RADIO TRANSCRIPT
December 12, 2024
Damon Pollard
This is Damon Pollard, Livestock Agent with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service-Burke Center. Today’s topic is Fencing for Protection.

Imagine traveling down a gravel road and stopping, while your neighbor moves his cows across the road.  It’s okay; you’re not in a hurry. Those days are gone.  That gravel road is now a 2 or 4 lane highway and the drivers are doing seventy with a cell phone on their ears.  Livestock do get on the roads, and accidents and lawsuits do follow, sominimize your risk.

Consider “bull-proof” fences, locked gates, frequent checks of fences and livestock, and liability insurance, as part of your risk management plan. Normally, woven wire or board fences are used for farm boundaries. However, hi-tensile smooth wire and electrified fences have complicated things. All fences should be readily visible to animals and they should be acclimated to electric fences before they are turned out. Dogs will sometimes run livestock – especially young animals – through fences.
Relying on one strand of electric fence next to a highway is not “reasonable care”. Good boundary fences are essential.Gates should be locked, especially near highways. Hooking a chain on a nail won’t stop children or irresponsible people from entering or leaving the gate open.  If the cows get out, it is your problem. It is still a good idea to check fences frequently, for fallen trees or other breaches of the fence.

Finally, check with your insurance agent to determine if you are insured against an accident of this sort.  It is unwise not to protect your assets against unfortunate accidents, and doing all you can to prevent them might help you to sleep better.

This is Damon Pollard, Livestock Agent with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service-Burke Center.