Electric fence corral at show

abbijay

abbijay

Well-Known Member
Joined
20 April 2011
Messages
1,526
Location
Cheshire
Visit site
I’m looking to camp over with my horse at a show this summer but this will be a first for us and there are no stables on site so I will need to set up my own corral. I don’t have any electric fence at the moment (always been on livery yards where it’s included) so need to buy everything to set it up.

Can anyone advise on what I need to get? I’m assuming 8 electric fence posts, a reel of tape, an energiser and a battery. Have I overlooked something glaringly obvious? There are ‘starter kits’ out there but do they include everything and couldn’t I just get it cheaper buying separately?

Also, does anyone that has done this before have any advice? And how big should I look to make the pen? He’s an 18.1 HW, used to electric fence and so I’m not anticipating any serious escapology attempts but wondering what size of pitch I should plan on providing.
 
You'll need more than 8 posts because you will need two for each corner, and probably one in between for each side, making a total of 12 minimum. That would give you a big enough area.I would think maybe the solar powered energiser might be a good idea - they only do relatively short distances but should be ample and save you on batteries (or lugging a wet battery around). Tape blows in the wind and can break the conducting filaments, but is easier to see than polywire, if your horse is used to polywire (like string with filaments threaded through) that should do the job for you. For ease of use maybe a reel to carry it on/use it off and hook onto something off the ground. For ease of getting in and out a tape gate isn't a lot of money.
 
I was using 12 fence posts at the weekend, and half a roll of electric rope - that was big enough for my two, but they're much smaller than your one. I use my badass energiser and a leisure battery now with Daemon, but I used to have a little cell battery powered one which was fine for Fergus alone.

I wouldn't use a solar one - I have one of these at home and it's the most useless thing I've ever known. Won't eve keep mine out of the straw barn if I hook it up to about 15 feet of electric fence in isolation :eek3:
 
Just double check you're actually allowed to do this. Most multiple day shows have temporary stables if they expect people to stay over. The fact they aren't providing any might mean you can't stay over.
 
You'll need an earth stake

As above though do check the rules as most 'showing' shows don't allow corals - however in other disciplines such as endurance they seem more accepted by organisations
 
If you have an 18.1h horse, I'd advise you get 5ft stakes, not just the short ones. I also usually take 12. It's useful to have an extra one or two. I don't double up on the corners, but if the horse likes to kick over the water bucket, tying the handle to a stake can be a good move, or if the energizer is hung on the tape, hanging it between two stakes right next to each other prevents the tape from sagging too much. Earth stake was already mentioned.
A gate handle can come in useful, though isn't a requirement (since you can switch off the fence and use a loop). I'd stay away from solar-powered travel energizers. The problem is that they need to get sun to charge, but if you're only using it for travel, it will most likely spend a lot of time packed away somewhere with the battery slowly draining and no chance to recharge. Also, the model my friend had had no option to recharge directly with a plug, so once the battery has drained, it's difficult to get it back to full charge. If you can find a model that you can charge with a charger (as well as with solar panel), then by all means go for it.
I now have a Shrike for travel pens, and it's powerful enough for a small pen without any vegetation draining the fence.

As for tape, if you choose thinner tape (12.5mm vs. 20 or 40mm) you will be able to fit more length on a smaller reel. I always go with white because it's more visible. I camp out quite a lot with my horse, so I've also invested in a little hand reel to make it easier (knot free!) to put up and take down the fence. But I guess that'd be overkill if it's just a one-off trip.
 
PS: As for size of the pen, that usually depends on how much space is available overall (e.g. at Trec competitions, it can get pretty crowded) and/or how much grass is want to give my good doer pony. If you're buying new tape, I'd just take the whole lot, then you won't limit yourself. That said, it also depends a bit on the number of stakes. If you want the option to make the pen large, take two extra stakes to you can stretch it out in one direction without the tape sagging too much on the long sides.
 
Char0901 said:
Just double check you're actually allowed to do this. Most multiple day shows have temporary stables if they expect people to stay over. The fact they aren't providing any might mean you can't stay over.
Click to expand...
We only did the second day last year and arrived early and there were a couple of people camping over. Plus they'll struggle to throw us out once our transport has left ;-)
I will have a chat with my friend who is the section steward though. They joy of being in the heavies is that we tend to be treated differently to all the show ponies.
 
As above, but don't forget some baler twine (and maybe cable ties)! Baler twine is handy for tieing posts and, as it is a non-conductor, can be used to secure electrified tape, especially at corners. That and a sharp knife.
 
Not a lot to add except you probably want a double strand ie a high and a low, rather than just a single, so allow for this. Also take more posts than you think - I always take 20 and have sometimes used all of them - bigger pen on rubbish ground, or windy conditions. You can get a small size leisure battery, about half the size of a car battery - I find these very good for overnighting as they are easy to move around but pack a wallop and hold the charge for ages. Gate handle and earth stake as already advised. Have fun!
 
Don't most energisers come complete with earth stake (as in the rod the energiser stands on)? My battery ones always did, the only time I needed one was when I changed to a mains one.
 
Not all- mine clips to the wire then earths to a metal stake in the ground. Is it actually safe to leave horses in a small 'corral' overnight at a show, while you're sleeping? What if someone cantered past and he got wound up? Or lay down an got his legs under the fence wire?
 
abbijay said:
We only did the second day last year and arrived early and there were a couple of people camping over. Plus they'll struggle to throw us out once our transport has left ;-)
I will have a chat with my friend who is the section steward though. They joy of being in the heavies is that we tend to be treated differently to all the show ponies.
Click to expand...

Just do be prepared tho - if they haven't got insurance for camping etc, you might HAVE to go elsewhere.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top