# I have a question about electric fence



## StormyMoon (Jun 3, 2010)

I have a acre of land only 4 goats right now one side of my fence touches our neighbors yard the neighbor has children who play back in their own yard. My worry is that if I put up an electric fence this could be bad around children.

What else can be recommended other than electric fence to prevent a goat from going through the fence?

I found 100 ft welded wire fence would this be safe on its own to keep them in? I don't plan on having a large herd. Does this matter?

Thanks for the info!


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## aggieterpkatie (Jun 4, 2010)

How old are their kids?  Can't you tell them not to touch the fence because it's electric?  My stepkids (7 and 4) are really respectful of any fence because I have told him they'd get shocked. 

Or, if you're really worried, the mesh would be fine, and you can put a hot wire inside the perimeter to keep the goats off of it.


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## glenolam (Jun 4, 2010)

I put two strands of wire on the inside of the goat fence.  We didn't buy the expensive "goat fencing"; we bought regular pasture fence with 4x4 or 6x6 squares.  I realized that in going the cheap route with the fencing I was allowing my goats to find any and every way to get over/under the fence, so I bought the electric as an additional measure.

My first strand is only 4"-6" off the ground and the second is about 4' high.  Enough to keep them from going under and over.

If you are going to buy welded wire fence, you might not need 4-6 strands of electric in addition to the fence - to me that just seems excessive, not to mention expensive.

Talk to your neighbors.  Ask them how they feel about it and if they put that much of a stink, do the welded wire fence with the electricity on the inside as aggieterpkatie said, but keep it cost friendly by only putting two or three strands, if need be.


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## StormyMoon (Jun 4, 2010)

There children do not listen well they are between 4 , 6 , 8  and 10 years of age.  I have 2 younger children they come over and play with and yesterday I had to send them home cause i have 1 HUGE rule when it comes to my animals is we do not ever chase them ever and when I stepped out they was chasing my ducks, when I said stop they would just repeat ( I want it ). So I said thats it if you cant follow the rule then you have to go home.

Kids will be kids I guess I just never allowed my kids to stick their hands through fences, or grab at any animal unless that animal came to them.

I like the idea of putting it on the inside, and I will talk to their parents.
Its only 1 side that needs to be redone the other 3 sides are really sturdy fences that had been replaced 1 year ago.

The fence at the far back meets the back yard of another neighbor on the inside of their fence on top of my fence they have put up a 4 ft fence over it which is chain link against my 6ft fence so I think thats really going to be safe on that side.

This is like child proofing a home lol I had to get on my hands and knees and see what my children would see and make sure all dangers was out of the way.

Good thing about being in texas though is we have nothing but flat land so no mounds , hills or sloping land to worry about.

I like the galvanized fence too its a bit pricey but being as it is only 1 side that needs to be redone I think I will go with that and see how it goes.

Thanks for the Info.....


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## glenolam (Jun 4, 2010)

StormyMoon said:
			
		

> There children do not listen well they are between 4 , 6 , 8  and 10 years of age.......Kids will be kids I guess I just never allowed my kids to stick their hands through fences, or grab at any animal unless that animal came to them.


Maybe using just electric on their side of the fence isn't a bad idea!


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## parjackson (Jun 4, 2010)

My DH just ordered and set up some electric net fencing.  He got shocked twice, packaged it back up and returned it.  We have 5 little ones and, no matter how careful they try to be, accidents can and do happen.  One of our little guys has a heart conditon and, after reading the warning enclosed in the fencing materials that at least one child had died from coming in contact with it, he decided it was not worth the risk.  I would tread very carefully since people are so lawsuit happy these days.


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## StormyMoon (Jun 5, 2010)

parjackson said:
			
		

> My DH just ordered and set up some electric net fencing.  He got shocked twice, packaged it back up and returned it.  We have 5 little ones and, no matter how careful they try to be, accidents can and do happen.  One of our little guys has a heart conditon and, after reading the warning enclosed in the fencing materials that at least one child had died from coming in contact with it, he decided it was not worth the risk.  I would tread very carefully since people are so lawsuit happy these days.


Yea I was worried about that too. Children are always so curious I wouldn't want anything like that to happen to someone's child.


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## chandasue (Jun 5, 2010)

parjackson said:
			
		

> My DH just ordered and set up some electric net fencing.  He got shocked twice, packaged it back up and returned it.  We have 5 little ones and, no matter how careful they try to be, accidents can and do happen.  One of our little guys has a heart conditon and, after reading the warning enclosed in the fencing materials that at least one child had died from coming in contact with it, he decided it was not worth the risk.  I would tread very carefully since people are so lawsuit happy these days.


That's probably the person I know that lost their 2 yo son. They made sure that the company put that on the label that a child died from it as part of the settlement. Terrible sad story. I don't think it's worth the risk either. I put up a 4' woven wire no climb fence with 2"x4" spacing. It's expensive but they've never gotten out nor even tried to.


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## freemotion (Jun 5, 2010)

The problem with welded wire and goats is their pointy little hoofies.  They climb the fence and it breaks.  I put some welded wire scraps to contain my compost pile and my goats had it shredded into a pile of loose wires within a day!  My woven wire will last for many, many years.  You will really need a strand of electric to keep the goats off the fence.

I have two gardens in my pasture that are fenced with cheap chicken wire.  I used t-posts and those installators that stick out 6 inches and ran one strand of electric wire about a foot off the ground.  So far it has kept the goats off the fence.  I may have to run another wire a little higher up, but I doubt it.  

Could you put a layer of chicken wire on the welded wire fence, maybe two feet high, to keep the children's hands out, and run an electric wire like I did on my gardens to keep the goats off the fence?


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## lupinfarm (Jun 5, 2010)

Perhaps use the wire fencing just on that stretch, to keep the peace. It always bugs the heck out of me that kids don't know when to keep their hands and body parts to themselves. While we didn't live on a farm when we were kids, both my brother and I were told and taught to absolutely by NO means touch a fence of any kind without permission first. My brother and I have been shocked in the past by electric fences and it was all our own fault. I shock myself on our electric fence on a regular basis, just the other day I was ducking under a wood fencerail and didn't realize that I was right next to the wire that goes to the fencer and hit it with my shoulder. ZAP. Shocked the heck out of me but no biggie, life goes on. I've even touch the bare wire on the end of the electric fence gate handle!

We have young kids as neighbours and our new neighbours have young grandchildren who love to come and see our pony (they call to her but LOL Luna is a brat) and we've told them to be careful of the electric wire under the top rail on the fence and so far its pretty good. If they get shocked then they'll get shocked and the grandparents understand that.


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## ThreeBoysChicks (Jun 6, 2010)

I appreciate your conern for you your neighbors kids and yours.  But having been raised around farm animals and electric fence, I think you can teach the children to avoid it and if they get shocked, it will only take once for them to learn to respect it.


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