The Old Folks Home

[pennyJo1960]

Well time to get my butt out and clean my coops

 

[microchick]

We put up cattle panel fence for our back yard fencing for the cattle dogs and then lined it on the inside with 'no climb' goat fence. Basically 1X3" welded fencing that is 5 foot tall. When you are dealing with goats or sheep I don't think that there is such a thing as being 'too' secure. They will find their way through the smallest of holes and their escapee cohorts will follow. Hot wire or the hot wire netting? Good idea. Think Fort Knox and then work up from there.

Everyone I know around here who has goats says that you will pay the most for your fencing and even then expect them to get out on occasion.

 

[CapricornFarm]

I know. It's hard. My mind has all these projects I need to do but my body is just groaning. About the time we lost Sid my allergies were acting up thanks to the trees blooming. I wound up with a sinus infection and at the same time I had a flare in both of my feet. I felt like everything was hitting me from all angles at once. Doctor gave me steroid shots, and antibiotics that make me sleep every afternoon but when I'm awake I'm feeling my energy levels coming back up slowly. Helps when you don't feel as though everything in your head is turning to liquid and trying to exit through your nose.

New shoe inserts that the doc wanted me to try for my feet arrived today. Need to give them a few days to see if they help. If they don't it's on to the physical therapist and special molded inserts for both feet.

In the mean time I need to fit a storm door to the north end of the coop before hot weather sets in. Shouldn't be a big job but the garden needs attention.

So yeah, I know where you are coming from.

Hope you can find time to take care of @CapricornFarm. She's a pretty special lady and we care about her here at the Home!

Aw, you are so sweet! I try to soak in the bath tub every day for at least half an hour. Feels so good.

 

[Alaskan]

Can you elaborate on what a proper fence might be, please? Height, electric, barbed wire?

Height needed depends on if your goat is a jumper or not.

Jumping is, from what I understand after talking to numerous goat owners, more of an individual thing verses a breed thing.

My jumper could flat foot jump over a five foot fence.

My non-jumping goats could be contained in their pallet fenced barn section. How tall is a pallet? 3 feet?

None of my goats could be contained with an electric horse fence, even with the wires closely spaced and a very hot charger..

the smaller and "less fun" the pen, the better the fence needs to be.

I have no idea how you would keep a jumper contained....

Otherwise, I would have a 5 foot fence with WOVEN (not welded!!!!!) Wire. Use goat wire... or something with smallish holes. 2x4 holes at biggest, but smaller is better especially if they have horns.

Then three lines of STRONG electric wire, one at bottom so they don't dig to go under... one middle so they don't push it down, and one top so they don't try to climb over.

Can/do goats swim? Would it want to go into the river?

Mine never tried to enter my pond... but then I never put an apple tree in the middle of my pond.

What is on the other side of the river? Something yummy?

Oh.... since you live close.... Nubians are LOUD!!!!

 

[CapricornFarm]

Can you elaborate on what a proper fence might be, please? Height, electric, barbed wire?

I don't know what they might be thinking, in terms of breed. She wants milk and to make cheese.

We're zoned agricultural, I think. Lots of farms nearby, so I don't think it'll be an issue.

The lay of the land is a steep hill down to a river. That's about half their lot, which I think is 2.5 ish acres. It would be a pain to fence down that hill, that's for sure. Can/do goats swim? Would it want to go into the river?

Gee, I'm hoping this is a long way off. Like never, maybe.

Goats hate getting wet. I would not use less than a four foot fence.

 

[microchick]

Don't forget to dump the Epsom Salts in the bath water, Cap! SOP for dealing with Lyme and detoxing!

If y'all could see some of the excuses for goat fences in some of the Amish farms, you would understand how they get loose.

As to why they get loose, well, they belong to Amish farmers. Many a time I roll down my window and yell at them to RUN! RUN FAR RUN FAST! DON'T LOOK BACK!

I was coming back from buying feed today and went by one Amish farm where there were goats everywhere and the two Pyrenees herd guardians chased my van down the road, one of them running straight at me before veering off. Thought for sure it was going to T-Bone my Econoline. They weren't in the fields with the flocks. They were laying around the shoulder between the road and the field.

Happens all the time. I have the suspicion that the life expectancy of a LGD on an Amish farm is about 1 year of age or less.

 

[pennyJo1960]

Funny but maybe that was why we never had goats ? Cattle and horses resepct hotwire at least never had issues with them

 

[Sally PB]

Wow, thanks, everyone, for the input on goats. Now I'm really hoping they never get goats...

 

[pennyJo1960]

I brought lettuce leaves in so that will be a vegetable tonight even took the bugs off them

 

[bruceha2000]

Do you usually leave them on for extra protein?