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Across the Fence:  Country Etiquette  |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
 Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 09:45:23 AM
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I live way out in the country with very few neighbors. We have 3 acres and are surrounded by hay fields on 3 sides. The guy across the street owns most of it. Also a little pasture about 2 1/2 acres that he lets me use for my cows and goats. He's been really nice and won't let me pay anything. He says it keeps the grass down so he doesn't have to bush hog. I keep it cleaned up as good as I can. There is a shed in the back and the tin keeps coming off the roof into the pasture. I keep that all picked up.
My problem is the fence along the road. It's very old chain link with very huge honeysuckle vines all over it. The cows have completely cleared off this side of the fence and have been trying to get to the other side to get the rest. Well, they have been climbing up the fence and gradually the fence has been leaning out. Last week they managed to just climb right over the fence and proceded on down the road. I got them back and had them out back with my goats for a week. A friend came and pulled the fence up for me. But I just put them all back out there the other day and they haven't tried to climb out yet. I just have 2 cows over there most of the time. The goats will just be there for awhile til the back rests.
My question is, how much of this is my responsibility to fix? Should I fix the whole fence or just the part that the cows knocked over? The whole thing is about 330'. I am willing to buy new fencing and pay my guy to put it up. But the old fence needs to go. If he puts up all this fence then later the owner pulls the old fence up it's going to mess up the new fence. I talked to the owner the other day and he's fine with barbed wire. I told him I'll pay for everything. But now the guy that's going to do it is wanting to pull the old fence down first. I have tried to get in touch with the owner but he hasn't called back.
So I have decided last night the best thing might be to just do 4-5 strands of barbed wire as close to the old as possible and leave it at that. I was going to do the field fence, but that seems so permanent.
Any advice would be great. I feel like his wife doesn't like me for some reason (maybe because I sream alot and say a few things very loudly that I shouldn't!) and she won't talk to me. Her husband is the one who I talk to about all this and he's just so busy from daylight to dark.
Thanks for listening.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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CherryMeDarlin
True Blue Farmgirl
602 Posts
Cherry
Odenville
AL
USA
602 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 10:07:52 AM
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Kris, I think you've got your solution, if you can't reach the guy to ask him about taking down the old fence first. That old chain link would probably get someone a few bucks at a scrap yard. Maybe if your guy takes it down and rolls it up, the owner could take it in. It's a win-win for him anyway you look at it.
~~Cherry~~
http://cherrymedarlin.blogspot.com
"A thing is as simple or as complicated as you make it." --TT Murphy |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 10:30:50 AM
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Cherry, it's just that I am not sure how far to go with it not being mine. He said it needs to come down and he had thought about that many times. I just don't want to overstep his neighborliness, ya know? It's just so hard to know what to do. I wish he'd just sell me that little piece of pasture.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Cabinprincess
True Blue Farmgirl
682 Posts
Melody June
Athens
TX
USA
682 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 10:35:37 AM
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Ditto to Cherry's reply. And you'd be happy that your cow's aren't off meeting the neighborhood bulls. LOL
Smiles, Melody June
God's gift to you are your talents, your gift to Him is how you use them. |
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CherryMeDarlin
True Blue Farmgirl
602 Posts
Cherry
Odenville
AL
USA
602 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 11:04:09 AM
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Well, I'd say that footing the bill for a new fence on someone else's little piece of land is the utmost in being neighborly! He'd be absolutely insane to turn down that offer! You're already helping him out with bushhogging costs. I know 'cause Brian does bushhogging on the side and I know what he charges! And you're offering to tear down an already falling down fence, something he won't have to worry about. And he can make money from that without doing anything other than throwing it in the back of a truck and hauling it off. I'd be more concerned that HE'D take advantage of YOUR neighborliness!
~~Cherry~~
http://cherrymedarlin.blogspot.com
"A thing is as simple or as complicated as you make it." --TT Murphy |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2009 : 11:18:59 AM
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Why don't you come talk to him, Cherry? You sound like you could make him see the light! You are right, I know.
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Mother Hen
True Blue Farmgirl
604 Posts
Cindy
Peck
ID
USA
604 Posts |
Posted - Jul 25 2009 : 2:34:25 PM
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Kris, We pasture cows on a neighbor's property to give us some green grass and to keep his fire hazard down in the early summer/late spring. He has that vinyl fencing around his yard so we run a hotwire inside the pasture about 4 feet from his vinyl fencing so the cows won't damage his fence.
If the guy doesn't call you back, why not leave his fence and put up the barbed wire (4 strands would be best) 3 or 4 feet inside the pasture from his fence? It sounds like you have a gate by your side to move the cows in and out of that pasture and if not then you can have a gate put into your barbed wire fence.
Also, for us, we have put in t-posts and fencing, and repair fencing every year so we can run the cows there and it's all at our cost and we will leave the t-posts if at some point we can't pasture there anymore. That's the way it's done here anyway.
Hope it helps.
Cindy
FARMGIRLS CAN DO ANYTHING!!!
I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Psalms 34:1 |
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Jul 25 2009 : 4:04:06 PM
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Cindy, I just decided to do the barbed wire. I think he did 5 strands. He put it as close to the old fence as he could. So it's done now and I still have not heard a word from them. I had to pay $610. But it was worth it to know I took care of it and just didn't leave it like it was. It did look crappy with yellw rope tied to t-posts. They are still there though holding up the old fence.
Anyway, I feel better about the whole thing myself. So now I can put the goats out there, too. Now all I need to do is find the hole they got of through the other day and plug it up!
Kris
Happiness is simple. |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
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Mother Hen
True Blue Farmgirl
604 Posts
Cindy
Peck
ID
USA
604 Posts |
Posted - Jul 25 2009 : 8:52:15 PM
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Kris, sorry I didn't see your post earlier. Glad you got the fencing done. Wow, I wish I could get paid that kind of money to do fencing, think I'll have to talk to DH and see if I can get a raise, LOL.
If you find a good way to keep the goats INSIDE a fenced area, I'd love to know. We can never keep ours in, we've used 4 lines of hotwire but they still get out. They are spoiled, they don't like to eat the weeds like regular goats are supposed to, they like to munch out in the alfalfa field instead. Spoiled, spoiled, spoiled!
Cindy
FARMGIRLS CAN DO ANYTHING!!!
I will bless the Lord at all times: his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Psalms 34:1 |
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Across the Fence: Country Etiquette |
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Country Etiquette
