# tell me about your pig pasture fencing



## mrpink (Jun 29, 2008)

this spring I will be fencing about 3 acres to raise 4-6 feeder pigs in. I am planning to do rotational grazing with them. the boarder fencing will be woven wire. I'm trying to figure out how to make the temporary fencing. should I use electric netting or electric twine? if twine how high? just one or more then one strand? what you you guys do?


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## roneil76 (Dec 11, 2006)

one strand at about 3-4 inches and another at 12-14 inches and (if you want) a 3rd at 20 or so inches. Really2 is plenty . Train them by letting them find it on their own and they will stay in from then on.


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## Feathers-N-Fur (Dec 17, 2007)

We have cross fenced with a single strand of hot wire, but the butcher was amazed when he was out, said he'd never seen pigs respect a single strand.


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## Rusty'sDog (Oct 14, 2010)

No matter what you choose, be certain to install rear view mirrors on all boars:

Warning!: This video is graphic...oouch!

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqjtz3rEPG0&NR=1"]YouTube - A shock in the nuts!![/ame]


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

For our outer perimeter fences I really like the electrified high tensile wire. We can do it even in our ledgy, undulating mountain terrain. I use boulders and trees for most of my corner and anchor posts. For just pigs, one line with some sort of visual reminder can be enough if there isn't much pressure to exit and no danger (neighbors, roads, etc) on the outside. I generally use four wires as we have sheep too.

Ideally I would like to have woven field fencing outside an electric line around our perimeter. The combination of a physical barrier, even a light one, outside an electric line is a very good fence. Even low stone walls, sticks, a log, brush, trees, etc help make that visual / physical barrier.

The biggest problem we have had with high tensile fencing is that on very long runs when it shrinks in the winter cold it rips out. But then once it rips out it is fine.  The trick is in the fall to loosen the fences and to have springs in the fences. Then in the spring you tighten it backup. This is an issue in climates that go through an extreme heat change - we get about 140Â°F maximum variance that I have to plan for.

For interior paddock fences we use a lot of electrified polywire on step-in posts. Works great. This is cheap and easy to setup but won't last forever.

Electronetting works. See:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2008/06/poultry-netting-for-pigs.html

The key is to have a good fence energizer, good ground and in our area, very good lightning protection. Keep the voltage up. Pigs are pretty respectful of electric fencing once trained to it.

Also see:
http://flashweb.com/blog/tag/fencing

Cheers,

Walter Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm, LLC
Orange, Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com

Save 30% off Pastured Pork: http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa
Butcher shop story: http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop
Literature: http://SugarMtnFarm.com/lit


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

we use 2 strand electric. for one strand we use the white electro tape typically used for horses. pigs dont see well and this is very visible. Our biggest problem is winter, because once there is snow on the ground, it insulates and the fence has hardly no power at all. young ones dont stay in then and we have to put them in gates for the winter.


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## fixer1958 (Dec 12, 2005)

I use used drum brake return springs at the corner posts. One on each end. Keeps it tight in the summer when it expands.
I had a deer get hung up in it a few weeks ago. All it did was stretch the springs out. Otherwise it would have broken the wire.
It flung off my top insulators about 75' from the fence.
I found all but 2 out of 10.


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## HeritagePigs (Aug 11, 2009)

Electric polywire. Two to three strands depending on mix of hog sizes in the herd. First strand eight inches from the ground; any lower and they short it out by pushing stuff up against it. Second strand at hog's shoulder height. Third strand if hogs of different heights.

I build two paddocks initially. Same size and next to each other. When they exhaust the first I move them into the second. Then disassemble the first and rebuild it on the other side of the second to be the next paddock.

Piglets stay in the maternity paddock until weaned. Then they are usually picked up by my customers but if need be they are large enough to join the herd on pasture.

I really like the return spring idea. Polywire always needs tightening; maybe that will solve my problem!


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## welder (Dec 16, 2010)

What dia. is the poly wire and what type of service you get out of it


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

The polywire we use is 6 strand. We also use 17 gauge aluminum wire, 16 gauge galvanized steel wire, poultry netting and my favorite is the 12 gauge galvanized high tensile smooth wire.

The fence energizers vary from 2.5 joules to 15 joules. The more the better except on the poultry netting which burns out sometimes. All of them produce 10,000 volts.

What I don't like is the tape style polywire - it shorts a lot. It is meant for lower power energizers I suspect and our higher energizers cause it to arc.

See:
http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2007/07/calibrating-pain-fence-testing.html


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

We too use electric, 2 strand, for paddocks. These are only functional spring through fall here, though, in the winter they go into hard pens -- hog panels, wooden posts -- both because the low electric fence is covered by snow and because the ground becomes very soft and muddy in the spring, they'd ruin whatever paddock they were on in short order; the winter pens act as sacrifice areas.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

highlands said:


> What I don't like is the tape style polywire - it shorts a lot. It is meant for lower power energizers I suspect and our higher energizers cause it to arc.
> 
> See:
> http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2007/07/calibrating-pain-fence-testing.html


we really dont have much trouble with this arcing. we only use it during the summer and fall for training young ones, as they can see it better. Since it is windy here often, it moves around alot. Once they learn, its really no longer necessary.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

I think it was the fact that we have a very strong energizer that caused the tape style polywire to arc and burn out so much on us. The tape consists of six(?) wires running parallel but they're so close together that we were getting arcing between them. I was surprised. I had wanted it for the visibility. I now run it off the low power charger and it is okay.


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

what kind of high power energizer do you have?


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

Kencove:
http://www.kencove.com/fence/Mains+Energizers_detail_EK15.php

Tractor Supply:
http://www.tractorsupply.com/fencin.../zareba-ac-operated-fencer-controller-3616282

http://www.tractorsupply.com/fencin.../zareba-low-impedance-100-mile-fencer-3604497

Same thing, different powers, excellent, get full lightning protection and ground well - just like with any fence energizer. Warrantee is worth it.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
Pastured Pigs, Sheep & Kids
in the mountains of Vermont
Read about our on-farm butcher shop project:
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/butchershop
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/csa


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

I think the reason why dh bought the one we have, is because it is the only one that uses digital numbers for how strong the fence is. A blip light just dont do it for us.


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## highlands (Jul 18, 2004)

See this:

http://sugarmtnfarm.com/blog/2007/07/calibrating-pain-fence-testing.html

Excellent product and better than licking the fence. (old method)


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## lonelyfarmgirl (Feb 6, 2005)

maybe we will look further into one of those. I read the rest of the thread. funny, that one!


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