Farmers concerned about their livestock and residents concerned about the security of their homes and families often consider electric fencing as an option. Electric fencing offers several advantages, particularly in comparison with traditional types of fencing. It is cheap to construct and maintain, portable, safe, easy to use, long lasting and has minimal impact on the landscape.
Firstly, it is less expensive to build, install and maintain than other kinds of fencing. You need only posts and wire, tape or netting to put it together, so you save money by avoiding the costly purchase of the bulky material needed to build and repair solid barriers.
This also means that electric fencing is light in weight and easy to carry around. If you need to move your livestock on a regular basis, or at short notice, this is definitely a bonus! Plus, your land remains unobstructed by large permanent structures, which can be an eyesore and block the view. Who really wants to see green pastures and rolling hills interrupted by chunky pieces of metal and wood?
Electric fencing enables you to keep your view intact without compromising on security. Large animals sometimes possess the strength and power to knock down and / or damage conventional fencing, which usually means extra expense, inconvenience and sometimes injuries as well.
Furthermore, livestock can become tangled in barbed wire easily. This can cause serious injury as well as prolonged pain and suffering and, in some cases, fatality. On the other hand, when animals touch it, they receive a quick shock. This shock needs to be a minimum of two thousand volts so that they can feel it through their thick skin and hair, but it is not intended to cause pain and does not expose them to the risk of injury or death. On both psychological and physical levels, the shock teaches your livestock to avoid contact with their surrounding fencing, but does not cause hurt.
The heavily reduced likelihood of contact between animals and electric fencing means that it also cuts down costs because of its longevity. Less susceptible to damage through accidents, high tensile, electrical fencing lasts around twenty years on average. In contrast, barbed wire can generally be expected to last for up to twelve years.
Apart from keeping and protecting livestock, it can also be considered as an option for maintaining the security of your home, family and household contents. It is certainly much less expensive than hiring permanent security staff! Psychologically, it presents potential intruders with a pretty powerful deterrent and, physically, it sends a shock that should more or less guarantee they precede no further. You can also attach an alarm to your fence, which alerts you or the company that watches over your property when an intruder is approaching.