7 Temporary Corral Panel Fencing For Sheep For Small Acreage

Setting up a temporary paddock in the morning before heading to your day job requires fencing that is fast, light, and secure. The wrong choice means spending your lunch break chasing sheep out of the neighbor’s garden. Choosing the right temporary panels is one of the most critical decisions for managing a small flock effectively, directly impacting your daily chores and your animals’ safety.

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Evaluating Panels for Small-Acreage Sheep Flocks

The first thing to realize is that sheep don’t test a fence with brute force like cattle do. They test it with persistence and intelligence, looking for a gap to squeeze through or a low spot to hop over. This means your primary concerns are panel height, the spacing between the bars, and the security of the connections.

Look for panels that are at least 4 feet high for most wool and meat breeds; flightier breeds might require 5 feet to discourage jumpers. The spacing is even more critical. Gaps should be narrow enough—less than 4-5 inches—to prevent a ewe from getting her head stuck, which is a common and life-threatening emergency. Lambs can squeeze through even smaller openings, so panels with tighter mesh at the bottom are a huge advantage.

Finally, consider weight versus durability. Feather-light panels are a joy to move for daily rotational grazing, but a hefty ram can bend them with a determined push. Heavy-duty panels offer peace of mind but are a serious chore to relocate. Your choice is a direct tradeoff between convenience and security, and the right balance depends entirely on your flock’s temperament and how you plan to use the panels.

Tarter 4′ Economy Corral Panels for Mobility

Tarter’s economy panels are exactly what they sound like: a lightweight, no-frills solution for low-pressure situations. Their key feature is their portability. A single person can easily carry one or two of these, making them ideal for setting up a quick grazing cell or a temporary sick pen.

The "economy" part of the name is the tradeoff. These panels are typically made from a lighter gauge of steel tubing and can be bent by a determined animal. They work beautifully for a calm flock of ewes but are not the right tool for a high-traffic gate area or for containing a ram in full rut. Think of them as visual barriers that offer good-enough containment for most daily tasks.

Their best use is for maximizing your pasture with minimal effort. Imagine needing to section off a patch of lush clover for a few hours of grazing. You can haul a dozen of these panels out by hand, create a paddock in minutes, and move it again the next day without breaking a sweat. For frequent, low-stress pasture division, their mobility is unmatched.

Priefert Utility Panels: A Heavy-Duty Choice

When you need a temporary fence that feels permanent, Priefert is a name that comes to mind. These panels are built for durability, not for easy daily moves. They are constructed from heavy-gauge steel and often feature a high-quality powder-coat finish that resists rust for years.

The defining characteristic of these panels is their sheer toughness. They can withstand leaning, pushing, and the general abuse that comes with livestock handling. Their connection systems, often using heavy-duty pins or chain clamps, create a solid wall with very little flex. This makes them an excellent choice for building semi-permanent sorting pens, a winter sacrifice paddock, or a secure introduction pen for new animals.

Of course, this strength comes at the cost of weight. Moving an entire corral made of Priefert panels is a significant physical task, often requiring two people or a tractor with a carry-all. They are an investment in security and longevity, not in convenience. You set them up for a season, not for a day.

Behlen Country Sheep & Goat Combination Panels

These panels are a specialized tool designed with the unique problems of small ruminants in mind. Their most important feature is the graduated mesh spacing. The openings are very small at the bottom and get progressively wider toward the top.

This design directly addresses two major safety issues. The tight 4"x4" grid at the bottom prevents lambs and kids from slipping through the fence, a constant risk with standard corral panels. It also stops ewes from getting their heads stuck when reaching for that tempting blade of grass just outside the fence line—a surprisingly common and dangerous situation.

While they are often more expensive than general-purpose utility panels, the built-in safety features can be invaluable, especially during lambing season. Using these panels for a lambing jug or a creep feeding area provides a level of security that is hard to achieve with other types. You’re paying for peace of mind and a design that anticipates the specific behaviors of sheep.

CountyLine Welded Wire Utility Fence Panels

Found at nearly every farm supply store, these panels are the jack-of-all-trades of farm fencing. They are a single sheet of heavy-gauge wire welded into a grid, typically 4 or 5 feet tall and 16 feet long. They are relatively inexpensive and light for their size.

For sheep, their utility comes with a few serious warnings. The welds can snap under pressure, especially if a sheep repeatedly pushes against the same spot. A broken weld creates a dangerously sharp point that can cause nasty puncture wounds. Furthermore, the large grid size on many "cattle" panels is a significant head-entrapment hazard for sheep.

These panels are best used not as a freestanding corral but as the fencing material for a semi-permanent enclosure supported by T-posts. When stretched tight and secured to posts every 4-6 feet, they create a very effective barrier. They are not a good choice for a portable, unsupported corral that you plan to move frequently, as their flexibility and potential for breakage make them unreliable in that role.

OK Brand Hog Panels: A Secure Option for Lambs

It might seem odd to use a hog panel for sheep, but they solve one specific problem perfectly: containing lambs. These panels are short—usually 34 inches high—but they are exceptionally rigid and feature a very tight grid pattern. An adult ewe can easily clear this height, but a lamb cannot.

Their strength lies in creating escape-proof enclosures for your youngest animals. The tight spacing makes it impossible for even the smallest lamb to squeeze through or get its head stuck. This makes them the absolute best option for building a lamb creep—an area where only lambs can enter to access high-quality feed without competition from the ewes.

Like welded wire panels, hog panels require support from T-posts and are not designed to be freestanding. You wouldn’t build your main paddock with them due to their low height. But for creating a secure nursery pen, a weaning pen, or a creep feeder, their rigidity and safety are second to none.

Sioux Steel Victory Panels with Pin Connectors

Sioux Steel offers a fantastic middle ground between lightweight economy panels and ultra-heavy-duty options. The Victory series, in particular, hits a sweet spot of respectable durability while remaining manageable for one person to move. They are sturdy enough for most small-flock situations.

The standout feature is often the connection system. Many of these panels use a simple drop-pin design. Each panel has looped ends that interlock with the next, and a steel rod is dropped through them to create a secure, flexible hinge. This is significantly faster and less frustrating than wrestling with clamps or bolts, especially on uneven pasture.

These panels are a workhorse for rotational grazing systems. They are strong enough to command respect from the flock but light enough that moving a 10-panel fence line each morning isn’t a dreaded chore. They represent a solid, all-around investment for the hobby farmer who needs a system that is both reliable and easy to reconfigure on the fly.

Hutchison Western 5′ Versatile Corral Panels

When you need extra security, a 5-foot panel provides it. The additional height is a powerful deterrent for more athletic or flighty sheep breeds that might view a 4-foot fence as a mere suggestion. Hutchison Western and similar brands offer this taller option, which is invaluable in certain scenarios.

These panels are often constructed with rounded tubing instead of square, which reduces the risk of injury if an animal bumps or rubs against it. The connections are typically simple and robust, designed for creating strong, stable enclosures without much fuss. They are heavier than 4-foot panels, but the added security is the entire point.

Use these taller panels for situations where escapes are not an option. Building a temporary handling chute for vaccinations, setting up a secure breeding pen with a new ram, or quarantining an agitated animal are all perfect applications. The extra foot of height buys you confidence that your animals will stay exactly where you put them.

The best temporary panel isn’t the heaviest or the most expensive; it’s the one that best matches the job at hand. A lightweight panel is perfect for daily pasture moves, while a specialized goat panel is superior for a lambing pen. Assess your immediate need—mobility, security, or safety—and choose the right tool for that specific task.