17
Farm boundaries
Please tick the types of land use which border or pass through your farm.
Please tick boxes relevant to your current farm practice. Are there any lower risk practices you could adopt?
Assess with your vet the risk any neighbouring livestock enterprise or land uses may pose to your
farm. What actions can you take to reduce these risks?
Double fencing
A distance of three metres is preferable when double fencing. When a permanent double fence
is not feasible use an electric fence to temporarily create a boundary that can be taken down
when the stock are removed from the field.
Cooperation with neighbours
Finding out what your neighbour’s health status is and working together on a local disease
control strategy is particularly important on extensive hill farms. You could arrange to use
grazing at boundary fields at different times (a waiting period of at least 18 days should be
observed where scab is an issue). This may be easier than trying to double fence.
Water access
Avoid allowing stock access to surface water, streams and rivers. These are at risk of becoming
contaminated by neighbouring stock and wildlife. Fence off streams and rivers; supply clean
fresh drinking water in troughs instead.
MODERATE RISK
LOWER RISK
HIGHER RISK
Arable
Forestry
Main road
Water course
Public footpath
Livestock other
Livestock (sheep)
Livestock (cattle)
Common grazing
HIGHER RISK
LOWER RISK
No adjoining grazing
with neighbours livestock
Boundary fences are secure
Double fencing between
adjoining grazing
Double fencing with a gap of at
least three metres between stock
Stock prevented from accessing
shared water courses
Sheep can have nose to nose
contact with neighbours stock
Stock frequently break through
boundary fences
Stock can access shared water
