[AlpacaTalk] Re: protecting my herd
Hi Emaly,
This subject hits home! We, unfortunately, have had a dog attack in
the middle of the night that seriously injured four of our five
herdsires. One of which had to be put down because of the extensive
damage. The others, we are happy to report, are now well on their way
to a complete recovery although we won't be able to show them this
year. Because there are wolves in our area the state agriculture was
involved and a tracker came to investigate. As it turned out the
attackers were a pack of large dogs, two or more. We re-evaluated
our fencing and here's what we came up with.
We raised the height to 6ft by overlapping two 4ft rolls of field
fencing and adding 7ft t-post, effectively giving us the same
protection of 2 x 4 no-climb but at a much lower cost. No-climb 2x4
generaly comes in a 100ft roll where field fence comes in a 330ft
roll. Based on the prices in our area a 300ft fence with no-climb 2x4
would cost ~$550 where the same fence using overlapping field fence
costs ~$240. Of course thats just for the woven fence fabric, posts
etc. are extra. We attached 4"x4"x5' garden fencing to all the gates.
To go the extra mile consider trenching 4" deep around the perimeter
and laying down barbed wire to prevent anything from digging under
the fence since canines are more likely to go under rather than over,
especially, a 6ft high fence.
We also, now have a guard llama that was given to us by a very
thoughful alpaca breeder in our area. Our neighbors call him " Bad
ass llama" although he is very sweet and has 12yrs experience
guarding alpacas. Remember, a llama is still no match for a pack of
canines. Definately talk to your neighbors they may not know the
value of your alpacas and the liabilty thier dog is exposing them to.
Just because the dog is just playing by chasing the alpacas doesn't
mean there's no damage involved. Your pregnant females could loose
thier crias if chased and you would be out a years breeding.
The bottom line...ranchers out here tell us...if it is
attacking/chasing your livestock...
Jim
Beartooth Alpaca Ranch
Roberts, Montana
--- In AlpacaTalk@yahoogro
wrote:
>
> Hello,
>
> After having my llamas and alpacas attacked TWICE by neighboring
German
> Shepherds, I have realized that I need to make some drastic changes
on our
> farm. We're planning on running electric fence around the
perimeter of the
> pastures. I am also considering purchasing an additional guard
llama or
> LGD. I have one guard llama, but she is getting older, and can't
protect
> every pasture. For those of you with similar experiences.
> recommendations on how to better protect my herd? We've been
extremely
> lucky that no one has been killed, and I'd like to keep it that way.
> Thanks, Emaly Leak
>
>
>
> Emaly Leak
>
> Autumn Hill Llamas & Fiber
>
> llamapyr25@.
>
> www.autumnhillllama
>
> Fairland, IN
>
> Llamas, Alpacas, German Angora Rabbits, and Fiber Items
>
> Female & Male Llamas For Sale
>
> Outside Breedings available to ALSA Halter Champion Male
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
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posted by Chaddo at 6:03 AM
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