What electric fence energizer to buy?

[Danny188]

I'm thinking about getting an electric fence after 2 dog attacks, they have a run with a 4 foot fence and an extended run with 3 ft chicken wire. No surprise the dogs jumped it, the first time it happend I thought the owners would keep their dogs in but after the second time a week ago I'm done with trusting them. Now to the fence Energizer I'm looking for something under $50 or $60 that would charge 3-4 wires. I'm looking for something that I could keep outside with relatively low maintenance, If I have to charge it once a month that's fine. It only needs to charge 250ft of fence, I do have power in the coop and I can keep it inside If I need to. What would you recommend for how many joules it puts out and how many miles of fence. Thank you!

 

[Folly's place]

Go big! You want them to never ever challenge it again!
The good news is that you don't need something that charges 30 miles of fencing, so it won't need to be the most expensive thing out there. Plug-in units are the least expensive, you will pay more for solar or battery types, and get less charge out of them.
I'd shoot for 7 to 10 joules myself. That's what mine does, and it definitely stings!
Mary

 

[Danny188]

Go big! You want them to never ever challenge it again!
The good news is that you don't need something that charges 30 miles of fencing, so it won't need to be the most expensive thing out there. Plug-in units are the least expensive, you will pay more for solar or battery types, and get less charge out of them.
I'd shoot for 7 to 10 joules myself. That's what mine does, and it definitely stings!
Mary

Ok so 1 joule isn't that much, I will look into the plug in units in the 7-10 joule range, I think It will be easier to set up than I thought. And with a lower price and higher joules it seems like a no brainer but will a chicken be ok if it touches the fence if its10 joules? Haha I bet it won't try to get out again though.

 

[DobieLover]

I've kept my neighbors chicken murdering dogs out of my chickens pen with 1.2 Joule output. No problem.
Your concern is the fact that your neighbors dogs are used to jumping the fence. If they don't touch the wires they're not going to get shocked.
You need to raise the height of the fence in addition to installing the hot wires.

 

[Folly's place]

I recently tried to protect my veggie garden with three strand of electric wire, lower to the ground than I'd use for canines, and 7 to 9.9 joules according to our tester. The birds walked through it just fine. They need to hit it with their comb or wattles, because their feathers protected them.
Don't worry about your chickens!
One of our rescue dogs, years ago, would take the maximum two serious IF collars could dish out, without even yelping, to get a chicken. He's the reason we have both a physical fence, and hot tape, and IF 3' inside the physical fencing.
No other dog here has been that tough! I'd want to really make any visiting canine take notice though, in case he's another tough knothead like our Buddy.
Mary