Sitemaps

Whats the best type of fence to get for horses2007-11-24 21:22:39

Does it have to be electric? Will a regular 4 foot high fence work or will they get over it? Do I need barbed wire?

Answers:

No it does not need to be electric. Post and rail fencing is the best with horses, four foot should be high enough (unless you have a horse prone to field escaping, in which case 5+ foot is best) . NEVER use barbed wire around horses fields, a panicking horse can do a serious amount of damage to itself and others if it runs into barbed wire. Even a calm horse can injure themselves on barbed wire if they decide to have a scratch on the fence.

---

4' is is a bit low, unless they are small. If they are tall they'll reach over to graze and in doing so squash it down to a height they could either walk or jump over. Barbed wire is just begging for injuries and at the least, scraped up legs and necks.

Hot wire works...or a wooden fence if they aren't prone to getting out, or you can run a hot wire just around the top rail to keep them from rubbing on the fence. Make it something they can see easily (vinyl or wood rails) versus wire unless you tie flags or something to it, so it catches their eye.

Straight wire works okay too (barbless) but if they like to try to reach through they may push through it more easily than a wooden fence.

"Generally, a 4'6" high fence will discourage horses from jumping over it. If you have side-by-side paddocks, the facing fences should be 5' to 6' in height to discourage horses from reaching over the fences."

---

depending upon who you ask i have all barb wire with electric on the inside of it they don't go near it.