Neighbor's dog came back for our ducks today! What to do?

[Shezadandy]

I thought about electric fencing, but would a polywire fence keep a dog out?
How many posts would i need for ~2 miles of fence?
Just found the Polywire reels at the Kenovice web-site, 660' is about $30, so just one strain would require 15 reels for about $450… You see the dimensions that i am dealing with…

An entire 1/4 mile roll only weighs 6.5lbs according to my scale -- to give you an idea of how low the post requirements are- it is super light. If you get decent insulators (that snap tightly onto the T-posts), you can actually go a long ways in between the posts with this stuff- and use the plastic push-in posts to manage terrain variations.

Powerfields is one brand- have a look at your local farm supply store for the less expensive brands. I use Kencove for what I call the "do-dads" - the gate handles, cut off switches and so on- usually those kinds of things are more expensive (and inferior quality) in the store. But when it comes to the polywire itself - look around online for better deals- just pay attention to the # of wires.

For Powerfields 9 wire, I found it for around $55 for the 1320ft roll at Valley Vet with free shipping.

9-wire Heavy Duty Poly Wire Powerfields - Wire, Tape Rope | Electric Fencing (valleyvet.com)

But certainly there is cheaper material out there, especially in the bigger rolls. Gallagher has a good product (costs more than powerfields in their "Turbowire" which is stainless steel and copper wires) -- but they've also got the 6 wire stuff which isn't as good.

For t-posts I would start looking on craigslist - might find a treasure trove there- or see if you can find a recycle/rebuild type store that sells off leftovers from job sites and the like. In our area we have a few, for example this one- they're worth searching out.

Building Material Resources (materialforless.com)

Now ... To train doggie ... once the fence is up and you've got it zapping nicely ...

To get doggie's attention once the fence is up so it means something ... you can attach a yummy treat- along the area it likes to cross onto your property- to the polywire by wrapping a piece of foil around the polywire, with something rubbed on it like peanut butter or maybe a stinky cat wet food - and lesson learned.

 

[Mimi13]

An entire 1/4 mile roll only weighs 6.5lbs according to my scale -- to give you an idea of how low the post requirements are- it is super light. If you get decent insulators (that snap tightly onto the T-posts), you can actually go a long ways in between the posts with this stuff- and use the plastic push-in posts to manage terrain variations.

Powerfields is one brand- have a look at your local farm supply store for the less expensive brands. I use Kencove for what I call the "do-dads" - the gate handles, cut off switches and so on- usually those kinds of things are more expensive (and inferior quality) in the store. But when it comes to the polywire itself - look around online for better deals- just pay attention to the # of wires.

For Powerfields 9 wire, I found it for around $55 for the 1320ft roll at Valley Vet with free shipping.

9-wire Heavy Duty Poly Wire Powerfields - Wire, Tape Rope | Electric Fencing (valleyvet.com)

But certainly there is cheaper material out there, especially in the bigger rolls. Gallagher has a good product (costs more than powerfields in their "Turbowire" which is stainless steel and copper wires) -- but they've also got the 6 wire stuff which isn't as good.

For t-posts I would start looking on craigslist - might find a treasure trove there- or see if you can find a recycle/rebuild type store that sells off leftovers from job sites and the like. In our area we have a few, for example this one- they're worth searching out.

Building Material Resources (materialforless.com)

Now ... To train doggie ... once the fence is up and you've got it zapping nicely ...

To get doggie's attention once the fence is up so it means something ... you can attach a yummy treat- along the area it likes to cross onto your property- to the polywire by wrapping a piece of foil around the polywire, with something rubbed on it like peanut butter or maybe a stinky cat wet food - and lesson learned.

From one Cheryl to another, excellent detailed information.

I love our name and your particular spelling is perfect, “on fleek!”

 

[Shezadandy]

From one Cheryl to another, excellent detailed information.

I love our name and your particular spelling is perfect, “on fleek!”

Likewise, friend!!!

 

[bhawk-23]

I have had this happen the neighbors dog wiped out all but one of my daughter 4 h project. She is now 31 we live I. The same house with the same neighbor! Think about what your action are you take! Was I mad your damn right I was. But I also want to continue to live in my peaceful neighborhood and enjoy driving up every day! The post above about chopping the dogs head off! Personally I think is better off left out of it this is an animal lovers site I feel terrible for you! But if the dog got in so can a coyote. This is sad but is it worth world war three or DI you go speak to them on one on one and continue to be neighbors.

