# Fence suggestions



## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

As I hinted at in my post about boundary disputes, I need to build a fence. The fenceline does not seem to sit on the property line, and I don’t like that at all. Not to mention that the fence is falling down in places.

In general, I like the idea of building a nice big solid fence (wood, vinyl, metal piping) but this one needs to be about 1/4 mile long, money IS an issue, AND it’s going to be going through a pretty gnarly forest. When I say gnarly, I hiked through that forested land, and I have never seen a forest that combined trees so close together, so many downed limbs (I mean over a foot tall of felled dead limbs in many places), bracken, brambles, and other undergrowth. It is all but impassible. So I am thinking the fence could just be a simple barbed wire fence, as I can’t imagine any of the horses wanting to go in there anyway. The fence would be a combination of mental security (knowing that the property line is clear!) and last-ditch barrier for the horses.

Do you guys think a barbed wire fence would be good enough? If it makes any difference, there are bears in that forest, but it’s not like any fence is going to stop them if they want to go through. My only concern is they might go through and knock it down. But I haven’t seen any evidence that the bears have been on “my” property.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Barb wire for a perimeter fence is perfect...
Marks your land as yours...:smile:

Where you have large amounts of piled broken old brush be very careful as that is where you find wildlife living, hidden right in front of you.
Snakes, bear, coyote, fox, cats....add in raccoon, skunk...wood piles are a great place to hide.
I would be looking into ridding my land of some of that burden to reduce fire risk...
You might be able to burn it out with help from the state forestry department too...much easier and cheaper than logging the broken stuff...
Sounds though you might really benefit from having a logging company come in, mark, thin and log that land to keep standing trees healthier.

When you get to the point of putting the horses on the land, then cross-fenced I would be doing something else...and making a second fence-line inside that barb wire...
Yes, perimeter fence _*is*_ a godsend when a fence comes down from a branch wiping it out yet your horses are still home contained...
Good place to start is perimeter then go as money allows, resources allow and time allows to do the next step.
As for bears...they can go over, through or under and probably do without your knowledge.
No scat seen I am thinking..
Bears & wildlife don't know boundary/property lines so if you know they are in the area chances are they are on your land too.
:runninghorse2:...
_jmo..._


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

@horselovinguy thanks, that's very helpful. And yes, it was that I didn't see any scat on "my" property. I found plenty in the woods. I did see deer poop on my side, but there's really no point trying to build a fence to keep them out.

One other question -- how about woven wire instead of barb wire? It doesn't seem to cost a lot more, and might discourage some critters (coyotes, roaming dogs, maybe even raccoons) from entering. It looks like woven wire comes with one or two strands of barb wire on top. Any reason NOT to use woven wire (I'm not talking about welded wire, which I'm reading does not last very long) instead of a standard barb wire fence?


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## Kriva (Dec 11, 2015)

For your perimeter fence I'd probably stick to something like barbed wire or even smooth wire. If something wants in, it will get in. Anything large enough and strong/determined enough will get through most types of fence. But if you make it hard for them to get through they will just take out the fence getting through. I have seen many small square fences taken out by hogs. If you have deer in the area (and in central Texas there are almost always deer around) they can get caught up in something that is too tall or has small holes. Coyotes, dogs, raccoons, skunks, armadillo, etc...will just dig under the fence if they want through bad enough. You can slow them down, but probably not stop them.

If you're really just wanting this to show the boundaries of your property, you could always go with something easy like a 4 strand barbed wire or smooth wire fence. It's only going to show humans where your property line is and that they should stay out. But it should be large enough between strands that medium sized animals can get through with ease and won't take out the fence coming through. Even something like cows would probably respect that fence as much as any other.

If you hire someone to build the fence, they will probably insist in clearing a path to build. They will take out trees, brush, etc. so they can work. As was stated above, it's probably a good idea to take out some of the brush and thin the trees anyway so that the healthy ones can grow. You can still leave - or relocate - some of the brush because lots of animals like to use brush piles as shelter for themselves or their babies.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

Woven wire is good, but it traps A LOT of snow. If you get snow, it will drift over the fence.


It also inhibits movement of small animals unless the mesh is large enough for them to get through-- which can be good or bad. On one hand, roaming dogs won't be coming into your property. On the other hand, wildlife won't be moving unimpeded in or out.


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

SilverMaple said:


> Woven wire is good, but it traps A LOT of snow. If you get snow, it will drift over the fence.
> 
> 
> It also inhibits movement of small animals unless the mesh is large enough for them to get through-- which can be good or bad. On one hand, roaming dogs won't be coming into your property. On the other hand, wildlife won't be moving unimpeded in or out.


This is really tough. I don't want to impede wildlife, except for coyotes (not even going to try with the bears and possible mountain lions). But I want to keep out stray dogs. Maybe I will just stick with the barbed wire. That forest is so thick, I can't imagine a lot of stray dogs wandering through it.


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## mkmurphy81 (May 8, 2015)

One unusual alternative is rubber. The look is similar to vinyl and wood, but it's a lot cheaper. You can even use trees as posts. It won't keep wildlife or dogs out, but it does a good job keeping my horses in. All together, my fence is about a mile long. I understand cost being an issue! I just don't like barbed wire around horses.

