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One of the major factors that will determine the type and design of a fence are the livestock or other animals that are to be kept in or out of a paddock. Cattle fences are usually constructed with four or five lines of barbed wire. Sheep paddocks commonly have either plain wire or prefabricated wire fences. Different breeds of sheep require different wire spacings. British breeds and crossbred sheep need more wires spaced closer together than Merinos.

The behaviour of animals when confronted with a fence largely determines the design. Barbed wire poses hazards for horses which can panic and injure themselves if they get tangled in the wires. For this reason plain wire fences with a sighter wire on the top line are preferred for horses.

Goats try to push under and then through a fence before jumping over. They also like to browse through the fence. The best goat fences are tall and made of prefabricated wire. The mesh must have sufficient spacing to allow a goat to pull its head out of the fence without the horns catching. Goats will climb up any available structures, such as rocks, tree stumps and diagonal stays, so they can jump over fences more easily.

Tall, prefabricated fences at least two metres high are needed to contain deer. The bottom rungs of mesh must have small spacings to prevent deer calves from escaping. A single line of barbed wire is sometimes used at ground level. This also helps to deter predators.

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