Can I use a picket line instead of a fence for a cow?

[GrassFarmerGalloway]

holy cow is that all you use for a fence. I thought they need more then that. I have a 4 foot fence with bob wire that the other side did and I'm still worry about them getting out. Ro one of their bulls gettin in my yard.

All you need to keep cows in is a single electric wire. If you have young calves, I'd use two. If you have a weaning paddock, I'd use cattle panel there, to prevent breakouts. As soon as cows learn to respect the wire, only one will suffice.

 

[WildRoseBeef]

holy cow is that all you use for a fence. I thought they need more then that. I have a 4 foot fence with bob wire that the other side did and I'm still worry about them getting out. Ro one of their bulls gettin in my yard.

All you need to keep cows in is a single electric wire. If you have young calves, I'd use two. If you have a weaning paddock, I'd use cattle panel there, to prevent breakouts. As soon as cows learn to respect the wire, only one will suffice.

GFG sometimes just two hotwires for weanlings works best. They learn fast how to respect the wire: just gotta watch them for the first bit when you let them out into the pasture.

 

[Farmer Kitty]

holy cow is that all you use for a fence. I thought they need more then that. I have a 4 foot fence with bob wire that the other side did and I'm still worry about them getting out. Ro one of their bulls gettin in my yard.

All you need to keep cows in is a single electric wire. If you have young calves, I'd use two. If you have a weaning paddock, I'd use cattle panel there, to prevent breakouts. As soon as cows learn to respect the wire, only one will suffice.

GFG sometimes just two hotwires for weanlings works best. They learn fast how to respect the wire: just gotta watch them for the first bit when you let them out into the pasture.

UHG! It depends on the weanlings. If your talking beef that have been on pasture with mom and may have learned some about the fence okay. But, I've been there, done that with dairy weanlings. We went from 2 to 3 strand electric fence at their height to cattle panels with an electric strand on the inside. We got tired of chasing them around and putting them back in. And that was with a darn good fencer.

 

[GrassFarmerGalloway]

holy cow is that all you use for a fence. I thought they need more then that. I have a 4 foot fence with bob wire that the other side did and I'm still worry about them getting out. Ro one of their bulls gettin in my yard.

All you need to keep cows in is a single electric wire. If you have young calves, I'd use two. If you have a weaning paddock, I'd use cattle panel there, to prevent breakouts. As soon as cows learn to respect the wire, only one will suffice.

GFG sometimes just two hotwires for weanlings works best. They learn fast how to respect the wire: just gotta watch them for the first bit when you let them out into the pasture.

It really depends upon the cattle. Our cows will bust through any fence to reach their calves, anything short of cattle panel and we're going to have a long day chasing calves.

It's better safe than sorry. It's much harder to wean the second time around.