This is an archived Horseadvice.com Discussion. The parent article and menus are available on the navigation menu below:
HorseAdvice.com » Horse Care » Horse Pasture, Fencing, Barns » Fences for Horses »
  Discussion on Economical Rural Fencing
Author Message
Member:
Gailking

Posted on Wednesday, Jul 7, 2004 - 4:37 pm:

What is the best way to economically and safely fence a large parcel? We have 80 acres that is part hilly with woods and part flat. A local fence person recommends using three strands of twisted wire (not barbed) on t-posts only. He claims you need good strong corner H braces made of railroad ties and you can run the wire a half mile on only t-posts without using any wood posts intermittantly on the wire fence. He says you can space the t-posts 12 to 20 feet apart. I always thought you needed a wood 5" post every 100 feet or so but he says that is not needed and that they rot out eventually. I would use this type of fence on the hilly wooded area where my horses would probably never go, but I hesitate to use it on the flat area (about 25 acres). I have read all the previous fencing posts, but they refer to smaller acreage. A different fence company bid $17,000 for field fence with some wood posts just on the flat part of the property so price is a consideration. I would appreciate any advice from those on larger parcels who have lots more experience with fencing a bigger area than I do. I am not planning to keep critters out as that is impossible. I just want my horses safe and at home. They are good with fences and wouldn't try to run through them. Thanks for any suggestions you can make.
Gail
Member:
Mrose

Posted on Wednesday, Jul 7, 2004 - 5:23 pm:

imo-field fencing is o.k. in the woods, but not in the flat areas, I'd use horse or non-climb fencing. Feet get stuck in the field fencing, shoes get pulled off, and it just doesn't seem to hold up very good with horses. The wires when broken or bent can also cut the horses if they rub on them.

What we did with non-climb is string it between cedar posts and put a pipe top rail on it. The top rail keeps the fencing from sagging in areas where the horses want to lean on it, try and reach into the next field, etc. It also makes it more visable and makes it look nicer.

I've known of some major accidents with T-posts. If you use them, be sure and put toppers on the posts. For hay fields and such everyone around here just uses T-posts with the bracing in the corners only; no other wooden post. They put sheep in these fields in the winter with no problems, but I don't think horses would do very good, at least if you have a lot of them congregating in one area. I think this board has a site for fencing info, btw.
Member:
Stina

Posted on Wednesday, Jul 7, 2004 - 5:27 pm:

I am not a fan of t-posts used for horse fencing due to the risk of impalement. If t-posts must be used, I strongly recommend caps. 3 years ago I fenced our 40 acre parcel, very little of which is flat but not heavily treed. We were faced with traversing many really boggy areas, so wood was not an option. After lengthy research and investment in an expensive electric tape product for the smaller pastures (not entirely satisfied either) we chose a Gallagher fencing system. It utilizes fiberglass rods, insultimbers, and traditional heavy corner bracing is not necessary because the fence is not under tension. In fact, each corner is braced with a single wooden post and a recessed 2' section of railroad tie, that is submerged underground on the inside corner. The beauty of the fence is that is isn't under high tension and that it can flex and bend all the way to the ground. It is electrified, so the horses keep off. Two things have really impressed me about the fence. I had a horse run through it without incident, and an entire heard of Elk ran through it, over it, on it and in fact stretched it about 50' feet, yet it returned to its original position and height as soon as it was released from the flailing legs of the Elk. Installation costs were inexpensive and it took one guy about 2 weeks to do it. I think the total cost was just under $4500. Granted, the entire perimeter isn't fence, but we do have quite a bit of cross-fencing and a lot of corners. There are pictures of the insultimber https://www.gallagherusa.com/GallagherAppPhotos/gallagher_fencing_applications.ht m, but I haven't been able to find a picture of fencing system we have. There is specific info regarding specs for fence installation at https://www.gallagherusa.com/fencespecs/Horse.html. We installed a 3 strand fence and the best part is the height of the bottom strand from the ground. For some reason I think we installed the bottom strand 24 inches from the ground instead of 28, but this ensures horses won't hook their feet (especially if they have shoes) on a low strand. Most of the wire cuts I have dealt with were inflicted by the strand(s) closest to the ground.

