السبت، 18 أغسطس 2018

Common Effective Cattle Fencing Options

By Janet Murray


Fences are key elements in protecting livestock especially cows from predators and pest animals. They protect them from inadvertent human and car traffic. They also keep the cows away from crops and help them remain in their proper pastures. The major issue when it comes to cattle fencing is the strength of the fence to withstand the rubbing and pushing of the cows.

The fence you put up should be strong enough not to fall on the cows. With the different agricultural fences available in the market, you have a wide variety to choose from. A key thing to consider is the type of traffic near your livestock and the need to protect them from skidding vehicles and motorcycles.

Over a hundred years, barbed wire fencing remains the most common permanent fencing option for most livestock keepers. The basic concept of this classic fence has remained over the years. With a minimum of two strands, the fence is able to keep cows contained in the pasture area. However, cows tend to loosen the wires by exerting pressure on the strands. This increases its maintenance costs as the strands need to be tightened every now and then.

There is a fencing option that is gaining popularity over barbed wire. The high tensile wire fence is relatively more affordable than barbed wire with lower maintenance costs. A major advantage it has is that it can also be electrified. This increases its effective rate over the common barbed wire.

Where one has an abundant supply of wood, labor and time, Russell fences are the way to go. They are the best choice in an area where the soils are hard and the ground is rocky. This is because they do not require posts to be set up like in the case of other fences. They can be quickly and easily set up over hills and valleys.

Temporary fencing options are also available to keep cattle grazing in a concentrated area. They are most useful in rotational grazing. In this type of grazing, the animals graze in a paddock until they finish all the pastures. Thereafter they are moved to another segmented area called a paddock with greener pastures.

In the case of rotational grazing, the best option to use is temporary electric fencing. This is a low-cost way of keeping the animals controlled in an area and it is also very effective and easy to install. The cattle get to learn to stay away from the fence with time. One strand can actually keep them away. But in the case of calves, you may need more strands.

The use of visual barriers as a fencing option is a new method that is still under research. It works by keeping the cattle away through the use of alternate light and dark barriers. A common area for them is near streams of water. The cattle learn to stay away from the barrier and avoid crossing it. The method is however not so common.




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