We Recycle Tires - Home


*I don't work for this company. I just like their product.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

ACinATX said:


> One other question -- how about woven wire instead of barb wire? It doesn't seem to cost a lot more, and might discourage some critters (coyotes, roaming dogs, maybe even raccoons) from entering. It looks like woven wire comes with one or two strands of barb wire on top. Any reason NOT to use woven wire (I'm not talking about welded wire, which I'm reading does not last very long) instead of a standard barb wire fence?



To me, a perimeter fence though is just that...perimeter. Barb wire is good perimeter fence..

I would have a second line of fence though inside my perimeter just so my entire land was enclosed to slow down any escapees, more importantly used to mark that boundary and honestly keep off my land those wandering...you refer to a very large tract of land needing to walk, ride and keep a visual on it with such over-growth is not going to be easy.

Good fences do make for great neighbors.
I would prefer woven wire if we are referring to the same kind of fence...
Sheep/goat or even livestock wire fence is what I refer to as woven wire fence...
I also love the horse fence with 2"x4" openings but it is pricey even in the thinner grade of fence...
The fencing I refer to is sold at all Tractor Supply Stores in various brands and even thickness of wires.






















If you are referring to something else, not sure what so a picture or link to it for my tired brain to process.

People by me have that vinyl fence, the good horse stuff and I am not impressed.
With the heat and scorching sun in Florida it sags, period.
The fence has obviously been tightened and I know was installed by professionals and still...for what it cost I am not impressed.
It is used to hold livestock, horses and cattle and it is "electrified" and nope, it must not work properly cause they lean on it, bend it when they put head over and through the "planks" and sorry, but something 3" wide is just not the same look of barrier as a 6" top-board to a horse or cow, or just a plank fence..


Recycled tire rubber makes me nervous as my understanding is it is strips of old tires melded together...so today with nearly 100% of tires being steel belted my fear of a horse impaling a shred or shard scares me to death...
_*@mkmurphy81*_...can you expand on this...please.
Does your fence, is your fence constructed from recycled steel belted tires and are those steel belts in those "fence board strips"????

:runninghorse2:....


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

Ummm...coyotes, fox, cats, deer, rabbit, raccoon, opossum, beaver, fowl, ....
Add snakes, alligators...most animals can get over or under that fence...
Only animal I see slowed down is a large turtle if the shell not fit through the openings...
Bear...is going to do what ever it wants, no arguments from me...I would be the dust you see fleeing!



A lot to think about...
:ZZZ:,....I see many a night of this making decisions.


:runninghorse2:....


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## mkmurphy81 (May 8, 2015)

horselovinguy said:


> Recycled tire rubber makes me nervous as my understanding is it is strips of old tires melded together...so today with nearly 100% of tires being steel belted my fear of a horse impaling a shred or shard scares me to death...
> _*@mkmurphy81*_...can you expand on this...please.
> Does your fence, is your fence constructed from recycled steel belted tires and are those steel belts in those "fence board strips"????



No, they are not steel belted tires, and they are not melded together.


They are recycled NASCAR tires. They have no steel belting and no tread. They cut the walls off each tire and then spiral cut what's left. Each roll I received was once one tire. Strips are joined by wrapping the ends securely around a post. Here are some close ups of both sides of a strip and a post where two strips are joined.


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## AndyTheCornbread (Feb 3, 2019)

I had never heard of rubber fencing before. Do they make anything to put it on T-Posts in the middle if you anchor the ends to wood posts? Wood posts can get spendy out here and they are really hard to sink in the rock of the mountain soil here. T-Posts slide between rocks better.

As far as the OP's question goes. Barb or smooth wire fencing between neighbors is the cheapest and it looks nice when you stretch the fence properly between good anchor points.


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## ACinATX (Sep 12, 2018)

What do you guys think about barbed vs smooth wire? The fence is going to go entirely or almost entirely through the forested area, which has so much underjunk (that's a combination of underbrush and tree junk) that it would be all be impassible for a horse. Maybe I don't need the barbed wire, since the forest itself is an additional barrier? Or maybe it's better to have it, just in case?


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## AndyTheCornbread (Feb 3, 2019)

I use smooth wire around my gelding pasture with a top strand of hot wire. They don't monkey with it.


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## horselovinguy (Oct 1, 2013)

ACinATX said:


> What do you guys think about barbed vs smooth wire?


I always think of barbed wire as thicker = easier visibility.
A fear I have is a running horse and they not see a thin/thinner wire.

Barb wire by its nature, those barbs are "lumps" along the strung fence and my thought is the "lump" makes the eye see it easier...
That might not be accurate but is my thought till told, proved different. :shrug:

They make electric fence wire that is coated with some sort of "visibility" factor today...
Not that electrifying is going to work with brush and tree growth thick on it, but a wire wrapped in contrasting bright colors I think gives it a more visible point than plain thin wire...
I also did not know that they coat thin tensile wire to make more visible till I just saw it...all possibilities besides the thicker 2" polytape stuff..






























:runninghorse2:...