$17000 sounds like a HUGE number, and I am quite sure you can get a horse friendly fence installed for far less.
Member:
Maureen

Posted on Wednesday, Jul 7, 2004 - 7:35 pm:

"I think we installed the bottom strand 24 inches from the ground instead of 28, but this ensures horses won't hook their feet (especially if they have shoes) on a low strand. Most of the wire cuts I have dealt with were inflicted by the strand(s) closest to the ground."

I'm dim witted.....why is 24 better than 28? The closer to the ground they are theleast likely to catch their hoof?
Member:
Imogen

Posted on Thursday, Jul 8, 2004 - 5:47 am:

I just want to concur with Stina about Gallagher products. They are very well-made and thought-out (New Zealand company). We use their temporary fencing products a lot and if I could afford it I'd permanent-fence using their equipment. I did have one B45 fencer unit that failed within the guarantee period and they replaced it no quibble. Good design and good customer service (though I imagine the customer service end of it probably depends on where you are in the world... I'm in Ireland).

Imogen
Member:
Stina

Posted on Thursday, Jul 8, 2004 - 10:27 am:

No, you aren't dim witted. I didn't really mean to imply that 24 is better than 28, but just that not having a low wire is a good thing. I don't believe there to be an appreciable difference between 24 and 28 inches from the ground.
Member:
Jerre

Posted on Thursday, Jul 8, 2004 - 10:44 am:

I've had success with twisted barbless wire, especially if it's a large area and the horses are unlikely to put pressure on the fence (the grass isn't greener on the other side!) I'd suggest 4 strands though, closer posts, and definitely caps -- the tennis-ball size ones.
Member:
Gailking

Posted on Thursday, Jul 8, 2004 - 5:00 pm:

Thanks for all the input. I went to the Gallagher web site Stina, but I couldn't tell if the fence is wire or something thicker. The picture of the horse fence product shows a white line fence which almost looks like rope. I will continue to investigate further. I am in No. Calif. but there are dealers in Oregon which is close. I really appreciate everyone's comments. I only have two horses so there isn't a lot of pressure from a herd on the fencing. Gail
Member:
Stina

Posted on Thursday, Jul 8, 2004 - 5:34 pm:

You are welcome, Gail.
They have 2 products. One is white poly-coated wire, which I did not use because of cost. We opted for the plain, smooth wire, which is just like high-tensile.
Member:
Gailking

Posted on Saturday, Jul 10, 2004 - 4:43 pm:

I talked to a dealer of the Gallagher products in my area Stina and Imogen. He explained about the white vinyl coated wire. You can buy either the hot version or the unhot version of the vinyl coated wire which is a little cheaper. He recommends a hot top wire and bottom wire and either one or two middle stands that are not hot. I think there is a 20 year guarantee. There is a similar product called Pel that they also carry. When I get up that way again, I will check out the display. I think this sounds like a product I would use on the 25 flat acrea and maybe just the twisted wire on the hilly, treed steeper area. If I use peeler poles I won't have to worry about t-posts. Is there any other wood product that anyone can recommend for posts. My trainer used treated 4' posts for her arena set in 5' of concrete with three rows of 2x6s screwed into the posts. A post broke when her filly was forced into it by other horses and she impaled her neck through the jugular vein on the gate screw brace. The vet hospital wouldn't operate because they thought it would only make it worse. After careful doctoring, she survived and healed remarkably well, but I don't trust those treated posts. Railroad ties seem too bulky and smelly. Any suggestions? I hope this solves my fencing problem. It is such a big decision. Thanks. Gail
Home Page | Top of Page | Join Us!
Horseadvice.com is a BBB Accredited Business. Click for the BBB Business Review of this Horse Training in Stokesdale NC