All 50 states and DC
Livestock and lawful fence laws by state
Almost every state fence statute in the country is an agriculture statute, and reading one as a rule about a back yard fence is the most common mistake in this subject. A lawful fence is not a fence that is legal to build. It is a fence good enough to hold or exclude livestock, defined by strand counts, post spacing and height. Which side has to build it depends on whether the state is fence out, where the person who wants animals kept away builds the fence, or fence in, where the animal owner does.
Livestock and lawful fence laws by state, state by state
49 set a rule in state law, 1 have an answer that depends on something else, 1 hand it to the town. Every row links the state page and the document behind it.
| State | What the record says | Lawful fence spec | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | set in state lawAlabama says what a fence has to be to count as a lawful fence. | 5 ft | Ala. Code 3-4-1 |
| Alaska | set in state lawAlaska handles loose livestock by district, not by fence. | none stated | AS 03.35.010(b) |
| Arizona | set in state lawArizona says exactly how to build a lawful fence. | 50 in | A.R.S. 3-1426 |
| Arkansas | set in state lawA field kept for livestock in Arkansas has to be fenced. | none stated | Ark. Code § 2-39-101, as amended by Act 594 of 2023 |
| California | set in state lawCalifornia calls a fence lawful when it is strong enough to keep livestock from getting in or out. | 4 ft | Cal. Food & Agric. Code 17121 |
| Colorado | set in state lawA lawful fence in Colorado is a well built three barbed wire fence on strong posts set about twenty feet ap... | 3 strands | C.R.S. 35-46-101 |
| Connecticut | set in state lawConnecticut tells landowners to build and keep up fences good enough to hold their fields and keep livestoc... | 4 ft | Conn. Gen. Stat. 47-43 |
| Delaware | set in state lawDelaware sets the lawful fence height by county. | 54 in | 25 Del. C. 1301 |
| District of Columbia | set in state lawIn DC the person who owns or keeps an animal has to hold it. | none stated | D.C. Code 8-1808(a)(1) |
| Florida | set in state lawFlorida sets a legal fence at three feet high, made of barbed or other soft wire, with at least three stran... | 3 ft | Fla. Stat. 588.011 |
| Georgia | set in state lawlicensed deer farms | 8 ft | O.C.G.A. 4-4-172 |
| Hawaii | set in state lawA lawful fence in Hawaii can be stone, posts and rails, posts and boards, posts and wire, or other fit mate... | 4 ft | HRS 142-61(a) |
| Idaho | set in state lawIdaho is an open range state. | none stated | Idaho Code 25-2118 |
| Illinois | set in state lawIllinois calls a fence legal at four and a half feet tall and in good repair. | 4.5 ft | 765 ILCS 130/2 |
| Indiana | set in state lawIndiana puts no number on a lawful fence at all. | none stated | IC 32-26-2-1 |
| Iowa | set in state lawIowa names six builds that count as a lawful fence. | 10 ft | Iowa Code 359A.18 |
| Kansas | set in state lawKansas puts the duty on the animal owner. | none stated | K.S.A. 47-122 |
| Kentucky | set in state lawKentucky counts four different things as a lawful fence. | 4 ft | KRS 256.010(1)(a) |
| Louisiana | depends, see the pageLouisiana has no single answer for the whole state. | none stated | La. R.S. 3:3007 |
| Maine | set in state lawA legal fence in Maine is four feet high and in good repair. | 4 ft | 30-A M.R.S. 2951 |
| Maryland | left to the townMaryland writes no statewide rule for how a farm fence is built. | none stated | Md. Code, Local Gov't 10-318 |
| Massachusetts | set in state lawMassachusetts calls a fence legal and sufficient at four feet tall and in good repair. | 4 ft | M.G.L. c. 49, s. 2 |
| Michigan | set in state lawMichigan sets no height, wire count, board count or post spacing for a farm fence. | none stated | MCL 43.51 |
| Minnesota | set in state lawMinnesota lists the builds that count as a legal fence. | 32 in | Minn. Stat. 344.02, subd. 1 |
| Mississippi | set in state lawMississippi is a fence in state. | none stated | Miss. Code 69-13-19, printed in full in Section 2 of the bill |
| Missouri | set in state lawA lawful fence in Missouri is posts and wire or boards at least four feet high, once the two owners agree o... | 4 ft | RSMo § 272.020 |
