🎓 From L-Plates to Graduation: Training Your Herd to Virtual Fencing

This is where the magic actually happens - where livestock go from "what was that noise?" to calmly turning back at a fence line they can't even see. Ten days, a bit of patience, and you'll watch it happen with your own eyes!

PHASE 1. SET THE CLASSROOM

Split your physically fenced training paddock into about 1/3 Virtual Paddock and 2/3 exclusion zone with a temporary fence (polywire / hotwire / break fence) approx 10-15m after the virtual fence line so they have a visual cue to learn from initially.

If a temporary fence is not possible, we recommend flipping this to 2/3 Virtual Paddock (inclusion zone) and 1/3 exclusion zone instead so curious animals can easily come back to the heard in the VP.

KEEP IT SIMPLE: Start with just one virtual fence boundary for them to interact with with. Draw the other boundaries just outside of the physical fence (as show below). Don't change the virtual paddock until Phase 1 training is complete.

NOTE: The actual size of the virtual paddock will depend on the size of the mob you want to train. Too little feed pressure will result in slower training, too much and they can be encouraged to force their way through the boundary. Always ensure there is a watering point available to them far enough away from the virtual fence line.

Step 1: After all your neckbands have been assigned to animals and animals assigned to a mob, select the mob and click the Turn On VP icon, select 'ASAP', choose the Training Paddock VP and click the 'tick' to confirm.

These steps are covered in our Web App Quick Start Guide.

PHASE 2. PLAN THE MOVE (Roughly Day 3)

By Day 3, your mob should now be ready for their first move. We use positive feed pressure to encourage animals to move into the next virtual paddock.

Step 1. Select your training paddock in your VP's list, then click the 'copy' icon.

Step 2. Drag out the front fence to allow them to access fresh grass. You can also bring in the other boundaries in-line with the physical fence. Click the 'tick' to save.

Step 3. On Day 3 turn on the VP ASAP as per above.

PHASE 3: CLOSE THE DOOR BEHIND THEM (DAY 5 for Day 6)

Select the expanded VP your created above and copy it, the same way as above. This time, pull out the front fence further and bring in the back fence behind them - closing off ground they've already grazed & Tap the 'tick' to confirm. Before you turn on this new VP, visually confirm all animals are within new area. If they are in the back fenced area they will not receive stimulation until they re-enter the inclusion zone. 'Turn On' this VP by ASAP (as above) on Day 6. Your mob will now experience 2 virtual fence boundaries and be well on their way to being trained.

🎯 WHY IT'S WORTH IT: This is rotational grazing on autopilot - fresh feed ahead, rested pasture behind, and not a single strainer post moved by hand.

PHASE 4: GRADUATION DAY 🎓🥳🎉

Keep an eye on the icon next to your mob (as shown below): L-plate = still learning. 🎓 Graduation cap = got it. This will occur on approximately Day 10 depending on the the size of the mob your are training.

Once 80% of your mob is hitting an 80% audio ratio - ie. turning back at the audio tone alone, with no pulse needed - that cap appears, and it's official they have graduated!!

You can now move your mob to virtual paddocks without the assistance of a physical fence. HOWEVER, try to keep your virtual paddock designs as simple as possible (we've all experienced an animal getting stuck in a difficult spot before there was a virtual fence to navigate also!).

🚫 NEVER: Chase or muster animals toward an active fence. Let them work it out themselves - that's how the learning sticks.

🎯 WHY IT'S WORTH IT: Every day you invest during training is a day of mustering you'll never do again. A graduated mob is a mob you can move with a tap, from your phone, without setting foot in the paddock - that's the whole promise of eShepherd, delivered....

No more musters just to shift a fence line. Just a herd that already knows exactly where the boundary is - because you taught them, one invisible lesson at a time.

Updated on: 31/08/2026