Fencing & planting fields...

Kari · Jun 14, 2009

Hi,

We're getting ready to fence and plant two fields, and I have two questions.

1. What fencing do you recommend?

The big field will be for yearlings, seniors, etc. and is not too near our house. We have coyotes, occasionally mountain lions, and possibly-vicious dogs nearby. I'm thinking electric rope... 5' tall.

The other field is smaller and near our house. I'd like to do it in electric rope as well, but this will be a nursery field for mares with foals. Would electric rope be safe for them??

2. What type of seed should I plant? The fields are hilly right now but will be flattened and dirt spread around. I want to plant something nutritious so don't have to feed hay in the spring/summer. But I want all fields safe for bred mares. So, I was thinking orchard grass...

Thoughts?

Kari

Lacie · Jun 14, 2009

Rizer is three months old and he's absolutely fine in the electric tape. He found out that it liked to bite if you got too close and he hasn't tempted fate again! I would use electric tape with the foals - it offers greater visibility than rope might. Once they figure out that they get zapped, they won't mess with it again!

Mountain lions would make me nervous o__O We have coyotes, but we stall everyone at night. Our dogs run off the other dogs here so they've never been a big deal around our house. But you might want to make it higher than 5ft - can't cougars jump higher than that?

Edit: I've just read that they can jump up to 15 feet high P-8 And they reach 8ft in length - so I'd go ALOT higher than five feet if you dont stall at night.

Kari · Jun 14, 2009

Oh, should've mentioned we stall as soon as it gets dark... saves our sanity

And our dogs have a fit if ANYTHING dares to enter "their" property, so I'm probably over-thinking it............

Kari

Lacie · Jun 14, 2009

I don't blame you at all for stalling them. We're really paranoid about that too, and people around here look at us like we're crazy. But alas, we have horses that don't have scars all over their legs and everywhere else.

The only con about electric is that they won't keep the fence line down, so you have to weedeat it.

Shari · Jun 15, 2009

5' tall fence will not keep cougars or Bobcats out... simple electric braid isn't going to keep much of anything out.

Here's our night pasture... top wire had not be run at that point.

Is 8" tall

(Fish and Game told us this is the height cougars don't like to jump straight over)

and in some areas because of the down hills on the outside of the fence.. would be like a 10" fence for an animal to jump over....

Hot wire is on the inside and out side of the fence. Low to keep Coyotes and dogs from digging under and tall to keep the cougar and bobcats out.

Heavy duty T posts were special ordered that tall.. every 7" spacing.. Camel backs in cement every 100', tri corners. Woven field fence properly stretched.The most heavy duty hot wire on the market and a predator rated charger.

Gates are also week points.. so here is what we do.

Doing the fence like this will save you from heart ache and big Vet bills due to predation. We redid our night pasture like this after Ella was attacked by a bobcat... I only had 5" fencing then and not nearly as beefy as the new fencing.

Hopefully,, things will get better and we can continue to fence other parts of our properly like the night pasture.

I no longer have to keep the mini's in at night....and they are much, much happier because of that.