Electric fencing questions

[WilderSkye]

We ordered a Starkline fence which will be here next week.

1. If the fence is not near the coop/run, and you need to put the chickens in there daily, is it possible to train them to go with me to the fenced area and them walk in? Our will I need to put them in as they won't cross the open gate of an electric fence that has zapped them? Will I need to carry them over there and back to the run when ready to be put up? We will put shelter, etc in fenced area.

2. When you first put them in there, do you just put them in, it is electrified, and let them figure it out? Is it that easy? We used to keep cows and horses in electric fenced areas when I was a kid, but I have no idea how my dad accustomed them to it.

3. It is 164' long, so whatever area that will configure to can they have the whole area right off? Or should we slowly increase size? They are 10 weeks old.

We had planned to totally free range them but realized if we valued our garden and other areas of the yard, we needed to contain them exactly where I wanted them to be in.

Any tips helpful.

 

[DobieLover]

Why wouldn't you just install the fence so that they can access it from their current coop/run? They will want to go back to their coop to lay eggs when they get old enough and may want to get back to the coop for shelter.

Did you order extra support poles? If not, you will need them. I put an extra post between every post in the net. It will keep the hot wire from sagging over uneven terrain and grounding the charge.

Where will you install your charger and ground rods? What voltage/joule rating did/will you install?

As for acclimation, I just let my original flock loose in their new pen. I would do the same for 10-week olds. My head hen was the first to get a zap. She screamed and ran back the run and sulked for about an hour. She is the only one I ever saw get a pop. The others learn very quickly from the one(s) that get a zap to keep their combs/wattles away from the fence. If they brush up against the fence with their feathers, nothing happens as their feathers are excellent insulation from the charge.

If you manage to teach your flock to willingly walk over to a pen and just go in without being transported and placed there you could probably get yourself a slot in Ripley's Believe It or Not.

 

[Ridgerunner]

1. If the fence is not near the coop/run, and you need to put the chickens in there daily, is it possible to train them to go with me to the fenced area and them walk in?

I've never tried that. I put mine adjacent to the coop/run with a pop door they could use as they wished. I'd consider moving them back and forth as too much work, even if I could train them to actually make the walk. I consider Dobie's comments about going back to the coop to lay later important to consider.

I don't know why you want to put it that far away. I see two possible ways to achieve that. Use a crate on a wagon to move them back and forth or build a tunnel between the two. To me the wagon is a twice a day regardless of weather or wanting to visit relatives or eat out with friends. Really ties you down. Grass or weeds would need to be controlled in a tunnel plus would it block you from getting from one point on your property to another? Would it block roads or paths? Probably impractical.

Another option would be to put a coop inside this netting and leave them out there full time, day and night.

2. When you first put them in there, do you just put them in, it is electrified, and let them figure it out? Is it that easy?

It can be that easy if you let it. Or you can really make it complicated.

3. It is 164' long, so whatever area that will configure to can they have the whole area right off?

I'd let them have the whole area. I see no benefit to restricting any of that area.

 

[RoyalChick]

Weighing in. I have only ever seen one hen zapped and that hen has long since passed, and yet all the current hens seem to understand the fence.
I cannot imagine how the carrying them back and forth would work. The fence is easy to configure, could you make a passageway from their run to where you want them foraging? Mine is right outside their run so I just open the door and they all rush out which is super easy.

 

[WilderSkye]

Sorry it took me a bit to get back to this. A couple of old farts had to auger 12 holes for 6x6 posts yesterday in New Mexico high plains dirt for the next project, a three sided 16 x 24 garden shed.

Okay, we have a 12x21 chicken run and henhouse and the electric fence will lead from a hatch there and configured in that area. However, we have an aspen grove about 100 yards or so off that I will want to put them in to tear up the ground for us. Then another 100 yards or so a bamboo grove I need to work for us. And again, the third direction, a ways off, I have another area I need them to worked.


I kinda figured training them to follow me like ducklings might be a stretch. I have one of those big Gorilla carts with slots for side boards that I can make a little trailer to haul them across the yard. The entire reason for getting them, as I don't eat eggs and he shouldnt, is for destructive dirt work. And to be honest, entertainment. I am trying to set up some sort of system that I had hoped I could send them off for day work camp.

After spending close to $7K on the run and henhouse I think my husband would weep if I told we need to build separate henhouses for them at night. We will put little shelters for them in the other areas for day use.

Oh, and I checked my order and I cannot find anywhere how many joules the charger has but it is solar. (I ordered it when hubby gone, and he is an electrician....I just hope I got the right things. I got the package deal.) thank you for tip on fence rods. We will get more of those.

I hated to admit to him the other day, but I said, "this is feeling like a money pit right now." To which my lovely man of 42 years marriage replied, "and to think, I nearly bought you a horse instead."

 

[kattabelly]

It might not be an issue depending on your birds (though at 10 weeks even heavier breeds should still be better at flying than they will when they're fully grown) but ime electric netting tends to work better in open pasture. Will you be able to put the fence either far enough away from any trees, shelters you build, etc that the birds can't use them as a launchpad to get over the fence, or so close that they don't have enough distance to gain the height needed to clear it?

It might be possible to bucket train them so they'll (mostly) follow you from the run to get fed inside the fenced area in the morning and then back in their run in the evening.

Once they start laying they'll need some kind of nest box in the day shelters if they won't be able to get back to the house inside their run during the day.

 

[Ridgerunner]

However, we have an aspen grove about 100 yards or so off that I will want to put them in to tear up the ground for us. Then another 100 yards or so a bamboo grove I need to work for us. And again, the third direction, a ways off, I have another area I need them to worked.

How much good chickens will do in those areas will depend on the number of chickens and how big each area is. I'm not sure they will help that much with bamboo anyway, bamboo is tough. You can try training them to follow you but I don't have much faith in that working. Never hurts to try though. I think your best option is to cart them back and forth with nests in the area.

With your goals, if you were starting over I'd choose pigs. Pigs need to be electric fence trained, otherwise they can charge right through it, but they would be more effective on what you want to do.

 

[WilderSkye]

How much good chickens will do in those areas will depend on the number of chickens and how big each area is. I'm not sure they will help that much with bamboo anyway, bamboo is tough. You can try training them to follow you but I don't have much faith in that working. Never hurts to try though. I think your best option is to cart them back and forth with nests in the area.

With your goals, if you were starting over I'd choose pigs. Pigs need to be electric fence trained, otherwise they can charge right through it, but they would be more effective on what you want to do.

We are in an HOA and have the stereotypical HOA president “Bob” who would most certainly visit us over a pig. I can have one horse and 25 chickens. I would push my limits and get a goat if I could. I have always wanted a kuni kuni pig though.

The bamboo is more for their entertainment and to scratch around where it will run to next.

I rather suspect it will be a huge pain in the butt to relocate them and my experiment if chickens excavating the horrible bermuda grass has become a pipe dream.