Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Pond Boss 3, 4 or 5 wire fence.

I have been advised by the local Police to get a “nasty a**” fence put up PDQ!
The purpose of this fence is to mark my property line and more importantly, make it as difficult as possible for my neighbor to trespass onto my property.
I want to go with a barbed wire fence, should I go 3, 4 or 5 wire ?
It’s a 1000’ run and prices average $2.75 per foot for 3 wire, $3.00 for 4 wire and $3.40 for 5 wire.
He threatens to poison my pond next, looks like lights and security cameras are next on my list. This sucks folks!

What is wrong with people!?!

I have a potential trespasser issue as well Jim, so I'm interested to see what steps you're encouraged to take.

I considered investing in a couple velociraptors, but have recently discovered those are pretty hard to come by these days.

I know that Innotek makes a nice invisible fence, the only issue I see is getting your neighbor to slip the collar on prior to coming over!

What in the world is wrong with people...

In all seriousness... Have you thought about making a natural barrier with some trees, or something thorny like blackberry bushes. They can scale a fence anyways, and you might like the look of a more natural barrier near your pond to keep the ^%&*'s out! Just my two cents.

In addition, a small pile of dirt to "target" shoot your rifle into might deter him as well when he sees how deadly accurate you are becoming!

I can't believe that the police don't realize that the neighbor doesn't know he is trespassing. And further, that they tell you to do something about it.

Regarding the poisoning of the pond, I would make sure that the cops and DA know that you feel threatened, need to protect yourself and your property. Maybe that will get them off their butts.

I tried a pair of velociraptors, but honestly found that the pterodactyl worked best. Especially the hybrid bear-o-dactyl.
Tried a t-rex as well, but found out the hard way that you have to keep them off the crack....
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/tyrannosaur_crack

seriously though, crazy neighbors are scary. I wish you all the best with your current issue, and only hope that i can help you crack a smile in the face of the frustration the situation brings.
Best of luck
-skinny

Wow, bear-o-dactyls are scary. Kind of surprised they haven't taken over the planet by now.

Should we add that to the abbreviations list? Hybrid Bear-o-dactyl = HBoD? I think stocking them on or near private waters would solve many of the trespassing issues we've been hearing about lately, like the boat tragedy in california, this nastiness and the overfishing by the farmhand's buddies.....

sorry...hijack ended.

Sorry to hear about your issues Jim. Game cameras or a security camera are IMHO a must in your situation. When we first purchased our property we had a neighbor that constantly rode horses onto our property. We found an area of fencing (barbed wire) that was cut so we repaired it. The idiot neighbor cut the fencing and continued to ride onto our property. So I repaired the fence a second time and posted no trespassing signs about every 50 feet along the fence line. I also spread the word amongst neighbors that now that my property was completely fenced and posted that I would call the sheriff if I caught anyone else on the property.

I wish I could tell you that this ended the problem but it has not. Occasionally we still see some signs of trespassing.

At least by using cameras you might be able to catch an image of the idiot on your property.

Jim, are you in Mulvane city limits, or outside of town? This is city police?

To answer your question I would use atleast a 4 strand barbed wire fence. With 3 you can still sqeeze between then pretty easy. Five strands would probably be best though. I have had the same kinds of problems. I had a guy walk up and start fishing while I was weed eating just across the pond then act like he hadn't done anything wrong. We live in a world full of stupid people.

I have to agree....trying to remember my younger days as a hooligan, and 3-strand would be way too easy to get through if i was dedicated enough. I also really like the blackberry row idea. Barbed wire just requires a solid pair of snips or linesman's pliers to get through and still cause a ruckus. big, dense row of thorny bushes? Particularly ones that tend to attract stinging insects? rockon.
All the more reason to stock HBoD......

I always hated climbing field fence as a young juvenile, but had no trouble with barbed wire.

The troubles slowed down, after a few incidences, when the shooting range was installed along the property line. I am stacking stumps and thick brush up, but that will take a while.

Seems he is only a real jerk when he is drunk. Last problem I had was his young son shot a 3 PT in my garden area. Cop's and DNR were worthless as usual. (I do not think a gun can even be in the house, as three DUI's are a felony in MI)

It is getting better, I hope! 1650 feet of fence is a chunk, just for materials, then it has to be installed.

I seriously doubt a fence will go up this year, or even for several more years... So we continue to train our neighbors.

Ah neighbours. I moved 2300 feet off the road in the middle of 100 acres and I have had more neighbour trouble then when I was road-side on 13 acres.

Good luck to all those with whacky neighbours, mine recently decided my beaver dams were flooding his fields and threatened to blow them up. Cops told me to go talk to him again... ya right. (His fields are 1 1/2 miles away... uphill... on the other side of a road. I'd need a 50 foot high dam to flood him. He is nuts)

I love neighbors:

That one's awesome JKB.

