# Fencing



## Speed Racer (Oct 21, 2009)

The fencing depends a lot on what you want to do. I have 3 strands of electric, but I also have adult geldings who don't test the fence. If you have youngsters or untrained horses, electric strands might not be the best option.

As far as how many horses per acre, my _personal_ rule of thumb is 1 horse per acre but that takes hands-on, proactive management so your pastures don't become dust bowls. Your local zoning laws will be the final authority on how many horses you can legally keep on four aces, though.


----------



## UpNorthEq (Oct 7, 2013)

Depends how much money your looking to spend. I personally like wooden board fences , however I have page fence with one line of electric on the top. I hate page fence though... lots of people around here like it , the reason i hate it is because my horse always gets her legs stuck in it. I also really like the "horse fence" that is like a knotted version of corn crib!


----------



## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

SweetTyree said:


> *i hate it is because my horse always gets her legs stuck in it. *


I don't like it either bc a panicky horse will REALLY hurt himself. I say start with what you can afford. If it's electric, PLEASE consider upgrading piecemeal, as quickly as possible if you have to. I prefer metal pipe, though mine was here and then gone, so I CAN'T recommend the company, but the Amish close by have 3 inch pipe secured to 8" diameter wooden poles and it's secure AND safe.
The old wooden 3 rail fence is very safe. If you go that way, put the rails on the INSIDE of the posts, so that your horse(s) don't kick a board and escape. Wood fencing takes more maintenance, but it's safe and you can sit on it, too.\
Please, also consider NOT cementing in your posts. You do NOT need to do this. My posts are 8 ft long and set in the ground WITHOUT cement, 3 ft deep and sit 5 ft high. 
I am _still _cleaning up cement from the old 50yo cattle fencing, and one post left a 4 inch high, 3 inch wide piece of metal. We refenced in 2008, and I didn't even know it was still there until we destroyed a mower tire on it, and I have a cinder block on it protecting my horses. If it's like the other ones it sits about 24 inches deep. Next Spring DH and it will dig around it and pull it out with our Full Ton Diesel Truck.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

I will most likely not be able to go with electric due to how many younger kids we have. Wehave 9 kids total and 4 of them are 8 and under. This is texas so could turn into a dust bowl but hopefully not. I am used to the dust bowl thing though.

thanks for the input thus far. I remember in the area I used to live in texas it was 1horse to 0.5acre.


----------



## UpNorthEq (Oct 7, 2013)

I would say as a minimum at least a acre a horse. I have 3 acres and 2 horses and lets just say my pasture needs to be urgently reseeded for next year. And im thinking of fencing off more.

Corporal- unfortunately when you are a kid and your grandparents are paying for the fence i wasn't allowed much input since they owned horses and know everything. But thank God I talked them out of barb wire. Ya my horse has had her close calls almost needing stitches. Gonna have to put electric tape on the inside of fence for next year.


----------



## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

hobrientx said:


> I will most likely not be able to go with electric due to how many younger kids we have. Wehave 9 kids total and 4 of them are 8 and under.


What's wrong with kids and electric fences?


----------



## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Just bc electric fence is available doesn't mean it was ever meant to be permanent fencing.
You know, stuff with animals just costs$. You wouldn't think of not worming or giving yearly boosters bc you can get away with not doing it and it's cheaper to NOT do it.
Honestly I've had bad experiences with electric fencing. You must maintain it and horses do get injured with it in a way that they don't get injured with wood or metal bar fencing. This takes away from my training/riding time.
My fencing takes minimal maintenance and that's why I bought it, but the TB broodmare farm close to me, with big $bucko mares, uses wooden fencing. Every year they have to replace planks, but they've been breeding horses for a LONG time and I respect them for their choice.
I am sorry to be honest, but keeping horses in your back yard is just expensive.


----------



## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

Corporal said:


> Just bc electric fence is available doesn't mean it was ever meant to be permanent fencing.
> You know, stuff with animals just costs$. You wouldn't think of not worming or giving yearly boosters bc you can get away with not doing it and it's cheaper to NOT do it.
> Honestly I've had bad experiences with electric fencing. You must maintain it and horses do get injured with it in a way that they don't get injured with wood or metal bar fencing. This takes away from my training/riding time.
> My fencing takes minimal maintenance and that's why I bought it, but the TB broodmare farm close to me, with big $bucko mares, uses wooden fencing. Every year they have to replace planks, but they've been breeding horses for a LONG time and I respect them for their choice.
> I am sorry to be honest, but keeping horses in your back yard is just expensive.


