Messybun’s fence problems.

[Legamin]

Hello everybody. How do you repair welded wire?
I believe that’s what this is. I’m no fencing expert.
I’ve been told to just reweld it, but I don’t have a welder and can’t really afford one. Is there any other way to fix this?
This fence has been up for a few years now, but with the goats pushing against it sometimes the welds pop. I have electric on the inside, but it’s down more than it’s working. Thanks in advance.

The first rule of Goat Club….is ”Tell EVERYBODY everything you know about Goat Club!” Okay…a bit silly…but here’s my two cents worth. I joined goat club 5 years ago when I answered a Craigslist ad and went to pick up three goats for $30 each. At the time it seemed like a bargain! Then I began to experience ‘fence failure issues’. I began consulting other goat owners, YouTube, friend and family (the later being no help at all) and quickly discovered a frequently quoted maxim.. “If water can get through your fence, so can your goats”. We rotate our animals around so they are always on fresh pasture and so we began buying ‘Cattle Panels’ this is 4/6 guage hard welded wire panels that are 52” high and 16’ long. They weigh 33lbs each. They used to cost $16 last year but this year cost $28 each…(Go Brandon!)….this seemed to be the only way we could re-enforce our 70+ year old barbed wire fence to keep goats on the inside. I did try the 42” electric netting fence that is supposed to deter BEARS…don’t waste your money…your goats will discover very quickly that they can jump over it with enough clearance to make you want to cry over the $220 cost per fence and the $350 for the solar energizer. The Cattle Panels were the best answer for our Boer goats. They would scratch what itches by dragging their full weight along the light guage welded wire and woven wire fence and it would distort and begin to fail within months. If goats are a thing you plan to do for a long time you need to buy Cattle Panels and 6‘ T-posts every 8 feet (which you will want to drive a full 2’ into the ground). This is a permenant fix. Incidentally…don’t bother “welding” a welded wire fence less than 6 guage wire. The bad news is that you have to figure $2.30 per foot of fence at current prices of both panels and T-posts. The good news is…you will NEVER have to do it again in your lifetime!

 

[messybun]

The first rule of Goat Club….is ”Tell EVERYBODY everything you know about Goat Club!” Okay…a bit silly…but here’s my two cents worth. I joined goat club 5 years ago when I answered a Craigslist ad and went to pick up three goats for $30 each. At the time it seemed like a bargain! Then I began to experience ‘fence failure issues’. I began consulting other goat owners, YouTube, friend and family (the later being no help at all) and quickly discovered a frequently quoted maxim.. “If water can get through your fence, so can your goats”. We rotate our animals around so they are always on fresh pasture and so we began buying ‘Cattle Panels’ this is 4/6 guage hard welded wire panels that are 52” high and 16’ long. They weigh 33lbs each. They used to cost $16 last year but this year cost $28 each…(Go Brandon!)….this seemed to be the only way we could re-enforce our 70+ year old barbed wire fence to keep goats on the inside. I did try the 42” electric netting fence that is supposed to deter BEARS…don’t waste your money…your goats will discover very quickly that they can jump over it with enough clearance to make you want to cry over the $220 cost per fence and the $350 for the solar energizer. The Cattle Panels were the best answer for our Boer goats. They would scratch what itches by dragging their full weight along the light guage welded wire and woven wire fence and it would distort and begin to fail within months. If goats are a thing you plan to do for a long time you need to buy Cattle Panels and 6‘ T-posts every 8 feet (which you will want to drive a full 2’ into the ground). This is a permenant fix. Incidentally…don’t bother “welding” a welded wire fence less than 6 guage wire. The bad news is that you have to figure $2.30 per foot of fence at current prices of both panels and T-posts. The good news is…you will NEVER have to do it again in your lifetime!

Thank you, I did discover cattle panels and put it over the bad spots. Also had someone help me stretch the fence, the back corner where they escaped couldn’t get a truck through to pull for me. I’ve actually had goats for around eight years now, so yep plan to stay in the club.

 

[messybun]

The first rule of Goat Club….is ”Tell EVERYBODY everything you know about Goat Club!” Okay…a bit silly…but here’s my two cents worth. I joined goat club 5 years ago when I answered a Craigslist ad and went to pick up three goats for $30 each. At the time it seemed like a bargain! Then I began to experience ‘fence failure issues’. I began consulting other goat owners, YouTube, friend and family (the later being no help at all) and quickly discovered a frequently quoted maxim.. “If water can get through your fence, so can your goats”. We rotate our animals around so they are always on fresh pasture and so we began buying ‘Cattle Panels’ this is 4/6 guage hard welded wire panels that are 52” high and 16’ long. They weigh 33lbs each. They used to cost $16 last year but this year cost $28 each…(Go Brandon!)….this seemed to be the only way we could re-enforce our 70+ year old barbed wire fence to keep goats on the inside. I did try the 42” electric netting fence that is supposed to deter BEARS…don’t waste your money…your goats will discover very quickly that they can jump over it with enough clearance to make you want to cry over the $220 cost per fence and the $350 for the solar energizer. The Cattle Panels were the best answer for our Boer goats. They would scratch what itches by dragging their full weight along the light guage welded wire and woven wire fence and it would distort and begin to fail within months. If goats are a thing you plan to do for a long time you need to buy Cattle Panels and 6‘ T-posts every 8 feet (which you will want to drive a full 2’ into the ground). This is a permenant fix. Incidentally…don’t bother “welding” a welded wire fence less than 6 guage wire. The bad news is that you have to figure $2.30 per foot of fence at current prices of both panels and T-posts. The good news is…you will NEVER have to do it again in your lifetime!

As far as goat club, I do tell way too many people I meet everything about my goats. Whoops lol, that’s why I have to be on here.

 

[Legamin]

Thank you, I did discover cattle panels and put it over the bad spots. Also had someone help me stretch the fence, the back corner where they escaped couldn’t get a truck through to pull for me. I’ve actually had goats for around eight years now, so yep plan to stay in the club.

If you have a cut-off end of a cattle panel and a $20 hand winch you can stretch up to 300 feet of fence as tight as aa drum! T took a piece of cattle panel that had two full welded sections (for strength) and the horizontal wires that we were cut off…you will need the whole 8”…. I used a vice grips to bend all the end wires over sideways into ‘hooks’ (think of a big letter E with the arms bent into hooks). then I fastened one end of the fence tight to the fence post with about five staples and went to the other end 330’ away. I hooked in my ‘stretcher’ into the end of the fence and ran the cable of the hand winch to a nearby tree. Making sure everything was clear and free I began cranking the winch. I count this as my greatest success in tightening this type of fence! There is not one sag or droop or spot that an animal can take advantage of weakness…..just 8 more rolls of fencing to go…at my age it’s really one success at a time.