cassy
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Keeping wild goats outWill electric fencing keep wild goats out? I have enjoyed watching them across the river but now they've crossed it and have no problems climbing the stone dykes. 
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sean
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I don't think that *anything* keeps wild goats out if they want to get in. Good luck.
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judith
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Are they protected in any way (apart from big horns, of course  )?
If not, would filling your freezer with them be an option?
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T.G
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if you got the voltage just right on the fence it could work on both fronts
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chicken feed
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 turn it up a tad more and it will fry them too 
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cassy
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Stop giving me the wrong kind of ideas you lot!
The family group are still at the other side of the river (Scottish Power land) and I'm wondering if this is a group of young males that have been kicked out of the family. If that's the case, even if I barbecue this lot, it will be an ongoing problem as the young males leave each year and as the trees I have planted grow big enough to be worth eating. 
So does anyone know if an electric fence would deter wild goats? I know people use it to keep domestic goats in....
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RichardW
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Deer fencing might, sheep fencing wont. I cant see elec fencing doing it either. We had tame goats that would squeeze through the top two strands of barbed wire (& get no cuts) to get to a "better" field. Or just jump & flip over it (oh just remembered that had an elec wire on top which was why they stop squeezing through & jumped instead). That was a standard sheep fence with 1 barbed wire on the bottom & two on the top with an elec wire on top of the posts & it was all on top of a stone bank.
So no I dont think it will unless you have 4 or 5 strands of tensioned electrified wire to a good height.
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random
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i can only comment on keeping domestic goats in, but that is no easy feat either...
I use 5 tensioned strands running at around 10,000v and they don't try to pass through that. Though I have spent time hefting my dominant female [or the bitch-queen as she is affectionately known] which may have helped.
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cassy
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It's not sounding too likely then. 
They were no-where in sight yesterday, so I hope they're gone somewhere more sheltered and with more available food. There are plenty of wooded areas around rather than standing on a windswept bog in the rain.
I hope I've got a couple of years grace until the trees are big enough to provide enough feed for them to hang around for a while. Time to start saving for deer fencing then. On the plus side, it would keep my goats in (when I eventually get them). 
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gil
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Or wild-domestic goat cross breeding, and even tastier meat
Are the wild goats anything like the ones in Galloway Forest Park, or Carrifran ? Are they from GF Park ?
Must confess, my first thought was a shotgun licence and an annual supply of wild meat to eat or barter with. 
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cassy
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| gil wrote: | Or wild-domestic goat cross breeding, and even tastier meat
Are the wild goats anything like the ones in Galloway Forest Park, or Carrifran ? Are they from GF Park ?
Must confess, my first thought was a shotgun licence and an annual supply of wild meat to eat or barter with. |
I like the idea of a cross - wild x angora? All the toughness and disease resistance of a wild goat, with long flowing locks.
They're very similar to the ones in the park. The goat enclosure is about 20 miles away and the family group have been across the river for a while (at least 4 years) but they might have come from there originally, I suppose.
I like the idea of shooting and eating them too Getting some tuition and a licence is on my list of things to do, maybe I need to bump it up the list a bit, while I still have some trees left.
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beean
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There used to be wild goats round where my Dad lives, but they were always very shy: if "yours" are then this might work to your advantage (e.g. bunches of human hair tied along your fence line etc). They're relatively big so I'd imagine somthing of deer fencing height would be your only fence option.
Alternatively, could you put tree guards on your saplings until they get big enough to cope? Same as is done for deer - though am guessing that goats are more voracious.
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cassy
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Thanks for the ideas beean.
Unfortunately, it would be cheaper for me to deer fence the entire site than put guards on individual trees. Although I've used them in the past, I don't like guards very much as they do seem to encourage vole damage; the top growth is tender and susceptible to pest attack; you get mildew inside the guard; and (minor point), they look ugly esp. the plastic ones (IMHO). They're also no good if you're trying to encourage a shrubby habit. Can you tell I'm a bit biased?
For now we're going to patrol regularly to make sure they don't start to feel at home. And keep our fingers crossed.
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T.G
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would peeing around the site of the trees prevent them coming near? it does work for foxes erm so i'm told
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RichardW
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Have you ever smelled a male goat lol
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T.G
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| RichardW wrote: | | Have you ever smelled a male goat lol |
yup - we have two ... but then maybe we pong something awful to them? ya never know
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