Please recommend a pasture fence design

[chrism]

Your grandmother likely did not confine 50 birds to one acre and expect all nutrition to come from free-range foraging. I could not keep more than ten birds year round without at least supplemental feeding.

This is true.
She told me that she did not concern herself with confining the chickens at all.
She used the example of the Blue Jays, Robins (she seemed particularly fond of Robin eggs), rabbits and any other critter that she foraged food from. She didn't confine any of them.

Quote: 4 runs of 164' PermaNet Plus and 1 100' run of non-energized chicken wire covered picket fence.
2 Joule AC/DC energizer

Quote: Well... I'm hoping that using a small breed varmint dog will help in mitigating this concern.
Realistically though, my plan is to house the dog separate from the enclosed chicken yard while not under supervision.

 

[centrarchid]

You will be spending a lot of money to make so many paddocks where each is 1 acre in size. Well into the thousands for fencing alone and multiple chargers will be required.

Small breed will not make the breaking in process easier. My understanding is you will have one medium dog per paddock.


How will you protect landscape from overgrazing by chickens?

 

[123RedBeard]

There is 43,560 sq ft in an acre.

If your current 756' of fencing is set up in a perfect square of 189' ... You will have 35,721 sq ft, so at most .82 acre fenced in ... If for instance you had a rectangle of 100' X 278' you would only have 27,800 sq ft which is only .63 acre fenced in ... So you probably have closer to 3/4 of an acre with your current setup.

For that much fencing (as your proposed long range plan) ... I would think that a perimeter of field fence, http://m.redbrand.com/759238?t=f1qj3qc73vd4i591qrv91f2e30 with a few strands of electric would be much better, and easier to maintain, and last much longer ... An acre would need 840-1,000 ft of fencing ... multiple fence lines of 5-6 164' sections of poultry netting is going to take a lot of maintenance to keep the weeds down ... And how many years will it last?

Here is an fence length per acre guide ... http://m.redbrand.com/759957?t=f1qj3qc73vd4i591qrv91f2e30 if your runs are back to back, they could share a fence line on one side ...

 

[centrarchid]

The perimeter fencing is much cheaper and can be easier to maintain on larger areas. It also do not contain chicken's well although if chicken encourages to stay within core away from perimeter then you have a more economical option. Most of my paddocks defined by poultry netting have been inside the perimeter fencing where the poultry netting is used mostly to confine birds (juveniles) not inclined to fly. The netting stops smaller ground predators like raccoons, oppossums and foxes from getting at ground roosting juveniles. Those predators are harder to stop with perimeter fencing unless you have dogs that patrol frequently. Even with frequent patrols you will have troubles with Great-horned Owls at night and if dogs used to prevent owl-damage the dogs need to be able to get to where owl is when it comes in.

 

[chrism]

You will be spending a lot of money to make so many paddocks where each is 1 acre in size. Well into the thousands for fencing alone and multiple chargers will be required.

Quote:

 

[chrism]

Oh my... THANK YOU!!
That is so much better then the plan that I had.
What is your opinion on me using tall chicken wire fencing rather than welded wire fencing for my interior paddocks? Cost is the consideration.
I would still add an energizer to each paddock.

I carry a Kimber 1911 and Taurus .38 wheel gun for back-up.

I guess that I should change the title of this thread to "Please recommend a pasture fence design".

 

[123RedBeard]

Sorry ...


Edited by Staff

 

[aart]

Great discussion ...great plans/drawings RedBeard.

Wonders what staff edited.

 

[TalkALittle]

Wonders what staff edited.

My guess is that it's gratuitous pics of the poster brandishing a firearm. Personally, I find them to be in poor taste and am glad to have them edited out.

 

[Tumbling K]

dang missed a gun pic?