Breaking Down Barriers

One November morning on Pitchfork Ranch in Wyoming, wranglers coaxed hundreds of cows into a holding pen. The cattle were there for their regular twice-per-year checkups. But this time, they got something more: GPS collars.

The collars would allow ranch manager Ben Anson to take down miles of barbed-wire fences that divide the nearly 100,000-acre operation into separate pastures. More than 620,000 miles of fences slice up the American West. They keep cattle contained, but they can also make it difficult to manage sensitive ecosystems. The GPS collars would instead act as virtual livestock fencing.

Pitchfork Ranch is in the Bighorn Basin, a rugged area of grassy prairie, sagebrush shrubs, and delicate river ecosystems that’s a critical corridor for wildlife such as elk and mule deer. Physical fences can block animal migrations.

Plus, fences are expensive to build and maintain. A mile of new barrier can cost up to $25,000. Some fencing in the West is about a century old and deteriorating. Many ranchers struggle to afford the high cost.

“We want to coexist with wildlife, to make things good for them . . . but still make a living with ranching,” says Dustin Taylor, who manages E Spear Ranch, a 70,000-acre cattle operation not far from Pitchfork Ranch.

Taylor and Anson hope virtual fences can help. The collars relay their cattle’s location to cellphones, and farmers set invisible boundaries using GPS coordinates. As a cow approaches a boundary, the collar beeps. If the cow crosses it, the collar delivers a mild electric shock.

One November morning, wranglers coaxed hundreds of cows into a holding pen at Pitchfork Ranch in Wyoming one November morning. The cattle were there for their regular twice-per-year checkups. But this time, they got something else. They were fitted with GPS collars.

The collars would allow ranch manager Ben Anson to take down miles of barbed-wire fences. The fences divide the nearly 100,000-acre operation into separate pastures. There are more than 620,000 miles of fences in the American West. While they keep cattle contained, fences can make it difficult to manage sensitive ecosystems. The GPS collars would instead act as virtual fences for the livestock.

Pitchfork Ranch is in the Bighorn Basin. The rugged area of grassy prairie, sagebrush shrubs, and delicate river ecosystems is a critical corridor. Wildlife such as elk and mule deer need to migrate through the area. Physical fences can block their path.

Fences are expensive to build and maintain. A mile of new barrier can cost up to $25,000 and some fencing in the West is about 100 years old. It is deteriorating. Many ranchers struggle to afford the high cost.

“We want to coexist with wildlife, to make things good for them . . . but still make a living with ranching,” says Dustin Taylor, who manages E Spear Ranch, a 70,000-acre cattle operation not far from Pitchfork Ranch.

Taylor and Anson hope virtual fences can help. The collars relay their cattle’s location to cellphones. Farmers set invisible boundaries using GPS coordinates. As a cow approaches a boundary, the collar beeps. The collar delivers a mild electric shock if the cow crosses the boundary.

Will Warasila/The New York Times

Barbed-wire fences divide the American West.

The technology arrived in the United States from New Zealand a few years ago. Interest has recently increased sharply, says Travis Brammer of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC), a group focused on stewardship of working lands.

Virtual fencing is infinitely adjustable. Ranchers can set precise limits on pastures to keep cows away from sensitive areas like streams or sagebrush. They can also move cows around to prevent overgrazing, which stresses ecosystems.

“The healthier the land is, the more grass ranchers have for their cattle to consume, the more water retention there is, and the more wildlife they see on their lands,” says John Graves, a bison rancher in Wyoming and the conservation director for a community land trust.

Some animal rights groups, which have long pointed out the dangers of barbed-wire fences, also have concerns about electric shocks. In New Zealand, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (S.P.C.A.) said that not all livestock will learn to avoid shocks at the same rate.

In a statement on its website, the S.P.C.A. said it was concerned that animals slow to learn what the shocks mean “will experience poor welfare as a consequence, such as confusion and distress.”

Other environmental organizations, including the Nature Conservancy, have come out in support of the collars. Researchers and ranchers say they’ve found that cows learn quickly and that the technology is generally safe. Several studies measuring cortisol found that levels of the stress hormone were similar in cows with and without collars once they learned to heed the beep signal.

The collars also let ranchers monitor where their cows are, which helps reduce conflict with predators. If a rancher sees on their phone that cows are bunched up, it could be a sign that a wolf or grizzly is lurking. Tracking also makes it easier to help a cow that’s injured.

