[doctorrog]

First post..

I have a 1.5 acre paddock that I am wanting to have 3 - 4 lambs in March/April.
The paddock is securely fenced for 1/3rd, Insecurely fenced for 1/3rd and the last 3rd is bounded by a brook with a steep bank (6ft). This is something of a natural boundary but I am looking for someone to advise me on whether I) this needs fencing to stop the sheep jumping in (though this would be daft)? also, what fencing would be appropriate for the brook and indeed the other section.  All help appreciated, thanks, R

[EP90]

Sheep seem to have two aims in life, escape and escape and get themselves killed.  Fence everything in.
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[nutterly_uts]

Sheep seem to have two aims in life, escape and escape and get themselves killed.

I hear this often and it still just sums up sheep

[Marches Farmer]

How true.  It can depend on the breed of sheep. Our northern boundary is a stream.  The Southdowns have never crossed it, the Badger Face do so constantly.  The boundary fence crosees from one side to the other, unfortunately, as the stream bed moves about after heavy rainfall.

[Fleecewife]

Sheep seem to have two aims in life, escape and escape and get themselves killed.

I hear this often and it still just sums up sheep

I hear this often and it just annoys me 

[Anke]

Sheep seem to have two aims in life, escape and escape and get themselves killed.

I hear this often and it still just sums up sheep

Although some of mine do get to the other side f the fence sometimes, they always get back. My sheep have so far not shown great enthusiasm to die either...

[Garmoran]

Sheep seem to have two aims in life, escape and escape and get themselves killed.

I hear this often and it still just sums up sheep

The escape accusation is certainly true of some sheep: in my experience when they get killed, it's usually been the fault of a dog-owner or vehicle driver. I used to have sympathy with the accusation that one of their hobbies is finding ways to die but as the years go by I am more inclined to be critical of the dead sheep's keeper (myself included).

I've known many good escapers over the years, but usually their skills have been acquired because they have come across fences that are in poor condition and easy to get under or over. Once a sheep realises that fences can have weaknesses it will cease to respect them and look for a way past them wherever possible.

But, back on topic. Your 6 foot high bank may work as a barrier if it is perfectly vertical and smooth. In my experience sheep are perfectly happy to wade round to the greener grass on the other side of the fence ( unsurprising, given our climate ) and water cannot be relied upon as a barrier unless it is always deep, even in dry spells, and even then you will need to extend the fence out across the water a couple of feet (fix wooden rails to the endpost).

[DartmoorLiz]

Our old neighbour used to say "don't worry if they get out, they've got their mouths with them".


We used to have a friendly agreement that if his got into ours then his needed fresh grazing and vice-versa.  It worked till he died .  The new neighbours fenced their side of the hedge so when ours got out they were trapped in the gap so we had to fence our side too.


Frost said "good fences make good neighbours" but we talked to our old neighbours much more than we do to the new people.