need advice on fence for cattle

[BryanM]

Ok all you fence builders out their I need your advice! I am going to fence in an acre or 2 for the kids 4h animals. And need some advice on fence poles and wire field fence. First Im fencing in a couple calves/cows! I found on ebay a decent price on white ceder posts. I am not sure if cedar needs to be treated and if does whith what and also what size to get 3in 4in or what?
So let me hear from you fence builders/ cattle raising people!!! thanks

 

[zzvyb6]

Lowes sells the landscape timbers up here for $2.50. I've used them for horses for 25 years. Wide side towards the field. Then use graduated woven wire. You will probably need to electify it for cows. That could be dangerous for the children, though.

For buffalo arond here, they use railroad ties and highway barrier ( ! )

 

[RickB]

Your profile does not list any location data, so wood species preferences may or may not be applicable. I am in the Northeast, and would not waste my time with white cedar, or red cedar for that matter. There is a fair amount of red cedar used, though, not much white. I am all about locust posts, 4-6" in diameter. They will last 50 years (seriously) and will not 'spit' staples out like cedar. You need to buy them green and built the fence before they cure, because they staple or nail VERY hard when dry. If you insist on cedar, buy 2" staples, 1-1/4" for locust. 5 strands of barbed wire or a run of high tensile page wire (also called woven wire) with a single strand of barbed wire above it. Smooth high tensile wire is popular, but it sucks to work with, and less than five strands won't keep baby calves in. I hate the stuff. Others will disagree strongly, but call me old school where fencing is concerned.

 

[RickB]

You will probably need to electify it for cows. That could be dangerous for the children, though.

Children train about as well as cattle where electric fencing is concerned.

 

[blueriver]

From SE Oklahoma, and miles of cattle fence...good solid corners, 5 strand bared wire with t-post as often as you wish, works great for cattle. For horses good solid corners and 5 strands of barb less (smooth wire) and t-post as often as you wish ... for hog's, sheep, goats, good solid corners, 1 strand of barb wire at the bottom 3" off the ground, 36" woven field fence and topped with two strands of barbed wire and t-post as often as you wish...low maintance, good tight fence.

 

[Willl]

Same here, barb wire and T-post.

 

[Rowdius]

As for wire, I like woven wire. Barb wire has its place, but it is hard to say what type of animals you might want to contain ten years from now. Get the largest wire size you can afford. For example if you have the choice between two rolls of field fence and one has 9ga wire on top and the other has 12 gauge, get the one with 9gauge wire.

As for corner posts, I like metal pipe or telephone poles, though I've used railroad ties too. In any case I like my corner posts be at least four inches in diameter. I plant my corners four feet in the ground, and pack the dirt back into the hole until it is black and blue from the beating. I put my cross braces pretty high on the posts as well.

I use t posts for most of my line posts, though I do put smaller telephone pole every 100 ft or so. I try to space my t posts 12 feet apart. Closer is better, but the price adds up very fast. A couple years ago I could fence in an acre with field fence and 6 1/2ft t posts for about $800. That did not include gates or corner posts, since I get my telephone poles free from the coop. I don't know what the price would be now.

 

[Erik_in_Hoyt]

I prefer 48" woven field fence by the 330 foot roll at orscheln's or TSC - because it costs less than the heavy rigid cattle panels and can be used for other types of critter if you decide to get rid of the cattle in the future. (neighbor went from horses to alpaca and is now adding nubian goats, and this stuff works for all of them)
You can also use the 16' cattle panels in your corners instead of "H" type setups for a bit less labor.
I'm not sure how well the white cedar posts will work in your ground left "natural".

 

[JDHornet]

When my wife and I fenced our place (20 acres) I went over all the options. I chose high tensile steel wire electrified with a fence charger for the application. I chose this based on ease of instillation, cost and up keep. I've had no regrets. The HT wire was a breeze to work with, unlike barb wire that grabs you every where. My horses quickly learned to respect it, so they don't touch it unless by accident. Unlike my neighbor who had woven wire put up and about a year later her horses have torn that fence all to pieces. If you have any part of the fence in woods you'll like HT wire for it's resilience. I have several hundred feet that pass through woods, when a tree or large limb falls on it, I cut the tree up and the fence springs back in place, thanks in part to the tension springs. The hardest part is finding the insulators that have been flung every where. I ran 5 wires on t-post every 15 feet, three wires are hot, two are ground. I chose the top, middle and bottom wires to be hot, that keeps noes from under fence, noesy horses from reaching over the fence, and butts from rubbing on the fence. I did traditional corner bracing using discard electric poles, if you have a coop for your utility service you should contact them about old utility poles. Ours charges 10 cents a foot at they're business or free if you pick them up from where they were replaced since they don't have to haul them back that way. One other thing to think about, if your livestock ever run through the fence as told to me by a vet, a clean cut caused by HT wire is way better to stitch then the jagged edges and torn flesh caused by barb wire.

 

[jimmyj]

I endorse the HT electric vs barb wire. If you use T posts cap them if you ever get horses. It's not often, but impalements do happen and a T post cap is just a few cents. We use white cedar as locust is not really available here and it lasts over 10 years untreated. Soaked in creosote they last at least 15 years I find.

I guess what we like about the multi strand electric is that the animals do not challenge it ever and you can get whatever critters you want in the future. I don't think horses and barb wire mix too good but I'm not that experienced with horses I must admit. I also hate working with barb wire. Anywhere we have used other fencing such as woven wire, wood or chain link (not electric or barb wire) the critters constantly abuse it. Cows, sheep, goats, it does not matter, they will scratch and rub and climb and wear it down. I also find electric can be great for keeping out coyotes too. We use 5 strands starting low to the ground and spacing further and further as it goes up.

Good luck.