Is your farm under attack from predators or constantly dealing with escaping livestock? Help keep your farm and your livestock safer with these simple tips!
Get a guardian animal
Perhaps the oldest solution to safely herding livestock and keeping predators away is using guardian animals. Dogs are the most common guardian animals as they make for excellent herders, but llamas and donkeys are also reliable guards because of their intuition and aggressiveness.
Plus, llamas and donkeys can remain with the livestock to herd and protect at all times, while dogs are typically only around when the farmers are. A guardian dog is certainly an investment, as you’ll have to start them young and put them through years of training, but the long-term value of added security and safety for your livestock is well worth the price and time.
Pro tip: Choose either dogs or donkeys as your guardians but don’t mix the two. Donkeys are naturally aggressive to canines like dogs, coyotes, and wolves.
Invest in plastic fencing
One of the best ways to keep livestock safe is by investing in secure plastic fencing around the farm and its resting areas. Plastic livestock fencing makes animals safer because it keeps predators out but is durable, so it won’t crack or splinter after years of use like wood might.
Pro tip: Motion-activated lights and alarms are another good investment to prevent predators from trying to sneak through the fence.
Whether you need fencing for a pig pen or chicken coop, consider durable and uniform plastic fencing that will hold up against the weather and predators.
Boost the prey population
One method that some farmers implement to indirectly keep predators away from livestock involves helping the local wild game population. Typically, predators venture into livestock pens because of a lack of prey in the area due to overhunting or development in their habitat.
Some farmers will plant more food outside their farms, away from their livestock, that prey animals enjoy to draw more wild game to the area and help feed predators. It’s a win-win for livestock and predators — predators get the food they need, and the livestock are left alone.
Conclusion
We hope our tips help make your farm safer for your livestock. When dealing with predators and livestock safety, you’ll typically have to go through a lot of trial and error. Don’t be disheartened if your first few attempts don’t work!
