Goat fencing on the cheap? (a lil long)

[RJSchaefer]

Or a smack upside the head to not attempt on the cheap?

We have an old chicken coop on our property that is, well..no longer suitable for chickens. That was our original plan for our flock, but they got the nicer, more secure garage instead.

The coup is very tall - 8 feet at the tallest spot and 6 feet at the lowest. It faces West, unfortunately, straight into the wind and open field. It needs some very extensive repairs - patching concrete, new windows, roof fixes, etc.

Now that I've mentioned all the bads, here's the good. The "farm" we're renting (hopefully buying soon) used to be a cattle operation in days gone by. About 2.5 of the 4.5 acres we're on is pure, unadulterated grazing land. And the coop is conveniently placed on just over an acre (at least) of this. Not to mention the other half an acre that resides over the septic field.

The entire scrub area will be fenced for the goats. The plan, right now, is to get 2 nannies and a billy. We're leaning towards longer haired milk breeds, to get a bit of fiber perhaps, but mainly milk. Anatolian Blacks were our top pick, although I'm not sure where I'd find them around here!

Since we don't know for sure we'll be here indefinitely (our lease is up in 2.5 years, although they seem amicable to sell thusfar), we're really planning planning planning.

We've already estimated repairs and upgrades for the coop, and now we need to estimate fencing. I can't find good, reliable information on what the fence should be constructed of. Some sites say 50" tall or more; other say a little less with an electrified top; etc. I've seen goat farms with plain ol' wooden board fencing, which is really the route I'd like to go but The Man isn't certain it's secure enough. We have a goodly number of predators to worry about, and don't have a dog that would do any good for protecting them.

With that novel, any advice?

 

[SA Farm]

T-posts and non-climb fencing would probably be your best bet to keep the goats in, predators out, and still be able to pull up stakes if you do end up having to move. The height usually depends on the type of goat as different breeds have different tendencies when it comes to escaping, though all are escape artists.

 

[Skipspin]

I would just suggest that you get taller t-posts just in case. We have a "jumper" goat and 48" no climb horse fence, which is generally sufficient for any size goat, but we needed to put electric 6" above the fence. Granted, the neighbor does have a buck, but he's a couple hundred yards away. We just have a very determined goat.

Also, if you get two does and a buck, you'll eventually need to separate the buck, and that fencing will have to be pretty secure.

We are privilaged to live in an area where it's easy to find an outside (registered) buck when we need one, and the cost is much less than feeding and housing a buck for a year. WAY LESS. I know that's not always the case, but it might be something to think about. We do have a wether, and he's a great pet and companion for the girls. We got him when we just had our first doeling and didn't want her to be alone.

Re: predators. We don't have many predators that would take a goat aside from stray dogs or perhaps something that would go after a newborn. Electric will help with predators, but I don't think anything is as great as a LG dog. We don't have one- but we have three dogs that get along with goats and since we have let them in the pasture and around the barn more the possums and coons have stopped coming around and stalking the chickens. They are not LGs in any way, but they do passively help.