Electric fences hurting my hunting?

[redskeeter1020]

The landowner on my lease has put electric fences up this past spring on every fence line on my 200 acre lease in Hopkins County because he's running goats on it now outside of hunting season. I've been on the lease for four years now and I have not seen the deer that I normally see. Can I contribute this to the electric fences??? Is it time for me to move on??? Any past experience with this would be greatly appreciated! I've asked if he could leave them off during season and he wouldn't allow it.

[flywise]

I dont think there is any chance it is hurting your deer sightings.
When i lived in Stephenville i hunted 50ac place and the neighbor had an electric wire around a green field that bordered my fenceline. I could hear that thing pop every 10-15 seconds if i remember right and that green field still had a ton of deer in it every evening and morning. and a lot of the deer i saw came from or was going to that green field.

[SuperDave]

Has he been running goats before, and just put up the wire? Or has he introduced the wire and the goats? I would lean more to the goats scaring off the deer than another wire on the fence.

[Mike Murphey]

goats are not scaring away deer...I suspect it is the good rain we have been getting because the deer don't need to wander around to find food....

[RR 314]

Man, I can't see how the fence would be any sustained deterrent to deer coming in to the 200 acres. If they get tickled they may shy away for a day or two but they will endeavor to persevere. :-) I tried an electric fence around a food plot one time and it didn't work too well. :-) we even had one deer (i think it was one) that would walk up to the wire and intentionally/repeatedly shock herself on the nose. She seemed to like it. :-)

[Johnny Dangerr]

It's the goats. They'll eat the place down the dirt.

[BeerMe]

20 years ago we got rid of the goats on our place, the hunting has been better every year since.

[redskeeter1020]

Has had goats on his adjoining land that I don't lease, but this is the first year he ran goats on mine. He pulled them off at end of september.

[RogueSamurai]

It's the goats. They'll eat the place down the dirt.

This. The goats don't scare away deer, they eat all the resources. Another year of solid goats and you will have no deer. I promise you.

[mchildress]

Had an uncle that had fenced off 10 ac with electric fence. He was drinking coffee at the kitchen window and saw a buck walking across the pasture towards the new electric fence. The buck hit the fence and fell and didn't get up. He walked outside with his coffee towards where the buck was down in the grass and got about 20 yrds from him when he jumped up and ran back across the pasture the way he had come.

Just made me think about this reading the post. The deer will get used to the fence but the goats will compete with the deer for the same food source.

[bassmatt72]

This. The goats don't scare away deer, they eat all the resources. Another year of solid goats and you will have no deer. I promise you.

I agree, you can struggle on a lease with cows but goats will clean everything off and you'll end up with nothing! I've been on a lease with electric cross fencing and watched deer simply jump it or duck under, never even slowed them down. Goats, I'll never be on a place with goats.

[gonehuntin68]

How high is the electric fence because that will make a huge difference. When I was younger my dad put a electric fence around our property to keep the deer out as we had a large garden and many fruit tree's and many deer. The top wire was about 5.5ft high and it kept the deer out most of the time but every once in while one would jump it. If it's about the same height as most barbed wire fences then it shouldn't be much of a problem. If it was me I would be corning along those fence lines to get the deer used to crossing it if you determine the fence is a problem.

[redskeeter1020]

Appreciate the advice. Sounds like goats are the issue. That sucks