News – Sheridan Media
Sheridan Community Land Trust Director of Conservation John Graves recently spoke on a pilot program that uses wireless technology to create fencing in a Sheridan County first.
Virtual fencing involves GPS-enabled collars placed on cattle and connected to an app, creating invisible boundaries that reduce the need for posts, gates, and barbed wire. Ranchers can monitor herds in the app while gaining flexibility in where and how to graze cattle.
J. Graves
When it’s time to rotate cattle, the collars deliver a vibration cue signaling fresh feed is available, prompting the herd to move into a new virtual pasture. That allows grazed areas time to rest without ranchers needing to physically move livestock. Graves said the towers and collars are solar powered, eliminating the need for battery changes.
Cattle are collared and conditioned to respond to vibrations produced by the collar to either relocate or avoid the virtual fencing boundary. Photo courtesy of SCLT.
Backed by The Nature Conservancy with support from the World Wildlife Fund, the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Sheridan County Conservation District, the pilot project involves three local ranchers. Each is testing the collars on herds of more than 100 cattle across different terrain, from mountains to plains.
The ranchers are journaling their experiences, noting both benefits and challenges of the equipment and how their herds respond. That information will be compiled by SCLT and shared with the community.
SCLT also plans to host on-ranch field visits in the coming year to give local producers a firsthand look at virtual fencing in action. Details of those events will be announced as the pilot progresses.
To learn more, click here.
One of the towers that transmits a signal creating the virtual fence. Photo courtesy of SCLT.
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Last modified: September 24, 2025