Brad Dennis of Sunnybrae Acres moved 700 stockers in 15 minutes when we visited him on the Saskatchewan prairie. Here’s how:
1. Have pigtail posts and polywire reel ready to go on ATV
Pigtail post rack ready to pull and put in the ground.
Fence reel holder and post racks ready to build and pick up temporary fences.
More room for pigtail posts on a horizontal front rack
2. Drive the perimeter of the new paddock to mark out the boundary with ATV tire tracks. Put down new post with power drill and a mallet.
3. Hook the polywire onto post and drive the length of the new fence, putting down pigtails at points if it’s not a straight line. Attach the reel over on the other side. Brad just lets the reel hang down.
Hooking an alligator clip to the post, with the reel attached to the ATV.
4. Then the fun part! Drive back along the perimeter on the ATV putting in posts without getting out of the ATV using step-in posts. Wrap the alligator clip around the hot line and clip it. Done!
5. The herd is ready to move, Brad unhooks the gate and they move themselves through while he takes down the old fence.
Brad picks up all the pigtail posts, unhooks the latch and uses this power tool to reel in the old fence.
6. Using the power tool and a pigtail for guiding the polywire rollup, Brad reels back in a quarter mile of fence in one minute.
Even with us in the way, Brad did this herd move in 15 minutes from start to finish on his ATV.