If you have a bad neighbor a fence probably won't help much.
1. Game camera's ( evidence he's on your property, but don't forget to erase the video if he picks up some lead. )
2. Regular target practice( if he thinks your a bad shot he might stay even further away.)
3. A couple of Rottweiler's trained to stay on the property with an invisible fence.

There never seems to be a cheap solution.
Last resort buy him out.

That sucks! I'd go with the 5 wire, and make it tall as well, spaced 1' apart. If the posts are a ways apart, use wire to tie the strands together so they can's spread them easily and slip thru. But, if they want, they can always cut the wire.

Do you live on the property where the pond is located?

Once I caught 2 ATV's going thru the woods behind the house. I stopped them, and informed them that they had just crossed the shooting lane, right behind the 300 Yd. target butt. I explained to them that I wear ear plugs and ear muffs when shooting, and I don't check the woods behind the target before I shoot every time, and I certainly won't hear them. I told them that I'd really feel bad if they or a machine caught a bullet, but there's not much I could do about it once the trigger is pulled. I had signs stating that it was a rifle range and not to enter, but they didn't read them. I think the talk worked, because that was 2 or 3 years ago and there hasn't been any signs of trespassers since then.

Got a small portable tape recorder that you can carry with you the next time you talk with the neighbor?

Sounds like you and Rainman should swap stories.

It must be a universal problem. Here it looked like the neighbors thought that the "right" to use the property was theirs as well as mine since they were here first, they had been using the property for 40 years. Some how they managed to include the pond that I dug and the fish I stocked into their "right".

I put up a barbed wire fence and that stopped 99% of them. The other 1% is one who believes that he is a mountain man and great hunter which allows him access where ever he wants. But at the same time I installed the fence I planted a variety of climbing, thorning and hedging plants. Over time they have solved the problem.

But, overall, being there was the biggest deterrent.

The best advice I can give you is to consider the neighbor like you would, beavers, invasive plants or fire ants. All problems that can't be immediately solved and that require time and a plan.

The most difficult part for me was not letting it get under my skin. Once I managed that part, the rest was much like any other project.

Sorry to hear about the predicament... The police should be more receptive than telling you to put up a fence. However, it's not always the police departments fault. The amount of hoops we have to jump through to prove trespassing is insane. The police may just be completely making sure your neighbor is aware he is trespassing so that when he does trespass, your case against him is airtight. Judges and juries are often sympathetic towards trespassers for a myriad of reasons. Work with the police department to find out exactly what they feel will be the best methods to assure a successful prosecution. Game cameras are good, but unless the subject is close by positive identification can be difficult. Remember, when in criminal court the standard is beyond reasonable doubt. Sometimes that is a very tough standard to hold up to. A high quality video camera system set up with a motion detector may seal the deal. I worked with a land owner who had ATV riders tearing his land up. Through the proper posting of his property and the use of game cameras and video cameras we were able to successfully prosecute 7 different individuals. Including one who was charged 4 times with trespassing and convicted each time! Finally 6 months in jail and he decided to stop. Some people are insane and no matter what you do, they think they have a right to use your land. Sometimes sitting in jail for an extended period of time is what it takes to send the message home.

I did the unthinkable yesterday….. Before spending thousands of dollars, I called all the experts. Sedgwick County Sheriff, Mulvane PD, District Attorney and my Attorney who just happens to work both sides of the fence(pun intended) in these matters.

To say I was shocked is putting it mildly from what I learned. None of the above people had any good news or hope for me and my situation. Folks, I cant even find the words to describe how ticked off I am at the “system”! Catching a Trespasser in the act is just the start of a loooong and potentially expense process for you.
Anyway, I know what I need to do and because things have already turned violent I need to be careful what I say. Pics and progress report coming this weekend.

Since you have a good idea of what's ahead, laying low and taking care of business is a good idea. Do what you need to do and don't say anything in a public forum that could be used against you.

I had a neighbor put up a new fence across the road from me on the back side of my property...I noticed that for about 500' every other t-post of mine was missing the clips holding the fence wire up. I guess my neighbor ran short and just took mine because he was either to lazy or cheap to go to town and get his own....

If you own property and want to protect it, it takes risk. A good fence helps, but meeting trespassers with a rifle goes a long way. When we moved onto our farm, I first repared the fence. Second, I met trespassers (mostly local hunters) and made it clear that they did not have permission to hunt or tresspass. We let one neighbor, who is respectful of property rights, fish in our pond (only can keep the BG) and trap the land outside of deer season. The line that they had been hunting my land for 30 years, was met by my response - "Then count your blessings for being able to use someone else's land for so long, but in America, people can own land. Go to a communist country if you don't like it here, but this is mine and I'll defend it." And I mean it!