Cattle grid or cattle guard is a type of obstacle to prevent hoofed animals, such as sheep or cows from passing. It consists of a grid of bars or tubes, usually made of metal, firmly fixed on the ground so that the holes are wide enough for animal's legs to fall through, but narrow enough that a vehicle can pass over it.

These grids are usually installed over countryside roads where they cross a fence. An alternative is to create a gate that would need to be manually or automatically opened when a vehicle comes. They are common where roads cross open moorland or common land maintained by grazing, but where segregation of fields is impractical, such as in the National Parks of England and Wales. They are also common throughout the Western United States.

While these barriers are usually effective, they can fail due to ingenious animals. Sheep have been known to roll on their backs or sides over grids as wide as 3 metres, traversing them in order to find more and better food or water.

Railways

Cattle grids are also used when otherwise unfenced railways cross a fenceline.

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Road infrastructure

Weidesperre