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## Dreamcatcher Arabians (Nov 14, 2010)

Barbed wire is for cattle. I call the smooth wire "cheese slicer", for the obvious reasons. If you had to do one or the other, I'd do smooth and put strips of Hefty bags along every couple of feet, to increase visibility. Don't count on the trees being a deterrent, if anything, they'll encourage exploration and give added ways for the horses to hurt themselves. Remember, a horse only has 2 thoughts every day. "What will I eat today?" and "How can I kill myself/maim myself today?". The longer I own horses, the more true I find that.


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## AndyTheCornbread (Feb 3, 2019)

I tie strips of timber flagging between posts along every stretch of fence. You can see it in the back ground in some of my past pictures. Horses see it and stay clear because they know the wire I hang it from is hot. They only ever touch it once or twice before they end up not willing to go anywhere near it.


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## rmissildine (Feb 1, 2019)

AC, look at using "barbless" wire. It is just like barbed wire without the barbs. If a horse runs into barbed wire, all types of nasty cuts and scratches happen. We use two strands of hot wire with the barbless wire at the top. As I said, it is exactly like barbed without the barbs, easier to see than regular smooth wire, unless you attach something like surveyors marking tape every so often, as I do with my hot wire.


Good luck


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## Chevaux (Jun 27, 2012)

Just a few quick thoughts here -

As someone mentioned, hiring a fence contractor would mean they would likely want to clear out bush. That would add significantly to the cost and hiring fencers to begin with are very pricey. If you’re not wanting to clear and chop, which is fine, you will need to be prepared that your fence line may not be perfectly straight - partly from an inability to get a good site line going and partly because you’ll have to skirt around trees.

If you’re going through a lot of bush/forest and if you’re doing it yourself (and not forgetting budget), you will want products that are easy to work with or you’ll play yourself out in no time. 

You may then want to look at t posts with wood posts used sparingly and strategically as it may be tricky getting good work around space for an auger. 

Barb wire is a good option under your circumstances but it can be difficult running it out by hand if there are trees and things in the way. The same may hold true for any wire on a large roll. We have had to fence through bush and when that happened we roughly measured out what we would need, cut it off the roll then worked with the smaller pieces (much more manageable).


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

I hate barbed wire anywhere horses will have access to it. As a boundary fence it's fine AS LONG AS you fence inside your boundary fence to keep your horses off it.

I have seen a stallion almost take a foreleg off because he was asleep next to a barbed wire fence when lightning stuck a transformer across the road. BANG... and a near-fatal injury. To be fair he also probably would have done just as horrid an injury on plain wire, but I hate wire in general!

That rubber fencing looks really good, but I'd be looking for a way to discourage horses from leaning on it. Here, we have a product called Horserail (a quick google will show you what it is) and horses lean on/push through that unless you make it hot! Horsecote/hotcote is great, wire with a bonded poly coating that can be hot.

My mare doesn't share fencelines with other animals. Not horses, not cattle, not sheep. Why? Because I want NOTHING encouraging her to kick through fences. She degloved a hock that way. 

Gates no less than 8 inches above the ground. She ripped off a heel getting a leg caught under a gate. Farrier says it's a miracle she healed sound.

You can have a thing work for you for decades without a problem but as soon as you own an accident prone horse you'll wish you minimised risks earlier!


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## RegalCharm (Jul 24, 2008)

I found this video of a guy going to build a new fence. Since it is in Tx he does bring up some points on Tx state and county laws etc. And it would be helpful if you could clear a path where the fence is going to be built I would not like having to drag strands of fencing through overgrown brush, downed limbs etc. 
I think you said it was about a quarter mile of fencing you needed to put up someone with a small dozer would make life much easier for you


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## beau159 (Oct 4, 2010)

ACinATX said:


> What do you guys think about barbed vs smooth wire?



I was going to suggest "barbless" wire. Basically, its the same wire as the barbed wire but they just don't put the barbs on it. 



I strongly encourage you NOT to do barbed wire for horses. If they happen to get caught in it, the barbed wire is going to rip them up twice as bad as regular wire. Yes, they can still get hurt on barb-less wire too, but it won't "saw" into them like barbs will.


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## AndyTheCornbread (Feb 3, 2019)

I tried to tell my neighbors this same thing and they didn't listen and put up a four strand barbed wire fence next to my barbless wire fence, with the hotwire top. We call it smooth wire here but all it really is is barbed wire with no barbs. We have enough bears, cougars, wolves etc. that at some point they are going to push your horses around and when that happens horses almost always run into the fence. Barbed wire fencing is just terrible when it cuts up a horse. They get fence burns if they hit barbless wire hard enough but it doesn't cut them up anywhere near as bad as barbed wire does.


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## QtrBel (May 31, 2012)

Barbed wire will discourage errant people unless they are serious enough to bring wire cutters if the fence is tight enough. If the pasture is big enough then barbed isn't so much of an issue. If you are still worried then either put electric off the fence with extended insulators or run another fence inside the perimeter fence. We did the very same thing when we moved here. The property was surveyed at our request to insure the new lines would be run correctly as several were over too far on our side or run at an angle.


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