had no trouble adjusting. Now I wonder if the chicken could be trained to the rope.

Getting Better at Fencing Paddocks

I am finally feeling comfortable with my method for fencing the paddocks within the perimeter fence. These $1.99 step-in posts from Tractor Supply work well to create a "gate" at the end of a run. I can adjust the tension with the blue baling twine and untie the twine for a "gate" if I need to move the sheep.

These little gizmos are only 80 cents from Premier 1 but are worth their weight in gold when it comes to splicing two lengths of electric rope together or making a loop.

I also use these hooks to attach the rope to the electric wire and energize the rope. They add a little tension so if I have a short straight run I can use these to make a gate.

I need to get another spool to wind up rope as I am moving fencing. This stuff likes to get tangled. The spool is also nice to hold the longs ends left when I have a short run.

The sheep have totally adjusted to the paddock system and the electric rope.

Learning the Ropes

While waiting for the pastures to be ready for grazing the sheep have been busy learning all about electric roping. With the permanent perimeter fencing and the semi permanent fencing down the side of the stream in place the sheep need to learn to respect the temporary electric rope that will delineate their grazing areas. We fenced in a small area outside their barn run with the electric rope and have been letting them out to "learn the ropes."

After quite a few zaps, ram 0006 was the slowest learner, they all seem to respect that little white rope. Yesterday ram 0006 came up to within a foot of the rope, looked at it, then backed away. Good boy!

Worming and weaning ram 0004 happen this weekend, then it will out into the pastures the following week.

Fencing Along the Stream

For the Management Intensive Grazing (MIG) that I plan to use for the sheep I need to be able to attach my fencing to a hot electric wire. Our permanent perimeter fence has a hot wire along the top, but the middle pasture is far away from the perimeter fence for the most part. Today we strung a semi-permanent 3-wire electric fence on T-posts all along the stream. Total length was 385 feet. We used 23 T-posts. At our old house it would have taken nearly a week to pound in 23 T-posts!
We also got this cool tool- a Spinning Jenny. Very useful for rolling out the high-tensile wire.

Alan has the whole electric fencing thing pretty much figured out, but I am slowly coming along. It's finally starting to make some sense. These cool fencing tighteners work really well.

The fence looks pretty nice. Not only will it be my source of power for the portable fencing, it will also help keep the sheep out of the stream. Now we just need to add a couple connectors and hook up the knife switch so we can turn it off when needed. One step closer to MIG!

Gate Work

Our new gates worked great when first installed, but gradually over the winter the one we use the most became harder and harder to operate. Finally, I couldn't even close it from inside the pasture.

The top hinge pin was nearly out of the hinge and the bottom hinge had slid down on the gate. This left the hinge side of the gate sitting on the ground. To close the gate one had to back up the the gate, lift the gate up onto the latch and then push with your entire body to close it.

It took a bit of levering, adjusting and wrench work to raise the gate in the bottom hinge and straighten out the top hinge pin but now the gate works perfectly!

Future Plans for Livestock

With the weather so miserable it is fun to dream of spring. Soon it will be time to wean Ram1 and Ram2. We will have to separate them from the rest of the herd soon after that since they are not castrated.  We've been thinking about where to put a ram pen; a place we can have the growing meat rams and our new herd sire when he arrives in May.  We may even put Thor, our Nigerian Dwarf wether, in with the young boys to teach them some manners and keep the sire company after the other rams are butchered. This field, in the background, is across the stream and might make a nice area for growing rams and our sire.

I just need to figure out how much room I need for grazing four growing rams and a wether. We've also not been able to figure out how much of a barrier the stream is. Our goats have walked up to the edge but have not tried to walk on the ice yet. But then, they hate water and get upset when it's raining. I tend to think the stream would not stop a ram intent on getting to a ewe in heat. But would 3 rows of electric rope? Or should we use something stronger? Every day there is so much to learn!

The Orchard

Last winter with horrible weather the deer used my apple trees as a snack bar. Consequently, we harvested about five apples. The growth they put on last summer should get us a better harvest next fall, but not if the deer return to eat. Enter the three wire electric fence.

Our latest project over the past few weeks has been to fence in the area that will be the new orchard. This area encompasses the existing apples trees and heads down the south-east facing slope in a roughly 43x37 foot rectangle.  Alan hooked up the fence last night to the energizer and the meter pegged out at greater than 8,000 volts. Watch out deer!

With orchard area now defined I ordered some heirloom apple trees, a self fertile peach tree, two pear trees and a crab apple tree. Computer time has been used up reading all about organic orcharding and management.

The Electric Fence

When the fence guys put in the new fence they added a wire around the top to electrify.  Alan got the charger hooked up and now the wire is hot. Our meter pegs out at 8,000 volts even at the farthest point. That should keep everyone in and predators out!
Alan also made this great little box to protect the charger. When the charger is on you can see the light blinking through the hole in the door and it makes a very audible click that is very reassuring.

The Finished Fence

It always amazes me how fast a crew of guys who do something all the time can be. Our fence took less than two full days. Unfortunately, the snow that fell on the first day make for a muddy mess that probably won't be repaired until spring. But the fence looks great!

They even put in supports for a livestock bridge that Alan will build next year so we can access the pasture on the other side of the stream.

We spent Saturday rebuilding the sheep paddock outside the barn. The sheep were very happy to be able to go outside again. They did not seem to appreciate being stuck in the barn for two days.

New Fence!

Today the fencing crew came to start the new fence. Despite the snow, forecasted as snow showers but in reality became 3-4 inches, the crew got all of the posts in and a little over half of the fencing up. Tomorrow they will finish putting up the wire fencing, add the electrified wire along the top of the fence and install five gates. They think they may be done by noon.

These pictures were taken early in the day so the snow fall is minimal.
The crew was interesting to watch. They brought quite a bit of equipment and supplies with them.

This is the post pounder. I wonder how many fingers the guy at the post has lost. He kept putting his hand on the post as it was being pounded into the ground.

Of course the sheep were stuck in the barn all day, but the lambs kept active.