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How to turn Virtual Paddocks ON and OFF via Mob on the mobile app

This guide shows you how to turn a Virtual Paddock (VP) on and off for a mob using the eShepherd mobile app.

If any animals in the mob are located outside the VP you're activating, the app will warn you before you confirm. You can still proceed, but it's worth checking the animals' current position first.

Turning on a Virtual Paddock

Step 1. Select the mob you want to turn a VP on for. If the mob doesn't already have a VP assigned, this will show as a dash.	Step 2. Tap the VP field to open the list of available Virtual Paddocks for that mob.	Step 3. Select the VP you want to turn on, then Slide To Turn On.

Step 4. If some animals are outside the VP, you'll see a warning. Confirm by selecting Turn On if you're happy to proceed.	Step 5. You'll get a confirmation that the Virtual Paddock has been activated.	Step 6. Check progress from the Status menu. Once the VP shows as 100%, all neckbands in the mob have confirmed they're within the new VP.

Turning off a Virtual Paddock

Step 1. Tap the mob's active VP field again, select it from the list, then Slide To Turn Off.	Step 2. You'll get a confirmation that the Virtual Paddock has been deactivated.

Step 3. Check progress from the Status menu. This will show as OFF while neckbands are still confirming they're clear of stimulus for that VP.	Step 4. Once deactivation is complete, the mob's VP field will show as a dash again, confirming it no longer has an active VP.

Best practices for turning on a VP

Check animal positions before activating. Turning on a VP this way takes effect straight away, so unlike a schedule there's no lead-in time. Check where the mob currently is relative to the VP you're about to activate, especially if there's little or no overlap with their current VP.
Use this for urgent or reactive moves. Immediate activation suits situations where you need to move a mob quickly, such as reacting to weather, feed availability, or an unplanned issue, rather than a move you could plan ahead of time.
Wait for confirmation before assuming the mob is contained. Check the Status menu and wait until the VP shows as fully activated before treating the mob as contained.

How this interacts with existing schedules

If the mob already has a schedule running, turning on a VP this way clears both the ongoing schedule and any pending schedules still in the queue.
If a schedule hasn't started yet, turning on a VP goes through without clearing it, but once the schedule's start time arrives, it will override.

Summary

You can now turn a Virtual Paddock on and off for a mob directly from the eShepherd mobile app, and check on the Status menu to confirm when the change has fully taken effect.

v1.0, 7/2026

Updated on: 22/07/2026

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