Much agree with you on your situation. Saving neighbor relationships is important. If the duck was the only incident I would agree with you 100% and never would suggest getting the law involved. Animals behave on instincts. Let me propose, would have had the same response if your daughter had been bitten and it drew blood? I'm not looking for any argument. And I commend and agree with how you handled your situation. But a dog that bites a human needs to be taken more serious than a dog who kills small prey. And I fully understand that this is only my opinion.
Also, I hope you were not referring to my post suggesting any animal cruelty. I certainly don't advocate or condone this EVER!!!

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Hillbilly, I was also gonna mention the electric fence. It will be your best bet! And yes, a charged poly wire will definitely keep a dog out. I have found that one good pop from a hot wire will keep the dog away forever. My dogs and horses can “hear” the popping of the fence and stay way away...after receiving that initial shock.

You don’t have to fence your entire property all at once. And like @Shezadandy said, you don’t have to use ALL t-posts, but use a combination of the t-posts and portable hot wire posts. Start with erecting a portion that is cost efficient for you to begin with. An example would be, purchase that 660’ roll and run it out either 330’ with two wires or 220’ with three wires. Here’s my thoughts with hot wires: you aren’t trying to keep in a large animal, rather keep out dogs, cats, coyotes, coons, etc. Two strands, no more than three, is all you need. (6-8” and 20” from the ground.) The wires do not need to be high enough to prevent a dog from jumping it. The dog will not be running through the yard/woods and see the fence from afar and jump it as it nears the fence. Rather, it will be sniffing the ground/air and “run up on” the fence, sniff it (they always do) and receive a good shock. At that point, the dog will neither try to go under or over the wires, but yelp and run away as quickly as it can, sometimes yelping all the way. A cat has a different reaction. Instead of a yelp, it will jump 10’ straight up and land 5’ from the fence and already be headed in the opposite direction. For your needs, I personally think a two wire fence is all you have to have. If needed, later on you could come back and add another wire on top (with a little rigging for the proper electrical flow!)

Then, in another month or two, you can put up another 330’ section, and so on and so forth. As I said before, this is your best bet.

Unfortunately, a lot of dog owners do not accept the damage their dog does as being their responsibility. Hell, a lot of parents don’t accept responsibility for their derelict kids either, so go figure! I have always looked at it as it is my responsibility to shield/protect my animals from the wooly boogers of society, while also protecting society from my dogs, etc. That’s just what a responsible pet owner does.

A good dog at home can indeed be a bully away! No ifs, ands, or buts! A dog is a dog, is a dog! And it most likely will return...because it hasn’t been zapped yet!

I, too, am a proponent for peace and will go out of my way (and even put hardship - work, cost - on myself) in order not to cause friction. No need for others to tell me to grow a pair, number one because I can’t, and number two because it’s just my nature. Period!

My wish for you is a speedy recovery for you and for Nona Duck. I consider you like my neighbor, a good neighbor, and I wish I was there to help.

Too bad that i cannot give you 10 reactions for your post!
And you are right, electric fence it will be, i found out that if you buy polywire in larger length it becomes much more affordable.
The neighbor's dog was nowhere to be seen or heart today, so i assume the "man in the house" took the incident way more serious than the "Missus" did and the dog will soon be subject to a two week quarantine, which gives me some time to add electric fencing to the most vulnerable parts of the property line first.
In the long term it will replace the electric fence with wattle fences like this:

Those fences don't need to be as tall as in the picture above, because i can always run a charged aluminium wire on top of it… Plus i can harvest almost all the needed material on my own land, except for some Cedar posts. I already have to cut down a lot of young trees (1-3 years old) that have started to grow on my pastures, on the drive-way to my neighbors house, the drive-way to my barn, and pretty much everywhere. It will just be a lot of work to do, but hey i need to loose weight anyways!
And such a wattle fence is much easier to build on steep and uneven grounds!
My idea is to construct massive cedar posts at the edge-points, a vertical post with two load distributing beams? (idunno the correct term for these diagonal struts), have another cedar post every 12meters (40') and use the stems of the 3 year old trees in between. It will take me a couple of years to build this, but that will also increase the value of my property and give us even more privacy here.

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

Update on Nona Duck: She is doing better today:

Nona came out of the house with the other ducks today and gathered enough courage to eat cat-food directly out of the plastic container - until Blanca Duck shoved her away…
But she still moves around like ol' Grandma and seems to be in pain. She looks like me, when i have overdone gardening and all my muscles feel sour and tense.

