Cattle questions

[Car Doc]

Thanks Car Doc! Good info. Besides the fly spray every 30 days and pink eye stuff, what other routine maintenance is there?

I have 2 4wheelers, a Ranger 500 Crew so hope I'm good there

Welcome! I sure wish I knew more I would be happy to pass it along some of these guys are a lot more knowledgeable than me they will give better info. I see I am not too far off on what I believe is necessary by the other posts that makes me feel better!

My background is/was I was the head mechanic on a big feedlot in eastern Colorado for 5 years. I messed with a lot of cattle and helped do about everything that can be done. I wasn't really into the vet stuff or feed for that matter we had a feed mill operator and a cowboy/vet they said what to do and we did it. I am getting most of my tips from the vet and local farmers and ranchers and the coop and school of hard knocks as I go now. good luck btw

Oh and I am now looking at used 16' bumper pull stock trailers haha after needing to take that calf to the vet this am and having to borrow a trailer I will buy my own and have it handy. I will need to take them to the sale barn in maybe September or October anyway depending how big they are I wont over winter mine. fwtw

 

[Western]

I had luck with the insecticide ear tags for fly's, never had a pink eye problem. I had some good Brahma blood in the herd and that seems to help with pink eye too, My grandfather always cussed it in Herefords, so I believe some may be more susceptible but not sure on that. We grew up with Herefords, and Limousines and a few mixed.


If I did spray, it was at feeding time when they are paying more attention to eating cubes. Keep an eye out for foot rot to, I never had to deal with it, but had a neighbor that did.

 

[dmccarty]

Thanks Car Doc! Good info. Besides the fly spray every 30 days and pink eye stuff, what other routine maintenance is there?

I have 2 4wheelers, a Ranger 500 Crew so hope I'm good there

I know you were asking about routine maintenance on the animals but I spent a summer fixing fence after fence after fence. Part of the problem was we were in a drought and we had to open up some pasture that had not been used in a long time and the fences were in bad shape. Usually we just needed to put up a bit of new wire but mostly fixing what had been knocked down by branches or what the cattle had run through.

However, I have seen cattle run right through a barbed wire fence like it was not even there when being chased by a dog. They ran through an internal fence so it was not too big of a deal but if they had run through a fence along a busy road it would have been different. There is a farm near us that runs some cattle and I have never seen them get through the fence which is goodness since they are on a major road. We happened to be at the farm when they ran through the fence so we just put them back in the pasture after fixing the fence.

Later,
Dan

 

[creekbend]

Is there any advantage/disadvantage of Longhorn?

Anyone with thoughts on buffalo?

In my area, you can buy longhorns at roughly 1/3 the price of Angus. Similar results with selling.

 

[TomSeller]

.
My Black Angus bull would jump the fence usually twice a year, he'd go over to the neighbors place looking for girls, when I blew the truck horn (feed time) he'd bawl like a baby:laughing:. My neighbor would open his gate and my bull would run down the county road back to my gate.

That would be something to see. Funny.

 

[creekbend]

BTW, check with your other neighbors who raise Cattle and find a good VET who works with Cattle. Same relationship as with finding a good Mechanic. When you find one, keep a good relationship.

 

[rmk700]

I'd start out with a small herd then get more after you get going.

You'll need to make a brand and get it registered also.

 

[Creamer]

Wow! Lots of advice!

First you have to decide business or hobby. If it is going to be a business that small you have to be into specialty - miniatures, longhorns, buffalo, etc. A hobby can be anything. One good thing about longhorns is that they throw real small calves, i.e. good calving ease which is a very important factor.

Buffalo are a no-no for lots of reasons - temperament, fences, hard to get someone to help if you need it, etc.

I would say as many have - start a small herd and grow it. the bred co idea with calve at side is good. Older bulls is also a good idea. Often there are small cattlemen who use a bull for two or three years and then for fear of inbreeding sell them. You will need to do the same. Maybe you can find someone else in your situation where you can trade bulls. Or maybe you can rent a bull for breeding season and then not have to deal with it. Having one bull and keepign it alone and separate all year does not work well.

 

[Western]

That would be something to see. Funny.

Neighbor liked it to, since he didn't have a bull and only 7 cows:laughing:. It was a joke at the cafe that's for sure.

That bull was so tame I had to sell him when I found my daughter out petting him one day, I still have a photo somewhere of him, best bull I ever had. He was to big by then to risk it. not his fault, I did have a "talk" with the "sitter":thumbsup:

 

[texasjohn]

You are between Ft. Worth and Abilene. Advice you get will be influenced by location of person. You need to be aware of that....Where you are, prepare for hot, dry and occasional cold. Baby calves in winter can die if too cold but they die for various reasons anyway. However, I had a calf born one night in 14 degrees high winds, no cover. Frostbit ears, did fine. Plan for 20 acres per animal unit. Intense management will get you more animals ONLY if you are THERE to provide it. You are not. Stay under 8 animal units/head.

There is ONLY one way to know if a bull throws _small calves...weigh them at birth...I have done this, few have, fewer can accurately estimate birth weight of a day old calf. 60 to 80 lbs is small. 80 to 95 is typical. higher is large to monstrous. Mature cows, having bred back to similar bull address the problem of having a live calf.

I raise beefmaster cattle which have the following selection criteria, which all cattlemen should understand and use as fits their situation:

Disposition..your top priority, wild/gentle cattle are found in every breed
Hardiness...nobody makes money at the vet...Brama influence cattle have heat and insect resistance naturally...Here fords have pink eye/cancer eye for example.
Fertility...you care only if you have cows and a bull, then you want a calf per year from each cow. Sell cow if no calf.
Milking ability...not a concern for you
Conformation...not a concern for you
Weight gain...not a concern for you...sufficient feed will give sufficient gain

Each breed association will tell you theirs is the best...figure out what is best for YOU...small acreage for cattle, small kids, small time on the property.
Beefmaster Breeders United ? The Cowman's Choice

I recommend, strongly, a goose neck trailer, small, safer than bumper hitch