If you read our articles on barber pole worms, then you know that proper rotational grazing can significantly reduce the worm burden your sheep are exposed to. Realistically, rotational grazing can be tricky to implement for a variety of reasons. One of the main reasons is shade and or shelter constraints. So today we are going to show you how to make an inexpensive portable shade structure.
During grazing season sheep absolutely need to have access to shade at all times. This is the only shelter they truly require in the summer months. Sheep can withstand a lot of cold, wind and even rain, however, they are extremely sensitive to overheating. They can become heat stressed at relatively low temperatures without access to shade.
This means that every pasture you rotate your flock to requires ample shade. Trees make the ideal summer shade, but if you have open, treeless fields like our farm, some form of alternative shade is required. However, if you are trying to rotate your animals to a new section of pasture every few days and not return there for 60+ days, building a shelter for each pasture is obviously very impractical (not to mention prohibitively expensive).
So what is a frugal farmer to do?
Create a portable shade structure, of course. We have tried various renditions of sheep shade. Some of them more successful than others. Today we are going to show you what works for us to save you some trial and error.
Now, the biggest hurdle to portable structures we face here on the coast is wind. Unfortunately, portable and wind are not particularly compatible. It is very difficult to make something easy to take down and move that withstands our day-to-day winds. However, when properly anchored, the portable shelters we will be creating today have held up well to an impressive amount of wind. They are light enough to easily drag making them easy to move from pasture to pasture. Plus, they are inexpensive and easy to make.
Let’s gather our supplies and get started!
Each structure will require the following supplies and should only take an afternoon to put together.
- 2 Cattle Panels (16’ long)
- 8 pieces of 10 foot long metal electrical conduit 1” in diameter. You will need to cut two of them into various pieces for braces
- 4 angle brackets (we used pieces of Simpson strong tie because we had it laying around) to hold the corners together
- 12 ¼” bolts long enough to go through 2 stacked pieces of conduit
- 8 metal screws that fit through the holes in the angle brackets
- Galvanized wire. We used left over fence wire we had.
- 10 x 10 (or larger) piece of 90% shade cloth or a tarp
We would like to note here that we opted to make these shade structures out of metal rather than wood because you get a lot more strength with less weight using the conduit instead of wood. You also do not have to worry about the corners pulling apart as can be a problem with using a wooden base. Dragging is very hard on your base so it must be sturdy.
In addition to your materials, you will also need a few basic tools. You will need a drill, ¼” metal drill bit, a metal drill bit slightly larger than the galvanized wire, sockets/wrenches for tightening bolts, grinder with a cut off wheel, pliers and wire cutters. Now let’s get started building!
Step 1: Cut your pieces
First, you will need to cut braces. You will need 4 pieces about 18” long, and 4 pieces about 3’ long. The short pieces will be used to brace the bottom corners. The longer pieces will be used to brace the side walls.
Once you have cut your pieces to length, take the grinder and carefully cut a slot in one end of each of the 3’ pieces large enough for the cattle panel to sit in.
Step 2: Assemble the base
Once you have pieces cut, lay out 4 of the 10’ conduit sections in a square. Place an angle bracket on each corner and secure it with the metal screws. Once your corners are secured, place the 18” pieces you cut diagonally across the corners. Drill holes through both the frame and the braces and secure with two bolts.
Step 3: Put on the cattle panels
Place an end of one of the cattle panels inside and against the end of the frame you just built. Thoroughly secure it to the frame using short pieces of galvanized wire. You could also use something like U-bolts to secure the cattle panels if you would prefer. Once one end of the cattle panel is secured, arch the panel up so that the other end fits into the frame. Repeat the process to secure the other end.
Take the second panel and repeat the same process at the other end of the base frame. At this point you will have two arched cattle panels with a gap between them. The gap has not been a problem for us, but if you do not want the gap, you can trim two of your bottom frame pieces to 8’ long before you put the base together.
Step 4: Brace the sides
Take the 3’ long brace pieces and place them at an angle to your cattle panel walls. Secure them to the base frame with a bolt approximately 32” from the corner. Once they are secured wedge them under a cross piece and into the grove you cut on the brace at approximately 32” high. Drill a small hole through the end of the brace perpendicular to the groove and outside the cattle panel. Secure a short piece of wire through the holes to prevent the cattle panel from coming out of the groove. Repeat this on all four corners.
Now that you have your four corners braced you need to brace the middle of the cattle panels by the gap. Take the last two remaining 10’ sections of conduit and run them between the braces to support the middle of the cattle panels. Secure them to the braces on either end with bolts. Then secure the cattle panel to the brace. This will keep the cattle panels from flattening sideways if the sheep rub on them or they are pushed against by the wind.
Note: If you are trying to use this structure for goats, you may need additional bracing. Sheep do not try to climb on roofs. If you expect your animals to try to climb on the roof we would recommend adding additional bracing to support the middle of the roof.
Step 5: Anchor the shelter and put on your shade cloth
The last step is to anchor and cover the shelter with shade cloth. We use shade cloth in the summer, but also cover them with a regular tarp during lambing season to provide some temporary extra shelter. We just use baling twine to secure our tarps onto the structure. Tie it on every eyelet to prevent undue stress on just a few eyes which could cause them to rip out.
It is VERY important to anchor your structure proportionally to your wind. Because these structures are light enough to be easily portable, without some sort of anchor they will blow away. Also keep in mind that a solid tarp cover will require you to anchor the portable shade structure even more securely than a shade cloth cover.
To anchor our structure with a solid tarp in it, we use 4 t-posts pounded into the ground at an angle. During the summer months, when it has shade cloth on it and we are moving it regularly, we use cement blocks to anchor our structure. We have two ropes, one on each side. They are permanently attached on one end and have a clip on the other end. We run this rope through several cement blocks and clip it back to the bottom frame. This keep the structure from blowing away, and makes it quick and easy to detach and drag to a new location.
That’s it! If you have made it this far with us, you should now have new, easy to move shade structure to assist with your rotational grazing.
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