 

[Mimi13]

Too bad that i cannot give you 10 reactions for your post!
And you are right, electric fence it will be, i found out that if you buy polywire in larger length it becomes much more affordable.
The neighbor's dog was nowhere to be seen or heart today, so i assume the "man in the house" took the incident way more serious than the "Missus" did and the dog will soon be subject to a two week quarantine, which gives me some time to add electric fencing to the most vulnerable parts of the property line first.
In the long term it will replace the electric fence with wattle fences like this:
View attachment 2482586
Those fences don't need to be as tall as in the picture above, because i can always run a charged aluminium wire on top of it… Plus i can harvest almost all the needed material on my own land, except for some Cedar posts. I already have to cut down a lot of young trees (1-3 years old) that have started to grow on my pastures, on the drive-way to my neighbors house, the drive-way to my barn, and pretty much everywhere. It will just be a lot of work to do, but hey i need to loose weight anyways!
And such a wattle fence is much easier to build on steep and uneven grounds!
My idea is to construct massive cedar posts at the edge-points, a vertical post with two load distributing beams? (idunno the correct term for these diagonal struts), have another cedar post every 12meters (40') and use the stems of the 3 year old trees in between. It will take me a couple of years to build this, but that will also increase the value of my property and give us even more privacy here.

I have never heard of or seen a wattle fence. I, too, have the necessary supplies for one of these AND I like the looks too. I don’t know where I’d put it, but I like it!

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

An entire 1/4 mile roll only weighs 6.5lbs according to my scale -- to give you an idea of how low the post requirements are- it is super light. If you get decent insulators (that snap tightly onto the T-posts), you can actually go a long ways in between the posts with this stuff- and use the plastic push-in posts to manage terrain variations.

Powerfields is one brand- have a look at your local farm supply store for the less expensive brands. I use Kencove for what I call the "do-dads" - the gate handles, cut off switches and so on- usually those kinds of things are more expensive (and inferior quality) in the store. But when it comes to the polywire itself - look around online for better deals- just pay attention to the # of wires.

For Powerfields 9 wire, I found it for around $55 for the 1320ft roll at Valley Vet with free shipping.

9-wire Heavy Duty Poly Wire Powerfields - Wire, Tape Rope | Electric Fencing (valleyvet.com)

But certainly there is cheaper material out there, especially in the bigger rolls. Gallagher has a good product (costs more than powerfields in their "Turbowire" which is stainless steel and copper wires) -- but they've also got the 6 wire stuff which isn't as good.

For t-posts I would start looking on craigslist - might find a treasure trove there- or see if you can find a recycle/rebuild type store that sells off leftovers from job sites and the like. In our area we have a few, for example this one- they're worth searching out.

Building Material Resources (materialforless.com)

Now ... To train doggie ... once the fence is up and you've got it zapping nicely ...

To get doggie's attention once the fence is up so it means something ... you can attach a yummy treat- along the area it likes to cross onto your property- to the polywire by wrapping a piece of foil around the polywire, with something rubbed on it like peanut butter or maybe a stinky cat wet food - and lesson learned.

The laughing reaction is for the picture of that dog stuffing his nose into some electrified cat food!
I have no clue about electric fences and will have to learn quickly: Is it possible to use cedar posts for electric fences? My Idea is to start with a massive cedar-post at the most vulnerable corner of my property and then work my way up the hill towards the wooded area. Installing electric fencing first and later replace it segment by segment with a wattle-fence, made out of material that i can harvest on my own land. So far the longest rolls of poly-wire i have found are 1650', that is about 500 meters for ~100$, still researching…

 

[mommiesrcool]

I just discovered that the dog actually got me!
First picture is the dog cornered under my workbench.

Sounds like you can sue them for more than one thing because the dog bite you, is on YOUR property and destroying it

 

[WannaBeHillBilly]

I have never heard of or seen a wattle fence. I, too, have the necessary supplies for one of these AND I like the looks too. I don’t know where I’d put it, but I like it!

If you just enter wattle-fence into the search engine of your choice, you will get a ton of ideas, like: Raised beds, terraces, trellises and and and.
And i should have known about wattle-fences or woven-fences because they were absolutely common in the area of Germany where i grew up! Just to be replaced with the "better" wire chain-link fences later…
I foresee a lot of raised beds on my land this year!