Market Farming

["Michaele Blakely" <mjb AT premier1.net>]

----- Original Message -----
From: Allan Balliett <igg AT igg.com>
To: market farming <market-farming AT franklin.oit.unc.edu>
Sent: Monday, February 07, 2000 4:54 AM
Subject: Re: electric net fencing/making it work


> Michaele -
>
> When we use the netting, it's not to keep the birds in, it's to keep
> the predators OUT! Birds have at least one clipped wing. My coments
> have not had a propensity for escaping from the netting. I understand
> that the birds are even more adapted to the netting if they are
> introduced to it as peeps. At PASA Saturday, Kerry Sullivan said that
> he puts the peeps in the netting hen they are very young; they
> actually run through the netting during the day, but stay inside at
> night.
>
> We do run our net at 7,000.

When I first started using the netting I envisioned using it with my layers,
it being an easy fencing for rotations or an extra crew for clean-up.  It
was with an older flock, and they walked right through and flew over every
minute of the day, until not very many were left in the section I wanted
them in. It was also about a third of an acre fenced off, enough room for
the amount of birds I had for a short period of time, but those birds took
it as a challenge.  Even after clipping a wing at least half of the birds
managed to make it over.  We moved  our farm and I decided to just use it on
the broilers, the thought being they move slower, get bigger faster, a zap
might work better on them.  Seems to be the case.  I don't know what I run
the voltage on, before the charger was working a couple of acres with this
netting spliced into it.  When I ran the poultry fence soley on the charger
the shock was enough to keep some of the pullets I put in for a week or two
in. (I did clip a wing on them, so they wouldn't learn to fly over).
Because we are so intensive here, I need to keep my layer birds confined
within certain limits  (they have about two acres to roam).  It is
absolutely disasterous with the number of birds I have for too many to
escape.  The amount of damage an escapee flock can do on a bed of chard is
disheartening, which is why I only use poultry netting on the broilers now.
I've heard that it is used successfully with layers from others, I haven't
really quizzed to find out exactly how.
You say you keep your charger at 7000.  Being someone who does thing by feel
so to speak, how do you measure that?  A voltage regulator?  I'm not sure I
understand.  The charger I have just sets out a certain amount, can you
change the amount going out, or is it like I've done, by just shortening the
fence?  Do you have a specific charger you use?
I'm waiting to hear from Dori on her Wasp charger.  Andy L. wrote in and
asked for the info, so Dori if you read this would you post it for us?

Thanks
Michaele
Growing Things
PS  Once I had a coyote jump the fence for a chicken, and twice a bear lift
a pen up and scoop out a chicken.  I've decided nothing is absolutely fail
safe.