A New Way to Fence the West—Without the Fence

What if you could manage cattle, protect pastures, and keep wildlife moving—without posts, gates, or barbed wire? Sheridan Community Land Trust is testing just that through Sheridan County’s first virtual fencing pilot project. Using GPS-enabled collars, local ranchers are exploring a high-tech, wildlife-friendly way to manage grazing that could save time, cut costs, and improve land and water health.

When evaluating virtual fencing, it is helpful to look at it not as a “hardware purchase,” but as a management tool that replaces ongoing labor and infrastructure costs.

Beyond the price of wire vs. collars, producers in the SCLT pilot program are looking for a return on investment (ROI) in these key areas:

• Increased Forage Utilization: By using “strip grazing” or more frequent rotations that would be too labor-intensive with physical fence, producers have seen forage efficiency increases of 15% to 20%. This can allow for a higher carrying capacity on the same acreage.
• Labor Reclamation: Ranchers often report saving 20–40 hours per week during peak grazing seasons by eliminating manual gathers and fence “riding.”
• Precision Health Monitoring: Because the collars track movement and rumination, they can alert you to a sick or lame animal days before you would notice it in a large pasture, potentially saving the animal or reducing vet costs.
• Disaster Resilience: In the event of a wildfire or heavy snow, virtual fences don’t “burn down” or get buried. You can move the herd to safety instantly from your phone.

Virtual fencing projects are supported by a variety of public and private funding sources. SCLT has curated the links below to help producers like you explore potential programs and opportunities that may support virtual fencing on your ranch.

• Wyoming NRCS Conservation Programs

• World Wildlife Fund, Sustainable Ranching Initiative

• Northern Great Plains Joint Venture, Northern Grassland Incentive Program

• Property and Environment Research Center

• Cultivo

• Foundation for America’s Public Lands

Virtual fencing is a GPS-based system that allows you to manage cattle movement and grazing boundaries without physical wire or posts. Cattle wear GPS-enabled collars that communicate with an app on your phone or computer. You “draw” your fences on a digital map, and the collars do the rest.

The system uses associative learning through two types of signals:

• Audio Cue: As an animal approaches the virtual boundary, the collar emits a high-pitched beeping sound.
• Electric Pulse: If the animal continues past the audio warning, it receives a mild electric pulse (similar to a standard electric fence, but often lower in intensity).
• Vibration (Halter specific): Some systems, like Halter, use a vibration cue to signal to the herd that it is time to move to a new, fresh pasture.

Most cattle learn to associate the audio cue with the boundary within 48 hours to one week. Research shows that once trained, cattle respond to the audio cue alone roughly 90% of the time, rarely requiring the electric pulse.

Connectivity is important but handled differently by various systems:

• For the Rancher: You generally need cell service or Wi-Fi to “push” new fence designs from your app to the collars.
• For the Collars: Systems like Halter use towers (base stations) to transmit data. Once a fence is synced to the collar, the collar uses GPS to maintain the boundary even if the animal wanders into a “dead zone” coverage.

No. Virtual fencing is a powerful tool for internal management (rotational grazing, protecting riparian areas, etc.). However, it is not recommended for perimeter fencing, especially along highways or property lines. It is an “aid” to help you be more efficient, not a total replacement for legal boundary fences. We recommend perimeter fencing be construction to wildlife friendly specifications.

If an animal pushes through the virtual boundary, the collar is designed to stop pulsing once they are outside the zone so they don’t get “trapped” out. You will receive a notification on your app showing the animal’s location so you can retrieve it.

It depends on the brand. In the SCLT pilot project, the Halter collars are solar-powered, meaning you don’t have to worry about manual battery changes. Other systems may require battery swaps every few months or once a season.

• Technically: No. You can put a collar on a single cow if you wish, but many manufacturers have a minimum number to sign up for.
• Economically: Most experts and manufacturers suggest that the “sweet spot” for a return on investment starts around 50 head. This is because the system requires an initial investment in a base station (tower). For very small herds (under 10 head), the cost per animal to install and maintain that tower may be higher than traditional fencing.
• Scale Efficiency: Because the collars are often managed via a subscription, the technology becomes more cost-effective as you scale up. However, for producers managing smaller, high-value herds or those with extremely difficult terrain where any physical fencing is impossible, the technology can still be a “win” even at lower numbers.
• Alternative: SCLT is working on a Virtual Fence Collective to help offset the initial costs of deployment for small producers of less than 50 head. Contact SCLT today for more information.

• The upfront investment includes collars and base stations (towers). However, producers often see a return through:
  • Reduced Labor: Fewer hours spent building, fixing, and checking physical fences.
  • Higher Forage Utilization: More precise rotational grazing can increase stocking density or decrease hay costs.
  • Ease of Gathering: You can see exactly where every animal is located in real-time on your phone.

• Virtual fencing is the “ultimate wildlife-friendly fence.” It allows elk, deer, and other wildlife to move freely across the landscape without the risk of entanglement or blocked migration routes. It also allows you to instantly “fence off” sensitive areas like creek banks or post-fire regrowth without ever lifting a post driver.

• Yes! Sheridan Community Land Trust is currently hosting a pilot project with three local ranchers. SCLT plans to host on-ranch field visits in 2026 to show local producers how the technology handles our specific terrain and weather.

The concept is simple: GPS-enabled collars are placed around the necks of cattle and connect to an app, creating invisible boundaries—limiting the need for posts, gates, and barbed wire. Virtual fencing allows ranchers to view the location of their cattle in an app and provides increased flexibility around where and how to graze their cattle.

Cattle are held within a virtual fence using directional sound cues, followed by a low-emission pulse if the sound cues are ignored. When the rancher decides it’s time to rotate cattle to new pasture, the collar delivers a vibration cue signaling that fresh feed is available, encouraging the herd to move into the new virtual fence. The collars are solar powered, eliminating the need for any battery changes.

This pilot project is backed by The Nature Conservancy, with support from the World Wildlife Fund, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Sheridan County Conservation District. Three local ranchers are testing the collars on herds of 100-plus cattle each, across a variety of terrain.

While it might sound high-tech, virtual fencing is built with ranchers in mind. Beyond labor savings and fewer fence repairs, the ability to precisely manage where and when cattle graze can have a real financial impact.

That said, it’s not yet suitable for every operation. The Halter technology works best where cell service is available and herds are larger, though it can still be used in smaller outfits with different cost structures.

An additional standout benefit of virtual fencing is the ability to create exclusion zones without lifting a post driver.

This is a major win for conservation, giving ranchers more control over grazing while helping to restore and protect streambanks, reduce erosion, and improve water quality.

SCLT and its partners will monitor rangeland health throughout the project, conducting bi-annual assessments and collecting observations from the ranchers themselves. They’ll be examining plant recovery, soil condition, and wildlife interactions.

Sheridan Community Land Trust will host on-ranch field visits in 2026 to give local producers a firsthand look at virtual fencing in action. Details will be announced next year.

This material is based upon work supported by The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, under agreement number [NR246526XXXXC013].