Pheasant Pen Fencing

ciscokid

Well-Known Member
have any members got experience of using "galvanised temporary fence panels", to make a pheasant pen?
Our small DIY pheasant syndicate need to rebuild our pen and we want to use these panels instead of chicken wire.
Im concerned when the poults fly into the fence they will injure/kill themselves whereas at the moment they seem to bounce off the chicken wire.
Any advice would be helpful as we need to make a decision soon.
I have included a picture of the fence panel.
 

Attachments

  • standard_panel_wg_2.jpg
    standard_panel_wg_2.jpg
    48.7 KB · Views: 55
Heras fencing, would not think its ideal for pheasant pen, what are you going to do along the bottom? can't use the feet that comes with it as you will be left with a space underneath, can't pin it as you would ordinary netting wire
also the mesh is a little large for poults, + a good size to let vermin in.

Far better and easier to stick with conventional netting wire IMO, believe you can now get a plastic net 2 metres high that is strong enough for release pens, but I have no experience of it so can't comment.
 
Heras fencing, would not think its ideal for pheasant pen, what are you going to do along the bottom? can't use the feet that comes with it as you will be left with a space underneath, can't pin it as you would ordinary netting wire
also the mesh is a little large for poults, + a good size to let vermin in.

Far better and easier to stick with conventional netting wire IMO, believe you can now get a plastic net 2 metres high that is strong enough for release pens, but I have no experience of it so can't comment.

We plan to use chicken wire along outside of panels, buried down to obstruct our digging predators.
 
I think it could be great if you've got a load of them spare. Just hog-ring some rabbit netting to the bottom with a 12" flap to peg down and you'll be sorted. You could even overlap the netting and hog ring together then take down whole sides. I've often thought about this as a solution for when the guns have to stand near a release pen as it always feels a bit tacky I think. With these, you could remove a whole side.
 
Used it for years now. As RD says, on its own it isn't great.
One issue is the feet arrangement; we don't use the feet, but get the posts down into the ground so the bottom crossbar is tight against the ground. Next is the chicken wire pegged into the ground about a metre out the way and another metre up the sides (don't use the wider spaced Heras fencing if at all possible, or if you do it will need to be completely encased in chicken wire). Watch out for broken wires, the birds can get out or stuck between the broken strands and the chicken wire, and die an unpleasant death via starvation/predator or pecking. I'd also consider a run of chicken wire along the inside floor and up the side of the pen to stop the nosey little buggers getting stuck as well.
 
I don't use them but my mate does. He has used them for years and years. Chicken wire dug in around the base to keep Charlie out and you are in business. Great if you want to move the pen in a couple of years. Just pick up the whole lot and go. No problem.
We do use some similar panels for a partridge pen. These we got from a closing down dog kennels.
 
OK that will work , still think it would be easier to build a conventional fence, is cost an issue? or do you have access to Heras panels for free.

We have an offer of some used panels going cheap. I was worried about poult injuries/death. It would be a shame to lose birds for the sake of some cheap fencing.
 
As for keeping badgers out, I've found if they want in, they'll get in, unless you were to dig in a deep layer of heavy Rylock.
 
Thanks for the advice, I feel re-assured that other shoots use them. We are actually moving the pen to new ground to reduce risk of Gape Worm, I believe it can lie dormant in the ground for up to 3 years.
 
Gapes are easy to treat with Flubenvet but dont use Heras and build a proper pen with pop holes and a lockable door. Poults will trap their necks in the 1" + slats.
 
I took over the running of our shoot last year with two more other guns. We built a second pen using heras panels to cater for more birds. We used 14 panels down the sides and 8 on the ends. We still used pop holes on the sides and built in a nice double gate for access. We bought the panels for £3 a piece. In fact we have just ordered another 40 today as we are now putting in a third pen. In the top of the panels we also put in roofing slats cut to 1m so we could then attach netting gaining an extra 1m of height. They work a treat.
 
Used it for years, as said get rid of the feet and have the bottom bar flat or even dug in, bind the uprights tight (at first I overlapped but don't bother now), easy enough to fit pop holes. It also has the added advantage of withstanding damage from falling branches etc, last years high winds brought down tree tops on mine but it remained secure, a normal pen would have needed a big repair.
 
My only reservation after all the comments noted ref safety from predators Ect is it stands out like a sore thumb the pens I build now with the modern plastic top / wire bottom are hardly visible from a few hundred yards . But then the last pen cost several thousand pounds not including my labour .
good luck with the build
norma
 
what do people think of the new plastic coated wire on Gamekeeperfeeds ?
I need some wire but not sure on what to use the normal chicken wire or the new stuff.
 
Love the plastic mesh without a wire core got mine from collins nets 6' 100m £100 pleasure to deal with you can put it up on your own then 4' of chicken mesh on the bottom with 18" turned out .
norma
 
Don't know how many birds you release but you need a lot of panels for a decent sizes pen for 100. Always use the old system a yard of perimeter for one bird.
A good cheap pen is normal posts 4ft small mesh wire with a foot turned out and pegged and 4ft plastic netting above that. Makes it easy to lift wire at a later stage.
 
Back
Top