Howdy!
We're getting ready to put up about 3 miles of new perimeter fencing. The fence will be 6-strands of barbed wire. The posts are set at 54" tall, with the top wire is slated to be at about 52" and the bottom wire about 12" off the ground. The property will be used primarily for stocker calves (4-5 wts.). The place has a fair number whitetail deer, so we need to take them into consideration.
The most common wire spacing for a 6-strand barbed wire fence in our area is 8" apart--equally spaced (Option A in photos). This seems to work well for cattle, however, a top spacing of only 8" might be a little tight for deer if they get caught jumping over. However, I have yet to talk to anyone that's had issues with the deer getting caught up on the top strands. (But I'm sure it happens.)
Another consideration is to space the top few wires a little farther apart to allow some wiggle room for the deer in the event that one does catch the top wire (Option B in photos). As a result of a wider top spacing, the lower wires are then set a little closer together to help detour cattle from grazing the other side of the fence.
What are your thoughts on wire spacing? Option A? Or Option B?


We're getting ready to put up about 3 miles of new perimeter fencing. The fence will be 6-strands of barbed wire. The posts are set at 54" tall, with the top wire is slated to be at about 52" and the bottom wire about 12" off the ground. The property will be used primarily for stocker calves (4-5 wts.). The place has a fair number whitetail deer, so we need to take them into consideration.
The most common wire spacing for a 6-strand barbed wire fence in our area is 8" apart--equally spaced (Option A in photos). This seems to work well for cattle, however, a top spacing of only 8" might be a little tight for deer if they get caught jumping over. However, I have yet to talk to anyone that's had issues with the deer getting caught up on the top strands. (But I'm sure it happens.)
Another consideration is to space the top few wires a little farther apart to allow some wiggle room for the deer in the event that one does catch the top wire (Option B in photos). As a result of a wider top spacing, the lower wires are then set a little closer together to help detour cattle from grazing the other side of the fence.
What are your thoughts on wire spacing? Option A? Or Option B?