Wild animals, such as elk, can get stuck in wire fences and die, or they can just plow through. One season at E Spear, Taylor replaced the same section of fence three times. Now, with virtual fences, he can leave gates open.

“It’s a huge help to us,” he says. “Our cows won’t leave, but the elk will.”

Anson and Taylor were willing to try virtual fencing when PERC offered grants last year. The technology is relatively new and has high starting costs.

But knowing how much time and money it takes to maintain traditional fences, and intrigued by the benefits that virtual fences seemed to promise, the ranchers gave it a try. Last spring, they had small groups of cows collared and, happy with the results, collared more in the fall. Other ranchers, they say, are curious to see what happens.

“I think there’s a lot of watching to see how it works,” Anson says.

The technology arrived in the United States from New Zealand a few years ago. Interest has recently increased sharply, says Travis Brammer of the Property and Environment Research Center (PERC), a group focused on stewardship of working lands.

Virtual fencing is infinitely adjustable. Ranchers can set precise limits on pastures to keep cows away from sensitive areas like streams or sagebrush. They can also move cows around. This can prevent overgrazing, which stresses ecosystems.

“The healthier the land is, the more grass ranchers have for their cattle to consume, the more water retention there is, and the more wildlife they see on their lands,” says John Graves, a bison rancher in Wyoming. He is the conservation director for a community land trust.

Some animal rights groups have long pointed out the dangers of barbed-wire fences. They also have concerns about electric shocks. In New Zealand, the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (S.P.C.A.) said that not all livestock will learn to avoid shocks at the same rate.

In a statement on its website, the S.P.C.A. said it was concerned that animals slow to learn what the shocks mean “will experience poor welfare as a consequence, such as confusion and distress.”

Other environmental organizations, including the Nature Conservancy, have come out in support of the collars. Researchers and ranchers say they’ve found that cows learn quickly. The technology is generally safe. Several studies measuring cortisol found that levels of the stress hormone were similar in cows with and without collars once they learned to heed the beep signal.

The collars also let ranchers monitor where their cows are located. This can help reduce conflict with predators. If a rancher sees on their phone that cows are bunched up, it could be a sign that a wolf or grizzly is lurking. Tracking also makes it easier to help a cow that’s injured.

Wild animals, such as elk, can get stuck in wire fences and die. Or sometimes they just plow through the fence. One season at E Spear, Taylor replaced the same section of fence three times. He can now leave gates open because of the virtual fence.

“It’s a huge help to us,” he says. “Our cows won’t leave, but the elk will.”

Anson and Taylor were willing to try virtual fencing when PERC offered grants last year. The technology is relatively new and has high starting costs.

Ranchers decided to give virtual fences a try because of how much time and money it takes to maintain traditional fences. Last spring, they had small groups of cows collared and they were happy with the results. More cows were collared in the fall. Other ranchers, they say, are curious to see what happens.

“I think there’s a lot of watching to see how it works,” Anson says.

Ranch managers trying virtual fences will need patience to see how everything plays out. Anson says it could take up to 10 years to notice the ecosystem’s health improving.

In addition to the high upfront costs, a few problems still need to be worked out. The system needs cell service, and connectivity can be unreliable in remote areas.

There’s also an intangible factor. “Ranching is very deeply rooted in tradition,” Graves says. And phones and GPS collars are not part of the American cowboy tradition.

“I’m actually kind of embarrassed when people see my cows,” Taylor says. “We’re all saddled up on our horses, cowboy hats on, riding by with border collies. And our cows have these collars. [But] whether it looks silly or not doesn’t really matter. What matters is that it works.”

Ranch managers trying virtual fences will need patience. Anson says it could take up to 10 years to notice the ecosystem’s health improving.

The new system has a few problems that still need to be worked out. There are high upfront costs. The system needs cell service, which can be unreliable in remote areas.

There’s also an intangible factor. “Ranching is very deeply rooted in tradition,” Graves says. And phones and GPS collars are not part of the American cowboy tradition.

“I’m actually kind of embarrassed when people see my cows,” Taylor says. “We’re all saddled up on our horses, cowboy hats on, riding by with border collies. And our cows have these collars. [But] whether it looks silly or not doesn’t really matter. What matters is that it works.”