Assume I know little to nothing of cattle. But the county says I can get away with just three head on my 75 acres for the Ag exemption. The existing barbwire fence is pretty shot. I plan to keep them only as long as needed to swap to wildlife.

So I think I need to go with an electric fence? How should it be designed to hold them in without spending unnecessary money?

Guy that used to run cows on the place i lived on in college would run a single wire on insulated posts when e moved cows to different pastures. Seemed to work just fine.

2 wire, 100-500 mile fencer, fence posts, insulators. Pretty easy.

100-500 mile? Damn, how big of a solar panel does that require?

For your charger, find the perimeter you want it on and multiply by how many wires you will use. I have used both two and three. With young calves, I like three. I used three ground rods for when the ground is dry. Check regularly (daily). Limbs, hogs, calves, and wildlife can all play havoc on an electric fence. Once the grown cows touch it a time or two, they respect it.

Eh...I don't consider an electric fence any sort of permanent or reliable enclosure for most cases. I'd like at least 4-6 strands, and super beefy charger, and you would need a really solid ground if you are doing a standard negative ground setup. You will also need adequate rainfall to make it deliver a suitable shock. My cows will test that fence and they may not go through it like that, but if they spook, they will and they won't give a crap about it. I've had it happen more than once. I would far prefer a good 6 strand barbed wire, or smooth cable with a single or double electric chaser on the inside if you really just want electric.

I consider electric best suited for temporary or emergency fencing, or as stated above, something non crucial like grazing.

Just for grins, you can drive 6 8' ground rods into my pasture right now, and you won't be able to generate a suitable or convincing shock. Soil types and moisture are massive variables that mean everything. I've had 3" of rain since January so, its dry well into the subsurface. A pos-neg setup would be better but that requires the animal to touch both sets of wires, which is why I would suggest 6 at a minium if thats a route you want to go.

Funny you say that about ground rods. We daily pour 5 gallons of water on our electric dense ground rod. Seems to keep things in line. It's a pain in the rear to do it but now my 14 year old volunteers to do it daily in his 1976 ford pickup.

Yeah, I've tried it but the thing is even if I get that wet? The damn cow isn't going to stand in that spot and the rest is so dry the mesquite is wilting. Lol.

Tried the saltwater thing as well but I feel a lot warmer and fizzier over an old school fence.

I mostly use my electrics to keep horse and cattle out of gardens and that sort of thing. It's not life or death.

Had absolutely zero idea that ground moisture had anything to do with an effective shock from a hot wire.

OnlyForNow said:

---

Had absolutely zero idea that ground moisture had anything to do with an effective shock from a hot wire.

---

Water makes the ground conductive, especially in sandier soils.

Clay and loams like we have on the coast are more conductive as it is bcause of the chemistry and the fact that clay, even when it appears to be dry, holds a fair amount of water because of the chemical bond between the two.

If you have deer on your place, they can periodically take a wire down causing the system to ground out. Check the fence wiring daily and use a electric fence tester to ensure a charge.

Speaking from experience, electric fences work really well. Right up until they don't. If you are able to check it frequently it could work.