| Montana | set in state lawA legal fence in Montana has to stand at least forty two inches and no more than forty eight inches. | 42 in | MCA 81-4-101 |
| Nebraska | set in state lawNebraska sets a build standard for the lawful fence, which is the fence its livestock and shared fence rule... | 54 in | Neb. Rev. Stat. 34-116 |
| Nevada | set in state lawNevada says what a legal fence for livestock has to be. | 20 ft | NRS 569.431 |
| New Hampshire | set in state lawNew Hampshire says a legal fence has to be tall enough to do its job and in good repair, and it gives no in... | none stated | RSA 473:5 |
| New Jersey | set in state lawNew Jersey sets one height for a lawful fence and one job for it to do. | 50 in | N.J.S.A. 4:20-1 |
| New Mexico | set in state lawNew Mexico is a fence out state, and the state livestock agency says so plainly. | none stated | NMSA 1978 Section 77-16-1, as quoted by the agency |
| New York | set in state lawa fence on the line between two neighbors | 4 strands | Town Law 309 |
| North Carolina | set in state lawNorth Carolina puts the duty on the livestock owner everywhere in the state. | none stated | N.C.G.S. 68-16 |
| North Dakota | set in state lawNorth Dakota lists seven kinds of fence that count as a legal fence. | 3 strands | N.D.C.C. 47-26-01(5) |
| Ohio | set in state lawOhio names one build as the standard for a fence on a line where livestock are kept, and calls it a preferr... | 48 in | ORC 971.01(F) |
| Oklahoma | set in state lawOklahoma writes out what a lawful fence for livestock is. | 54 in | 4 O.S. § 154 |
| Oregon | set in state lawOregon calls the farm standard an adequate fence and says what it has to do rather than how it is built. | none stated | ORS 607.007(1) |
| Pennsylvania | set in state lawA fence made in whole or in part of wire, with or without barbs, counts as a legal fence under every Pennsy... | none stated | 1899 Act 111, Section 2 (29 P.S. 32) |
| Rhode Island | set in state lawRhode Island lists seven kinds of lawful fence and gives each one a build. | 11 strands | R.I. Gen. Laws 34-10-1 |
| South Carolina | set in state lawSouth Carolina puts the duty on the animal owner. | none stated | S.C. Code 47-7-110 |
| South Dakota | set in state lawSouth Dakota writes out what a legal fence on the line is when the two owners have not agreed on something... | 4 strands | SDCL 43-23-4 |
| Tennessee | set in state lawTennessee counts more than wood and wire as a farm fence. | none stated | T.C.A. § 44-8-102(b), as added by Public Chapter 266 of 1999 |
| Texas | set in state lawcounties and areas that have adopted the local option stock law under Subchapter B | 4 ft | Agric. Code 143.028(b) |
| Utah | set in state lawIn Utah the owner of the animal pays for damage it does on someone else's land. | none stated | Utah Code 4-25-205 |
| Vermont | set in state lawVermont judges a farm fence by whether it holds sheep. | 54 in | 24 V.S.A. 3801 |
| Virginia | set in state lawVirginia describes a lawful fence several ways and any one of them counts, as long as the livestock cannot... | 42 in | Va. Code 55.1-2804 |
| Washington | set in state lawWashington prints the fence in the statute. | 48 in | RCW 16.60.010 |
| West Virginia | set in state lawWest Virginia spells out what counts as a lawful fence for holding horses, mules, cattle, sheep, pigs and g... | 6 strands | W. Va. Code 19-17-1 |
| Wisconsin | set in state lawWisconsin lists the fences that count as legal and says nothing else does. | 50 in | Wis. Stat. 90.02(3) |
| Wyoming | set in state lawWyoming names three kinds of lawful fence in statute. | 3 strands | W.S. 11-28-102(a)(i), (c) |
The other nine questions
A fence rule usually turns on more than one of these, and the answer to one does not settle another.
What this page does not cover
Everything above is state law. Fence height, setback, corner visibility and materials are set by city and county ordinance in almost every state, and a local rule can be far stricter than the statewide default. A parcel can also carry an easement, an overlay district, a fire hazard zone or a recorded HOA restriction, none of which appear in a statute.
This is general information drawn from published government documents. It is not legal advice, statutes are amended, and each state page carries the date its documents were read. How findings are made · What the terms mean · Browse by state