David Counsell and his wife Genevieve operate Dunblane a 15,000ha Mitchell grass property west of Barcaldine, in Central West Queensland, where their enterprise encompasses 15,000 Merino sheep along with 500 head of agistment cattle.

Throughout the property, flocks of sheep continue to mix and are spreading lice and other diseases.

Additional pressure from the increase of wild dogs had also been a serious – and growing – threat to the Counsell’s family business. 

“Wild dogs are a massive problem for us and unless they are fenced out, I would have to leave the sheep industry, run cattle and become a part time producer,” David explains.

“Because with 15,000ha we simply wouldn’t have the scale to be a viable full time beef property,” he says.

To reduce the threat of wild dogs and diseases being spread, the Counsells agreed the installation of a strategic exclusion fence was an urgent and essential step.

But it had to be a fence which was more than just a defined boundary as wild dogs and other vermin very quickly learn to burrow under fences.

So at Dunblane the new Waratah fence was reinforced at the bottom.

Stocksafe-T Longlife Blue wire was fitted to the Waratah posts, the wire has been specifically designed to prevent animals penetrating the fence. 

A pre-attached apron was included on the Stocksafe-T wire – an addition which eliminates the gap between the bottom wire and the ground found in most of Australia’s traditional fence designs.

Asked about his new Waratah fence, David openly concedes “the sheep side of my business would not exist in five years’ time if it weren’t for these fences.”

“The design also prevents separate sheep flocks from mixing up and spreading lice, as well as other diseases,” he says.

“The fence for us came at an average price somewhere between $6000 and $8000 per kilometre.

“And while that is certainly not necessarily the cheapest fence out there, we wouldn’t have been able to stay in the sheep industry without this level of quality,” he adds.