Stubborn--yes, but also strong and smart
Barnyard or backyard, goats may be a source of comic relief or the creators of mayhem. So much depends on the enclosure you provide for your herd. Goats interact with fencing and will test its limits. Your herd of goats will find a fence's vulnerability and capitalize on it for their own exploring and ravenous ends.
To begin with, a 4 foot high tensile woven wire fence with 4" x 4" openings is the rule. Goats are strong and smart and your fence has to be as well. Tough and flexible woven 12.5 gauge wire with strong stiff stay knots is imperative. This combination of factors will stand up to the roughhousing that goats bring to the party.
About those terms--
Don't Underestimate Your Goat
Add an extra strand of electric fence wire at the top of the fence to ensure safety, especially for more ambitious goats. Yet, no matter what system is in place when keeping goats: vigilance is required. Be assured, a break or defect in a fence and your goats will take advantage of it--down the street before you know it. Hello, neighbors. Straying goats will munch a rose bush over a clump of grass.
When goats are limited to a grassy enclosure, the incidence of worms and parasites goes up. They are known as browsers in their style of feeding--leafy fodder above the ground is of particular interest and they will use a fence to find ways to get at bushy shrubs and the lower growth of trees--or happily climb trees. If you've got a goat that makes a practice of finding new and creative ways of escaping, it may be time to enhance your enclosure for Ms. or Mr. Gruff, upgrading your existing fence. A rebellious goat will readily tutor other goats in your herd with its pillaging tactics.
The Ingenuity of a Goat! Wait for it...
Check with the Town
If you're desiring a backyard goat, remember that cities and towns may have size and number limits of your herd. And consider your neighbors as they can be noisy as well as hungry. You must have space--you cannot "share" your yard with a goat: your yard won't exist after a goat has its way with it. As omnivorous as they seem, they will not eat what they've peed on so their fodder must be kept off the ground in a raised feeder.
Spring Shedding
Seems to be that shedding is going to be one of the stressors on your fence. Shedding? Yes, this is why a woven wire fence comes in handy; it flexes with the strains of a goat, using it to rub off its warm winter undercoat that comes off each spring. You might give your goats a good brushing to help the process along and prevent some wear and tear on your fence.
Consider Predators
Your goat may be wily, but it is also vulnerable to attack. “Coyotes are very good at killing sheep and goats. They will eat anything from newborns to adult animals. They are a threat year-round,” says Reid Redden, Texas A&M extension sheep and goats expert. Other trouble makers are:
He confirms there are various trapping methods--but for success, there's nothing like a good fence.
A Few Facts: