Foundations of Virtual Fencing: Strategies for Collar Management

Abstract

Across the Western United States, ranchers and land managers rely on thousands of miles of physical wire fencing to manage livestock on extensive rangelands and pastoral systems (Hayter, 1939). This type of fence has improved rangeland condition in many places by allowing the creation of managed grazing systems (Holechek et al., 2011). However, physical fences can fragment landscape connectivity, pose a risk to wildlife, and impose major financial investment on land managers and producers (Jakes et al., 2018).