Planning our pasture... soggy area in woods OK?

[seachick]

This is all excellent information. Thanks so much! Next year we will fence the entire thing and cross fence it.

 

[Ridgetop]

Fence in every single bit ....as much as you own. You can then cross fence to exclude some areas temporarily or use as rotation.

I've always felt that a person's entire property should be fenced at the perimeter no matter what. It helps to ensure containment, decreases predator and uninvited 'people' incursion, and keeps property lines visible for the life of the property.
Cross fence as needed, and the more you have the better it is.
We aren't talking about huge acreage here so the initial expense and labor will be minimal, with years of return on investment.
I've built a lot of fences and cross fences..all are permanent. I don't build temporary anything. If I need it once, I'll likely need it again later. Labor and time are your biggest enemy...not money.

Absolutely what Greybeard says! Fence in the entire perimeter of your property first. USEWOVEN WIRE NOT WELDED WIRE OR CHAIN LINK! The welds don't hold up and chain link sags and stretches with goats. You will have to re-fence again. Put in more gates than you think you will need. Then cross fence the soggy area for summer pasture. Again put in several gates. That way you can keep the goats out of the sloggy, marshy area when it is flooded but have access for browse during the dry months. Eventually as you have money and time you can continue cross fencing as needed and the gates will be in place. Put the goat house and hay/feed storage building in the dry part near the house so you can feed and deliver hay and feed to it easily. Make sure that you build the goat house tall enough for you to enter and clean it. If you are planning to breed your goats, make the goat house large enough for kidding pens. The biggest mistake everyone makes is not fencing enough or making their barns big enough. Herds grow, and you always need more pasture and feed storage than you think. Larger is more comfortable for you when you have to work out there in the rain and snow and cheaper to make it big enough the first time.

Check out Baymule's fencing posts.

 

[Baymule]

Here ya' go. Bear in mind that I am by no means a professional fence builder. We made plenty of mistakes, there is a lot of discussion in this thread on better methods. That is how we all learn. Is my fence perfect? Nope, but it does the job. Could it have been done better? Yes. if I ever have to do this again, I hope I have learned something along the way. So before you read a few pages, look at the pictures and run out to do what I did, read the entire thread and comments. You will get a good education from some that are better at this than I am.

https://www.backyardherds.com/threads/non-climb-2-x4-horse-wire-fence.32922/

Perhaps you could start your own fence thread and incorporate some of the methods you find here. The more we share (with pictures of course) the more we all learn.

 

[Ridgetop]

Perhaps you could start your own fence thread and incorporate some of the methods you find here. The more we share (with pictures of course) the more we all learn.

Amen and Hallelujah!!!

 

[Hipshot]

I tell you what the goats of my youth. seemed to be a lot easier than the goats of old age .Good thing I'm still able to learn . Small place keep the number small . Wet land makes for more frequent hoof care . Insist on parasite free goats ,or as near as possible to start with . I had forgotten how nasty a goat is . When they lay down they almost always poop and pee as soon as they stand up wherever they are They can ruin more hay than any horse I've ever had .Trying to keep dry bedding under them, in damp areas is a night mare .Had it to do over they would have elevated floors like my chickens .A ramp going up covered with roofing singles .Pressure treated planks set apart a little for drainage . High enough so I could just rake out the bedding into my little lawn mower(just can't bring myself to call them lawn tractors ) dump wagon. Also high enough, to be able to clean beneath the raised floor .And underpinned to block out winter wind and cold .Having ground close to rock has it's good and bad points . Rocky land will most times have very rich soil, that will stay wet and muddy in the rainy season. Then dry brick hard in the dry season. We call it black clay. Probe your ground to find out what lies beneath the surface . As I remember Maine is a very rocky state Make sure you talk to all involved in the common ground before fencing .Also consider using wood chips to make dry paths through wet areas . Trees surgeons will sometimes give them away. I'm really just throwing stuff out as I think of it .Started with four goats, year before last up to sixty now I really like the way they are gentle on my pastures / hay fields .I'll cut hay with them grazing the fields this year . If their area is large enough you may still need to mow grass and weed eat.