.....which reminds me when I was at Utah State in Logan about 25 years ago conducting range (don't ask) sheep research. I had a little flock of ewes & lambs for mountain pasture nutrition work on Cedar Mountain outside of Cedar City.
Lesson #1. I'd purchased 900' of portable electric fence, charged with a deep cycle marine battery, to keep the sheep in on the mountain. Before leaving Logan for the high country I wisely thought I better do a dry run and train the critters to respect the fence. I hooked everything up and let the ewes inside. Even though it was carrying s full charge (5,500-6,000v) the ewes brushed up against the twine with no effect. They were in full fleece (3-4 inches) and were pretty much self insulated. "Great, this is just great!". Then I remembered something my utility line foreman father once said about water and conductivity. So I located a garden hose and liberally soaked 'em down. Dripping wet, the first ewe approached the twine. When she was was about 6" away electricity arced from twine to nose completing the circuit. She let out a blaatt, reversed course and ran through the opposite side.
Lesson #2. Later that summer on Cedar mountain, a co-worker friend, let's call him Wayne Urey for anonymity purposes, was messing about. The charger would audibly snap every second when letting a charge through the system. Wayne got messin' with a key ring, touching the twine in between snaps, laughing and being a wise guy. I must have distracted him, because he touched the twine perfectly in time on the "snap". Next instant, Wayne is dancing a jig, throwing keys and hat on the ground and although a properly raised Utah church boy, uttering an inventive string of profanity.
I innocently suggested instead of keys, he might want to try peeing on it the next time. I never completed the connection myself Eric, so I'll take your friends word that it isn't a pleasant experience
jh
