Well folks, I took the plunge and bought some cows this weekend. I got three cow/calf pairs and one pregnent cow that should calf before July. When we unloaded them off the trailer today they promply passed up the knee deep clover and orchard grass and went straight to the top of the ridge. Here is what they look like.
Here is a calf that was in with the group. My daughter thought the tags in their ears were earrings but she was promply corrected by her 8-yeard old brother who told her that the numbers on the tags were the price papa had to pay for the cows.....LOL!
edited to say: To see an updated pic of this calf scroll down to my post of Jan 14, 2007.
This message was edited Jan 14, 2007 12:32 PM
Nice looking calf! The entire herd looks great, Virginian. And kudos to your kids for being so clever LOL
Good looking stock you got there Virginian! Those are herefords aren't they? How's it feel to be a cattle baron???
Thank You hmstyl......LOL@cattle baron. Someone told me the way to make a small fortune farming was to start with a large one. There is one red calf in the bunch that might have some Hereford in him....but I think the black ones are mostly Angus.....but even so...they are a mixed up lot.
Keith
A funny thing happened with these cows; for the first night they stayed on the top of the ridge. Then I let them see me pour some grain in a feed trough, after looking at the trough for half an hour they finally decided to come down for a snack. Today......they were waiting at the trough when I got in from work!
Well, they're not dumb. Nice looking animals! envy...
boy, they learn fast!
I'm so jealous - I would love to buy a few cows but I don't know the first thing about cows. My pasture was a mess with all the kudzu, blackberries, poison ivy, etc. so I got some goats. Now they have it cleaned up so well that the grass is growing really fast, and now I need a grass eater! Did you buy those through an auction, or did you have another source?
cows and goats go great together in a pasture! One eats what the other doesn't!
hmstyl:
Yes, I bought them at a livestock auction. TamaraFaye is right; the goats browse (eat the high stuff like briars, saplings, etc), the cows graze (eat stuff low to the ground, grasses, etc). What a lot of people do here is buy young steers (300-400 lb animals) in the spring, let them graze all summer, and then sell them in the fall. That way they don't have to bother with putting up hay for them. A warning though; the prices drop in the fall, so you are counting on the steers to gain enough weight to offset this drop in price. Also, you need some way to pen them up so you can 'work' them, i.e. give them worm meds, innoculations, neuter the males, etc. What this means is you need a squeeze chute and a pen that they will come to without too much fuss. You can make a goat do something it doesn't want to most of the time but you can't 'make' a 800 lb cow do much that it doesn't want too. We had one this weekend rear up and turn around in the squeeze chute and go back out the way it came in!
Keith
All:
This is my first attempt at cattle, too. I have raised hogs, goats, and chickens....but this is my first experiment with cows....so stay tuned.......we'll see how it goes this summer.
My goals:
1. Keep the land cleaned off.
2. Learn something
3. Break even or better yet, make a little money
4. Have some fun doing it!
hey, those are great goals!!!
the only times i worked cattle, we used a shocker stick, can't recall the name of it... it gets their attention most of the time. also helps if you have a horse LOL
tf
Tamara, it is called a cattle prod. Not a nice toy, but effective.
BAM
yeha, that's it, i was having a stuck brain moment! No, not nice at all. But saves time, and could save the life of a cow or cowhand too...
Nice looking cows and calves. They show a lot of Angus breeding. They should flesh out nicely this summer so you can make some money this fall if you decide to sell them.
Cattle learn quickly where to find the feed and who will bring it to them. We have bought cattle that were quite wild but tamed down nicely after a few feedings.
May GOD bless this endeavor.
leaflady:
Thank you for your blessing.
Here was the scene at the feed trough yesterday. The cows don't have blue eyes, its just the flash from the camera. Moved a ton of feed home today. Its 50/50 gluten. I am not sure whats in it but it seems to be half cracked corn and half pellets of some kind, maybe wheat or tailings from the beer breweries? I am giving them two pounds per head per day.
wow, look at how they have already grown!
just remember to not name them LOL
tf
Yeah, I have already had that conversation with the family......these cows are NOT pets, no matter how cute the calves are! But then we thought up some names anyway....."Profit", "Dividend", "Stock Option", "529 Plan" etc.....LOL!
The litle black calf was not in the recent photograph, he has discovered the chickens will run from him so he was off chasing chickens while the bigger cows were at the trough.
