Cattle, Goats and Sheep

[EddieWalker]

Can you have all three animals in the same pasture? From what I'm reading, both sheep and goats eat different plants then cattle, including weeds that cattle don't eat.

Would a four foot tall fence like this work for all animals? Goat Fence, 48 in. x 330 ft. - Tractor Supply Co.

What about adding a string or two of barb wire at the top to keep the cattle from pushing on it?

Thank you,

Eddie

 

[quicksandfarmer]

You can have all three. The biggest problem you'll probably run into is that the fencing requirements are different, a fence that will hold cows won't hold goats. Goats need a lot more protection from predators, particularly dogs and coyotes. Barbed wire was made for cows. It doesn't work so well with goats, they constantly test fences and they will tear themselves up on barbed.

I'd do the goat fence with a strand of electric on top to keep cows from leaning on it and goats from climbing over it. You may need another strand a few inches off the ground to keep goats and dogs from going under the bottom.

 

[bindian]

Eddie,
If you raise sheep, make sure their enclosure is safe. Sheep are dumb, dumb, dumb and can kill themselves. I know, as I raised show wethers in high school. One caught his neck in a hay manger and choked his self to death. If he would have just raised his head up, all would have been fine.
hugs<<><><>>Brandi

 

[Loren49]

I have that woven wire fence for my sheep and a goat. I ran a strand of barbed wire just above the ground and also a strand a few inches above the woven wire. If cattle rub against the fence you may want an electrified wire around the inside. I used the woven wire to keep predators out as much as keep the sheep in.

Loren

 

[weldingisfun]

Eddie, be careful with TSC and Red Brand fencing. TSC advertises that it sells Red Brand but they don't, they carry a different "cheaper" brand. I use the Red Brand Sheep Fence and it is very good fencing. The openings are small enough to prevent the goats from getting their heads through and getting caught. Another and equally good fencing is Stay Tuff Home of the Fixed Knot Fence It is made right here in New Braunfels, Texas and lives up to it's name. It is really tough. You use bolt cutters to cut it. It costs a little more than Red Brand, but it will last a lifetime. Down here, Stay Tuff is carried by McCoys Building Supply https://www.mccoys.com/ .

Goats will rub against your fence and will bow it out. The only way to prevent it is with electricity. Run a strand about 18 to 24 inches off the ground, depending on the size of your goats and they will find another place to rub, mostly on your trees. Since you have no rocks up there, rock cribs are not an option for you.

I agree with what has been said by others, goats, cattle and sheep can be run together. The goats eat the rough stuff and the sheep and cattle the grasses, they compliment each other. You will have groomed pastures.

Looking forward to seeing what you build for this new venture.

 

[EddieWalker]

Thank you. I wasn't sure about the Red Brand fencing, I just saw it at Lowes and found a quick link online to post what I was considering. I'm familiar with Stay Tuff and will go with them. I also like McCoys and know most everyone who works there. Our long term goal is to fence in the front half of the land for cattle and be able to have a few other animals in there too. Karen wants goats, I want hair sheep. Might even have a few blackbuck antelope. Then the back half we want to high fence and have some elk and a few other exotics for pets and taking pictures. To keep our ag exception, we'll sell some of them every year for whatever we can get for them. Not expecting to make anything out of it, just want the animals here and to keep our exception in place to keep our taxes down.

From what I've read, sheep cannot tolerate zinc, but goats have to have it. Some people say not to mix them because of the zinc issue and that it will kill the sheep if they get it. Others have said that you just have to be sure to give the goats some zinc in their food from time to time and to make sure the sheep don't get any of it. We are not talking about a lot of either species, but I honestly don't know how many we'll have. The trick will be in keeping Karen from getting too many!!! LOL

Every side of where I'll put the fence has access to both sides of it as pasture on one side for the animals and trails or roads on the other side except one area about that is about a thousand feet long. This is at the front of the land and there are currently a line of trees there that we like to block the view of the road. I plan on keeping those trees there and was wondering if there is any issues with fencing right up close to them to get as much pasture land as possible? I realize that a tree might fall on the fence, but if I move the fence ten feet away from the trees, if one falls, it will cause the same problems. I will have access to both sides, but the wooded side would mean going through the trees a short distance from the road side.

Eddie

 

[oosik]

Eddie - from what I've seen, its wise to have multiple fenced pastures. A good friend(Basque) about 40 miles down the road runs a lot(4000+) of sheep and they can eat everything, right down to bare earth. He is rotating them almost continuously but still faces the "bare earth" situation. By spring time, when the grass lands start all over again, things look pretty bare and dusty. He obviously runs more than the land can support because he feeds them year round.

 

[EddieWalker]

I've been thinking about rotating pastures, but this is more of a hobby type thing that I'm going to do. The easier and simpler I can make it, the more it appeals to me. I've heard of running a temporary hot wire across an area to give the areas they are hitting harder some time to rest and I might do something like that if I have to. My thinking is to only have a few animals and not even come close to over grazing it. Grass grow really fast hear and it's pretty thick. I'll start out with a few animals and then add them as I can afford it and what I feel the land can support. Simple and naïve going into this that will probably change as I learn more about what I'm doing.

Eddie

 

[mikim]

I just put up 5 rolls of that goat fence and plan to add 2 runs of electric but haven't got to it yet. I want to do some traveling like y'all before I get animals. They keep you home. Trevor is turning 13 in a week and I'd like to take him & Bernice overseas some place. I've been .... and I think they would both enjoy seeing a strange land. After that I'll stay home and love doing so. I think I want to try milk goats...Bernice wants miniature anything......oh -- I rigged a "spinner" for running that fence that worked really well. I just hung a chain off my grapple with a (can't think of the name right now....a spinner connection, turn buckle thingy that can spin), down through the roll of fence, to a piece of angle iron on the bottom that held the roll up. And I made my own stretcher that grabs the top and bottom wires and doesn't crink the fabric.

 

[deerseeker001]

Eddie check this out on the web,nite-guard solar lite predator control keeps chickens and livestock safe.

Thank you. I wasn't sure about the Red Brand fencing, I just saw it at Lowes and found a quick link online to post what I was considering. I'm familiar with Stay Tuff and will go with them. I also like McCoys and know most everyone who works there. Our long term goal is to fence in the front half of the land for cattle and be able to have a few other animals in there too. Karen wants goats, I want hair sheep. Might even have a few blackbuck antelope. Then the back half we want to high fence and have some elk and a few other exotics for pets and taking pictures. To keep our ag exception, we'll sell some of them every year for whatever we can get for them. Not expecting to make anything out of it, just want the animals here and to keep our exception in place to keep our taxes down.

From what I've read, sheep cannot tolerate zinc, but goats have to have it. Some people say not to mix them because of the zinc issue and that it will kill the sheep if they get it. Others have said that you just have to be sure to give the goats some zinc in their food from time to time and to make sure the sheep don't get any of it. We are not talking about a lot of either species, but I honestly don't know how many we'll have. The trick will be in keeping Karen from getting too many!!! LOL

Every side of where I'll put the fence has access to both sides of it as pasture on one side for the animals and trails or roads on the other side except one area about that is about a thousand feet long. This is at the front of the land and there are currently a line of trees there that we like to block the view of the road. I plan on keeping those trees there and was wondering if there is any issues with fencing right up close to them to get as much pasture land as possible? I realize that a tree might fall on the fence, but if I move the fence ten feet away from the trees, if one falls, it will cause the same problems. I will have access to both sides, but the wooded side would mean going through the trees a short distance from the road side.

Eddie