Neighbor’s Bull Trying to Visit (& Fencing Help)

[LMK17]

First time we’ve had this problem, although I know it‘s a common one.

A big bull just showed up on our neighbor’s place. Usually he borrows a bull from down the street to breed his cows, so I’m hoping the problem is temporary. I have 1 dairy cow & 2 beef heifers, all open. The bull is obsessed with them. Nevermind that our neighbor has far more cows than we do; I guess the bull figures his job there is done. We have good fences. The fenceline we share with this neighbor is 42” woven wire topped with 2 strands of barbed wire (total height about 4.5’) and lined with hotwire at 12” & 42”. I figure it’s just a matter of time before the bull tries to come crashing over or through the fence. Already, I’ve seen him bending down the barbed strands to get his head over, and yesterday I found a place where the top hot strand is creased pretty badly. I’m guessing that was either his nose or maybe a hoof? Last night, I moved my girls from the back pasture to the front pasture in case the neighbor had the bull penned in the back half of his place, but this morning I saw the bull up front rubbing on the fence. Apparently he has run of the entire property next door, so unlesss I let my girls into my backyard, there’s no way of keeping them from sharing a fenceline. I’ve moved them a few times, and the bull just paces the fenceline until he finds the right gates to get him across that property and just over the fence from my cows.

I’m super annoyed at the thought of having to repair our fence after the bull flattens it. Plus I really don’t want my girls bred right now. I plan to breed them in April or May for a spring calving next year. And darn it, I want to choose the bull; not just settle for whatever beast shows up in my pasture looking for some fun. I’m afraid he’s too big for my heifers, too.

I’m going to take this opportunity to beef up our fences a bit more, although it’s going to be at least a few days before I can get to that. I think I’ll add an extra hot strand at the top of the fence. Maybe if that’s the first thing an animal encounters with his nose instead of a barbed strand, that’ll be a nice deterent. I just hope the bull doesn’t come through before I get a chance to do that. I’m going to use something like this to top off the fenceline built with t-posts. Some of the runs have wooden posts, though. Does anyone know of a similar post-top insulator that I can use with wood? I haven’t been able to find one.

Also, who else has dealt with a problem bull from a neighbor’s place? Any advice?

 

[Beekissed]

More hot wire and LOTS of juice to it. That's about the only thing that MAY keep him on his side of the fence.

And maybe AI your girls so as to remove the temptation?

 

[JHP Homestead]

I second hot fence, that’s the only thing that might be able to keep him in his own side. For wood posts, I don’t know if a specific product for attaching electric wire to the top of the post. I would probably just nail a regular wood insulator to the top of the post pointing upwards, or nail the insulator as high on the post as necessary.

If you know when your heifers and cow will be in heat, it might be a good idea to put them in the barn if you have one, or in a small temporary area as far from the bull’s pen as you can while they’re in heat.

 

[thistlebloom]

Can you talk to the neighbor and tell him you don't want an unwelcome bull in with your cows, and also about the already damaged fence. Does he have pastures that don't share a fenceline?
Seems like there should be some liability on his part if his bull breaks in.

 

[B&B Happy goats]

I second hot fence, that’s the only thing that might be able to keep him in his own side. For wood posts, I don’t know if a specific product for attaching electric wire to the top of the post. I would probably just nail a regular wood insulator to the top of the post pointing upwards, or nail the insulator as high on the post as necessary.

If you know when your heifers and cow will be in heat, it might be a good idea to put them in the barn if you have one, or in a small temporary area as far from the bull’s pen as you can while they’re in heat.

We got our screw in electric fence wire holders for the top.wood posts at TS.....they work great !

 

[Baymule]

There isn't a fence that will hold a romantic bull in or out. Talk to your neighbor ASAP. I had a longhorn bull that jumped fences like a deer. There was no keeping him anywhere.

 

[LMK17]

We keep the fence plenty hot, and we check it multiple times a day to ensure it hasn’t lost voltage. Adding more lines is definitely on the table. I really ought to talk to the neighbor, too.

I do intend to AI our girls, although I really want to avoid a winter calving. We’re in south central TX, so it isn’t as though it stays super cold for long, but I always aim for springtime babies. Warmer weather, better nutrition for mama at conception, fresh grass for babies to start nibbling, etc. I’m hoping to try to AI them in May for a March-ish calving next year. I honestly don’t understand why so many folks around here calve or kid in wintertime. We had an accidental goat breeding last year, and I was on pins and needles all kidding season hoping that no one arrived in a freezing rain, as the kids were due in January!

I haven’t had any time to work on the fence, but the good news is Big Guy hasn’t come over yet. He also seems to be getting *slightly* less interested. When I see him hanging out, I’ve been calling the girls into the barn for a treat. They tend to hang around in there for a bit, and by the time they meander back out, the bull seems to have temporarily lost interest and wandered away to the neighbor’s cows.

I’m at a point where I’m thinking about beefing up our fences, not only because of the bull but also to make moving my cattle easier and because we are considering bringing a couple horses on to the property. We have GREAT cattle fences, but they’re less then stellar for horses. I’m considering making a lane around the inside perimeter along the bull-neighbor’s fence. I’ll probably go with the really tall step-in posts for a semi-permanent set-up and clip in 3 hot poly rope strands. That’ll make cattle moving easier, put some distance between the cows and any future bull across the fence, better protect our field-stored hay, and keep future horses away from the barbed wire topping the east-side fence. And it shouldn’t be terribly expensive nor take too long. Seem like a reasonable plan?

 

[Baymule]

I had a cow that walked through a barbed wire fence one time, went 3 miles down the road to find a bull. True love.

 

[LMK17]

I had a cow that walked through a barbed wire fence one time, went 3 miles down the road to find a bull. True love.

Oh, my. What fun. I think I’d let her calve and then turn her into hamburger!

 

[Baymule]

I loved that cow! My daughter and I sat on a truck tailgate with a bucket of range cubes, a friend drove the truck. The owner of the bull turned her out (he had let her in the pasture, figuring someone would be along to claim her). We rattled the bucket and she followed the truck at a trot back to the pasture with us feeding range cubes to her.