Electric Fence for Chicken Protection

[Happy Helper]

I saw a lot of discussion about electric fence to keep dogs out on the Pests Forum but there was no discussion about how to do it. I mean, how high off the ground do you put the first wire and do you need more than one wire to keep dogs out? I have an on-going problem with the neighbor's dogs. This Spring they have already killed 7 laying hens and 3 four month old chicks. If the chicken coop is door open, they go right in and start killing chickens and will kill any chicken that is out free ranging. Last fall, they killed about 20 chickens, just a slaughter. The neighbor can't be reasoned with and will not contain his dogs.

 

[Howard E]

As the guy doing the recommending, perhaps I could take a stab at it?

Shown below is the basic concept.....

This was installed as crowd control to keep the chickens OUT of newly planted garden, but would work to keep them in as well. As chicks, they were trained to this. They get shocked, then are reluctant to cross it. Can easily do so, but don't. Dogs and varmints are the same. They get shocked, don't like to get near it.

So concept is to run bottom wire or line close to the ground. This fence was made using portable step in electric fence posts. Bottom position or clip is about 5 inches off the ground. Next wire is 10 inches off the ground. To keep chickens in and dogs out, bottom 2 plus another at the 4th position (about 24 inches off the ground) should do it. Spacing of posts depends on how level your ground is, but if tensioned up enough, about 20 feet or so for your post spacing. This entire area is about 24 feet x 16 feet. Shown here as an example. Same concept is used to enclose entire garden area......which is about 100' x 200'. Field in background has been done the same way. It could be acres in size if you want it that large. You just need more posts and wire. If real wire is used, I'd set steel T posts on the corners with donut insulators to make the turns. If real wire is used, you also need mechanical tension devices to tension it up to keep it from sagging.

Next you need a charger. One shown below is a Parmak 12 volt charger, rated for 30 miles Runs about $100. A suitable substitute could be had for $50 or so. Neighbor uses a Zareba 25 mile AC fence charger and it works fine.

Note you need the charger......and a power source. Either 6 or 12 volt DC.....or an AC you plug into an outlet. Hot wire coming out of the fence attaches to the E fence. Ground wire (earth ground) coming out of fencer attached to an earth ground.......ground rods or in the case below......it is simply connected to a woven wire fence that itself is connected to a whole fence line of steel T posts......which is the earth ground for this system.

Animal gets shocked when the touch the fence while standing on the ground. That completes the circuit and a short burst of low amperage, high voltage current passes through the animal......which feels it as a super painful shock. Like a static electricity charge, X 1,000. You won't do it twice.

Typical response from a dog is to let out an involuntary yelp.......then beat feet for the horizon, never to return. Very much alive, very humble and bearing no more malice towards chickens.

 

[centrarchid]

The electrified poultry netting can be easier to setup and is easy to move. Down side is it cost more when protecting a larger area.

 

[cmom]

I have electric wire around all of my coops and pens. My bottom wire is about 6" off the ground. I use the poly rope wire. We have a lot of predators here, coyotes, fox, bobcats among others. We are rural with several acres but I have nice large pens for my birds that are covered for protection from the aerial predators. I also have concrete under the gates and in some places welded wire buried under and attached to the bottom of the fence. I have some electric wire along the bottom of the gates too. Once a predator touches the wire they don't test it again. I use a 1.2 joule fence charger. Good luck and have fun...

 

[cmom]

They are pure Rhode Island Red cockerels in a bachelor coop and pen.
Other cockerels. This hen was a champion at a show.

 

[Happy Helper]

Thanks so much for all the precise information. I am going to show your explanation to my son-in-law and hopefully we can do something in that order. I have copied your explanation and will print it out. Thanks again!

 

[Chicken Heel]

Let me guess that the neighbor would also really get pissed if the marauding dogs succumbed to lead poisoning.

 

[Daisy6]

We installed an electric fence summer of 2019, after a bear attacked and killed two chickens. We also installed a wildlife camera. The fence has kept bears, coyotes, raccoons, dogs and a bobcat out. The bottom wire is about 6 inches off the ground and the space increases as the fence gets higher. It's worked great but the only thing I would change is that we used the electric fence tape. We are going to change it to regular fence wire. The tape sags very easily and during the winter it get too close to the ground, so I'm out there in freezing weather working on the dang fence.

 

[centrarchid]

The poultry netting approach I use requires birds to stay inside. I have not had birds get stuck in it. A farmer in western Missouri has occasional Cornish X chicks get stuck in the fencing.

 

[Happy Helper]

Thanks for the suggestion about the netting. The simplest way for us would be running the electric wire up one side of the lot (we have 10 acres so it is a lot). It is a problem because the chickens really do have to get out especially in the summer. We have a nice coop that is divided into two sections, one is inside and the other section is covered with a roof and wire sides like a lanai. However, it will be crowded if they need to be inside all day. The dogs will be around a long time since they are only about three years old. They have been killing my chickens off and on for two years, now going into the third season. I would definitely like to give them a good shock!