You've obviously had bad experiences with electric, and I imagine I would re-think fencing if I did, too, but I'm sure that a large number of people will agree that it is not more dangerous and often less dangerous than other types of fencing.
Electric fencing is made to be permanent fencing, most people use it that way, and is meant to keep horses _away_ from the fence entirely. We use one or two strands of electric polyrope around our pastures and none of our horses, including our weanling, have ever gone under, over, or through it, even when we have no power for a day or the rope is sagging to a couple feet from the ground because of the weight of sleet and they could easily just step over it. The only maintenance it requires is removing the occasional branch that falls on it.
Some folks have horses that will run through or jump anything, and for them, you do need an expensive fortress of a fence, but if you have horses that mind the fence, you're golden with a lot less and it does not mean you're being cheap, just practical.


----------



## NorthernHorse (Jan 11, 2013)

I think that your budget will determine what kind of fencing you build. Next year we will be fencing in 7.5 acres of our property, and will be either running 3 boards or 3 rows of fence rails, and 3 rows of electric rope on the inside of that. We would love to put up metal rail fencing but around here that costs an arm and leg, but if we had big $$$ that's what we'd do. We currently use electric rope fence and high tensile coated wire, but that's just what works for us. 
I also hate page wire fencing, to me I find its unsafe if a horse pushes a foot through it. I used to have it on our old property we sold, and my only advice to you if you do put it up is that you run at least one board along the top of it to keep it straight, my one horse would always stretch neck over the fence and lean on it and it would bend the wire over and cause it to roll. 

As for how many horses you can keep on 4 acres, I like to follow the rule of 1 horse per acre.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

I remember when I used to own horses and in that part of texas it was 1horse per 0.5 acre. 

Money will be an issue for fencing as my wife doesnt like to over spend on things. She would be fine with what it cost to care for horses but as far as fencing she would say what is the cheapest that will work for its purpose.


----------



## NorthernHorse (Jan 11, 2013)

JMPO I wouldn't cheap out on fencing, of course don't go out of your means to build a fence. Just sometimes you will end up spending more just to repair a so-so kind of fence then it would have cost to build a sturdy well built fence to begin with. If your looking to stay on the cheaper end of things, I would just go with electric fencing.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

I was thinking that the electric would be cheaper but may not have it active due to the young kids.

I am looking forward to looking at this house tomorrow as after selling our current house we could pay cash for the new one and update everything inside of it and then work on the fencing and leantoos for the horses.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

The updating/remodeling would all be paid for from the sale of our current house as well so no mortgage at all.


----------



## NorthernHorse (Jan 11, 2013)

I have two young kids aged 2 and 4 and I haven't had a problem, I just have electric up high enough where they cant just grab it, and my kids know not to touch it.. or else they get big ouchies . Just have to educate them.


----------



## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

If ALL you can afford is electric then start with that. But, I agree that the upkeep and the possible accidents should tell you that you'll want to upgrade it over a period of time. Something else about electric. Your horse will not lean on it AS LONG AS the power for it stays on. In a power outage, OR, on a string of cloudy days (for solar), your fence won't be charged and your horses WILL lean on it.
I have 3 horses that have 4 acres to access. The 1 horse/1 acre rule applies to having them on pasture. You can easily keep 1 horse/0.5 acre if you supplement with hay and keep them in dry lots. During the 2012 drought I started feeding hay in August bc it dried up and they chewed it down to stubble. My what-used-to-be-lush south 1/2-3/4 acre South Pasture is still recovering. Since I closed it off to them last month, I guess that they have only 3 1/2 acres to roam, but it's much MORE than many of you have and MORE than adequate for turnout.
I am NOT an electric fence hater. I might even run a line at the bottom of my perimeter fencing bc the coyote problem has gotten so bad that we can't keep barn cats anymore.
But, I'll say it again, IF you want horses in your backyard it IS expensive.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

Well it looks like the property we had thought of isnt going to work but we saw a very nice 3acre place this morning and are purchasing it. Its in the hills portion of West texas but is the property is all flat. But will need to remove a lot of trees for the look we want but also keep a good bit of them as well.


----------



## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

hobrientx said:


> Well it looks like the property we had thought of isnt going to work but we saw a very nice 3acre place this morning and are purchasing it. Its in the hills portion of West texas but is the property is all flat. But will need to remove a lot of trees for the look we want but also keep a good bit of them as well.


There are trees in west Texas ? ;-)

Good luck with your place.


----------



## hobrientx (Nov 21, 2013)

LOL, yes in this area since there is higher elevation and such.


----------



## its lbs not miles (Sep 1, 2011)

Down here it's usually 2 acres for the first horse (unless your grazing it and then it's 3 acres) and at least 1 more acre for an additional horse. Works Ok I guess (if you still keep them on hay too) since even in this subtropical climate grass can have a tough time keeping up if a horse isn't grazing over a large enough area. Mine would overgraze 2 acres terribly. If I put one on a half acre it would become a dirt paddock in no time.


----------

