Keeping Animals In With ElectroNet

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We are currently raising a variety of animals on our 5.5 acre homestead. One of my goals, Y2K collapse or fizzle, is to avoid buying a tractor and also to minimize the amount of mowing we have to do around here. Last year I bought a cheap used riding mower which has been nothing but a headache and is now permanently broken down. Phooey on these motorized monsters! I can think of no bigger waste of time and money.

I initially bought geese in order to help me with the mowing. My thought was to move them around the yard in some kind of moveable fence. Unfortunately, my fencing ideas didn't work well at all. I first put them behind 3 foot poultry wire held up by step-in posts. The fence tended to blow over in the wind, or the geese would push it down and stampede out. I had good luck keeping them in with 4 foot woven wire fence but this became an enormous pain to move, due to its bulk and weight. We ended up mowing mechanically all spring and summer.

Well, the problem is solved, albeit a little late in the season. We bought four 150 foot rolls of ElectroNet fence and two fence energizers from Premier 1. This flexible wire mesh fencing is highly portable. One can set up a paddock very quickly. So far the geese stay behind the 33" ElectroNet pretty well; a few of them do occasionally fly over, but stay near the main flock. The geese just finished grazing off their first 75 x 75 foot square in about five days. This fencing also holds in our goats beautifully; they appreciate being given access to the brushy parts of our land and I appreciate their enthusiasm at cleaning up the weedy mess (and giving us more milk in return!). Our next purchase, coming up in a few weeks, will be a small flock of sheep (4 bred ewes, to lamb in the spring) to graze off our 1.5 acre lawn. I think that between the geese, the sheep, and the goats we should be able to stay on top of our lawn and some of the pasture, with only minimal trim mowing needed using a walk-behind gas guzzler. Just think: meat, milk, wool, eggs, feathers, and down, all in return for the privilege of mowing my grass for me! Who could ask for anything more?

Another benefit of the ElectroNet is its ability to deter predators. Two nights ago we awoke to an unbelievable shriek from our front yard, where the geese were bedded down. I'm about 99% sure that a coyote ran into the fence while trying to get the geese and got blasted. Heh, heh, heh!

I highly recommend ElectroNet fencing. Other vendors sell a similar product but I'm very happy with Premier 1's product. Their number is 800-282-6631. The fencing itself is $100 for a 150 foot roll. The IntelliShock 20B fence energizer is $135. You can get disposable battery packs for around $25 apiece, or go with a solar option and a lead-acid rechargeable battery. That's what I did. Premier 1 will sell you the battery and solar panel, with mounting hardware for around $210. As I know a bit about wiring, I chose to save some $$$ and ordered my batteries from Newark Electronics (800-4NEWARK, order a Yuasa NP 12-12) and got my solar panels from Northern Tool and Equipment (800-427-8863, item #16792-B941). Don't do this unless you know a bit about electrical appliances and are handy at wiring; just get them from Premier 1.

-- David Palm (djpalm64@yahoo.com), September 09, 1999

Answers

David,

I have a question regarding electic fencing with which you may be able to help me. I just started using electric fencing not long ago and am very impressed with it and its multitude of uses. My only problem is grounding. My soil is heavy with clay. I was only able to get a good ground by really pounding deep in a grounding rod. Its not hard but it will be hard to pull it out again to relocate the fence. Is there something I am missing or is there an easier way? Any advise would be appreciated.

-- Tom (timbereyes@usa.net), September 09, 1999.


Tom,

Your problem may be due to dryness. If the top layers of soil are not wet you have to put your ground post down to deeper layers which are. Sometimes, wetting the area around the ground post helps.

-- electra (ion@ground.net), September 09, 1999.


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