Sheep questions.

[ladyrsanti]

I've had my Jacob sheep for a couple of months now but that makes me still new to the experience. My main concern is my smallest sheep that doesn't have horns (unusual for the breed). They are about four months old now and because they are Jacobs, they are smaller than most sheep, on top of being young still. The pasture fence was built and maintained for larger sheep, two kinds of woven wire fencing. I had to shut down the back pasture completely after I found the smallest out to her hips through the fence. The holes in that particular pasture fence are too big for her at about 8" x 12". The other two pastures have smaller holes at about 5" x 5" or so, though portions have been stretched over the years. Still, she will stick her entire head and neck through, getting her tags caught sometimes and her sister with the horns will sometimes put her head through as well and get stuck completely (she has a bald spot behind her horns from struggling with the fence). This worries me, especially now that I can't use the back (largest) pasture. I was recommended electric netting but I worry about them getting their horns caught in it. What can I do to keep them safe and inside the fence? What kind of fencing do most people use?

 

[WallabyOfChaos]

I think they are unlikely to become tangled in the electric net, as their nose or face will come in to contact with the fence first and a shock to the face will send them the other way. So it would be pretty tough for them to get their head through the fence before getting zapped.

We have several fences on our place. We have the common net wire field fence (6" vertical spacing) around three sides of the perimeter and an 8-wire high tensile hot wire on the back side of the place. Our cross fences are field fence, 8-wire barbed wire, and temporary 2-wire low tensile hot fence. Our lambs and some ewes will stick their heads through the field fence to eat, and sometimes a lamb will lose and ear tag in the fence. The thing about ear tags is that sometimes accidents happen and they get ripped out. It's just part of the territory. For the little ewe with the horns, you may tie a stick across her horns so that she cannot get her head through the fence and won't be able to get stuck. Once her horns have grown out enough to keep her from putting her head through, or once they are all big enough to go to the other pasture you can remove the stick. We have done this many, many, many times on goats who insist on getting stuck in our field fences. It looks silly, but it works.

 

[ladyrsanti]

Thanks! That's a great idea with the stick! I'll definitely try it. I was warned about the electric netting by the breeder who sold me these. She said they will be eating in front of it and when they lift their heads, they can accidentally snag the netting with their horns, become entangled and die. So you're supposed to be on hand and watchful until they learn to respect it. But that could happen pretty quick and it worries me. Yes, I'm chicken. I don't know a lot about hot wire. I've never dealt with it or been around it even. My grandfather had horses and wooden fences. It's all I know.

I was wondering if maybe a temporary plastic chicken mesh liner of the fence might work until the smallest one is bigger? It's like chicken wire but plastic, cheap.

And a picture of them I took this morning, for fun.

 

[WallabyOfChaos]

I think something like that could work. You might look in to some of that orange plastic "snow fence" that the highway department uses, it may be cheaper. I think you can get it at most big building/hardware stores like Home Depot or Lowe's.

 

[ladyrsanti]

That's a good idea. I need to get some anyway for the coming winter. They usually carry that in green too, don't they? The orange is so... bright. I'll have to check.

 

[WallabyOfChaos]

Lol, yes it is bright. I think I have seen it in green too.