Seems like it might be a good idea to keep cows/horses away from the plane while out for a hike?
Any thoughts/suggestions?
Thanks Gary

If you have a Tractor Supply near you, They carry a 1/4 inch nylon/dacron electric rope which has a lot of stretch to it and is impregnated with woven thin metal wire. Easy to handle and very effective. I strongly suggest you don't use fence wire. Ive had to duct tape the skin back on enough horse and cow legs from wire damage. A 600' spool will be around $75. You need some steel stakes and a solar charger. The charger is about a $100. The cows may get through it once or twice at first, but then they usually give up and call it home.

The small D-Cell battery powered bear fences work great, run for weeks and are light. It’s an option if you don’t want to reinvent the wheel.

I use the small UDAP:

https://www.udap.com/mm5/category/bear-electric-fences

For more cash, these are a fantastic option and are available locally in Anchorage. They are always at the Airmen’s Show too (I know the OP is not local, just throwing it out there):

http://www.electrobearguard.com/

Thanks Pro
That sounds good
G

Gary,

I've used the UDAP stuff with crews out in bear country, and the stuff works. I'd go with the slightly bigger units than the real lightweight units.

The real key to any of these things is to get a good ground....If you do that right, it doesn't take much battery to zap you good.

Bear in mind, though, that these fences are designed for bears, not horses or cows. Bear fences are by definition much lower to the ground than a livestock fence. So, you may want taller posts. Go to a local feed/livestock supply store, and they should have taller plastic posts. They're cheap. They may also have relatively compact electric fence components.

Also, for short term use, you may not need a solar panel. The solar panels are generally used to keep a fence live for long periods. A fence really doesn't draw much if any amperage till something touches (grounds) it. So, batteries will hold a charge for quite a while.

MTV

Thanks Mike
G

I'm all for solar, but with a state of the art modern battery (I'd consider a EarthX, they make them for ALL applications) it would not be needed. Choosing the right battery could maybe also give you a backup for the plane. I've pumped hundreds of gallons of fuel using my plane's EARTHX battery and my transfer pump, and it cranks like a SOB every time, they are just incredibly powerful. For 3 lbs, you can't beat them, and it WILL crank a 0-320, plus they make even lighter ones, all with a quality BMS (battery management system).

Good thoughts
Thanks Tom
G

Being that I always have too much time on my hands with nothing to do I decided a few years back to roll my own for trips north. It is amazingly comforting to hear it crack when a wet nose touches it while you're trying to get a few winks in.

I use this energizer, mostly because it uses D cells, which is common with the portable beacon I carry, and it is of good brand;

Get it on amazon or Valley vet supply online

I use these poles from any farm supply, but cut them in half for stowage, then while at the farm supply buy a stick of 7/16 thin wall tube, cut it into 6" lengths and epoxy one to all the lower halves (think fishing pole);


I use turbo wire, cheap and handy. Cut 4 lengths, 105' if you want a 25' square, or whatever... it can be had at amazon, tractor supply etc etc... ;


Tip; order a bag of tent stake tensioners and fix them to one end of each wire so that it is a continuous loop. It will make setting the thing up and tensioning a thing of extreme ease, again amazon, rei if you swing that way, etc;


These little clips have a circle in them the same dia. as the poles making them speedy to snap on and thread wire through. Amazingly speedy;


I always flag the runs. I figure, I'd rather have a curious nose slowly touch the wire, than one that is attached to a running body that didn't see the wire;



Some random thoughts,

While at TSC, get a cheap tester. The fence is only good if it is hot.
Don't worry about switches if you buy the energizer I suggested, it is switched, and just hangs on the wire.
If you are in sand or rock, you will not be able to ground a very big area with a single ground rod (I use a 2' x 3/8" steel rod). In these areas, I run 4 wires instead of the usual 3 I would normally do, and alternate them from ground to hot.

Next time you're at the rainbow remind me and we can set it up. Takes about 7 minutes

Take care, Rob

One cheap help to make the fence more effective is to lay a grounded loop of the fencer wire on the dirt out from the fence. Make it connect to the charger and other grounds. Place it about where the critter's front feet might be when they touch the hot wires. That way all it takes is a lick or sniff to give them a jolt. Otherwise they have to hit a hot and ground with their head or body before it zaps them good on soils with poor conductivity.

Gary

Thanks Rob
G

The other option is predator urine. Which I think you can get from one of those fancy outdoorsy stores. Works on elk for my wife's garden, she got it at the local fancy garden store. Must be really fun to have a coyote urine farm. Do you milk them or what?

I personally have had issues with hyenas, one actually bit and flattened my tire on my Caravan. This was after I had hit a dog on the runway someplace else. The dog actually ripped the brake line off making it so I could only make left turns until I got back to base. One of my buds Comanche had its tip tank bitten by a hyena and punctured it. Other animals like the aircraft for shade, like puff adders, cobras and the like. I never had lions, which some of my buddies had happen. They can snooze for hours (kind of like moose in Alaska). The deadliest animal for me was the stupid African Spur Tortoise. Yes an e'ffing turtle! They migrate, for what reason I have no idea. Most likely racing a rabbit someplace. They move in a tortoise herd, slowly and slowly cross dirt runways. The problem is, you can't see them until you just flare for landing. They are the same color as the dirt so they blend in and are about 2/3rd the size of a Galapagos tortoise. You really do not want to hit them.

Good post dog, sure, I'll have a beer. :>))

I REALLY prefer the “ribbon or tape style” fence wire. This is a plastic tape, maybe 3/4 inch wide or inch wide, with fine wires woven into it, and brightly colored.

This stuff flutters in the slightest breeze, and the size and color draws an animals attention as well. Much more visible than a single strand.

So, what happens? Animal approaches fence, sees wire, puts nose on wire to check it out, and ZAP! Nice wet nose contact gives them a good jolt, even with a marginal ground. I once watched a black bear do this and at last second he stuck his tongue on the fence.....we could hear him squalling for five minutes, as he ran away......never came back.

MTV

Hi MTV,

I agree on the tape vs strand. At home the animals (mules and goats) learn to respect hot fences in a single episode and it keeps them respecting the boundaries for a long time after even with the fence off.
The only reason I carry strand in the plane is because the only time I carry it is when I go north. Typically that means I am approaching the limits on weight and space
I guess like everything, you pick where you can afford the compromise.

Dog, that's a funny post. I live in a coyote infested desert, and my experience has been that when animals nose up to another's 'markings' they can immediately determine wether that 'mark' was left by a creature farther up the predator scale, or below them. Consequently, if I was really considering the hassle and weight of carrying something to keep critters away from my person or airplane, I probably wouldn't be interested in anything short of lion pee.... Maybe polar bear pee in the great white north

Take care, Rob