If you want gentle cows, never ever use a hot shot or shock stick except as a last resort in load ing a trailer. A buggy whip or a 6 foot section of 3/4 inch pvc pipe will work about as well, and not cause such wild reaction. Pipe makes a nice ponk sound and is visible and light enough to swing easily but will not cause injury to the stock.
Robert
I don't have a shock stick yet.....and I won't buy one if I can help it.
very good advice patrob!
Bad news today folks. The cow that was due to calf was trying to have her calf today but it was stuck. It was trying to come out head first with all four feet trailing. After getting its feet turned in the right direction, we had to pull the calf. It was dead already though. $200 just walked out the door. Now if I can save the cow. She seems ok, she hopped up and walked away. I guess its two steps forward and then one step back.
oh, man, that really stinks! hurts your feelings and your pocketbook! i really hope your cow turns out OK! if this happens with her next calf i would be for eputting her directly in the freezer... but hopefully it was a totally isolated incident..,
tf
Tamara:
I wonder if this cow had not already had this problem before? Maybe that is why she was up for sale?.....buyer beware huh? I might let her breed one more time but if this happens again then I can't afford to keep her. She was back with the herd this morning and eating....so I guess thats a good sign.
I may go out and buy a young steer just to replace that empty spot in the herd, I was hoping to go into next spring with four cows and four salable steers/ heifers.
Keith
oh gee, I am so sorry to hear that. Thank God the cow is alive and well - you could have lost both of them. Maybe you could trade her for a young steer? Surely there is someone around who has too many steers and would welcome a trade for new blood?
cindy has a good idea to trade her off. i wouldn't feed her for another year to wait and see if it happens again. even if it didn't happen before, she could have some internal damage now.
I might...I just don't know yet. I'll talk it over with some of the other farmers in the area.
I don't know who felt worse this morning....me or the cow. My legs and shoulders were hurting, my hips are still stiff.....it was hard work pulling that calf. This is the first time I have ever worked around cows, much less had to pull a calf and deal with a cow in labor, talk about a trial by fire.
The cow seems fine now, she is eating and going where ever the rest of the herd goes. I am going to have to buy one of those calf pulling devices from Tractor Supply., and a set of real OB gloves. The throw-away type lasted about 5 minutes.
Here is something to think about; when your arm is in a cow's birth canal up to your shoulder......where is your ear? Thats sorta funny when I think back on it.
oh, that is NOT funny, when your ear is in such a hazardous place! but always funny later.
gald you are enjoying your new experiences. can't say that i really want to have cows, but i might consider some heritage miniatures later down the road...
tf
ooh Virginian - that is definately food for thought!! Do they make gloves that go clear up to your shoulder? How did you know what to do? I hope you have some really good neighbors to mentor you. I don't think I would even know when was the right time to pull the calf.
This message was edited May 10, 2006 11:24 AM
hmstyl:
Well lets see if I can answer your questions.....Yes, they make gloves that long. I had been around other animals being born...so I knew a little about what was happening. I talked with a neighbor before I attempted this, too,he told me what to expect.....every bit of it was true. I HAD to do something or I was gonna lose the cow, too. It was obvious the calf was dead before I started. Lets see how to describe it?......hmmm.......it was like reaching down into a really hot garbage bag and feeling around for a calf leg. I ran my hand down along the calves throat till I found his legs, got them going in the right direction, and started pulling. The cow had been pushing the whole time. After I got the front hoves out I could get a better grip.......pulled some more and out it came. It was male, I woud have changed him into a steer if he had lived. I guess the only good that has come of this is that now I know I can do it again if I have to.
Speaking of the right time to pull the calf.....I completely missed that. I knew this cow was close to calving, her milk bag was quite large. I had been checking her two or three times a day. Saturday I thought I saw a sign that her water had broke......but she was still eating and staying with the herd.....I had expected her to go off by herself. By Sunday I realized she was in trouble......she never did leave the herd. I suspect the calf had already expired by then. Looking back, I wish I had done something Saturday.....live and learn I guess.
This message was edited May 10, 2006 10:28 PM
ahhhhh.......a lazy spring evening
aaah- what a life. It's a good day to be a cow!
bought a new bull today
Nice bull! What breed is he?
Can't say that I've ever had to put my arm in so far my ear was in danger of being filled (and I was very often the midwife). How's the cow faring?
Baa:
The bull is Angus, which is a breed that came from the British Isles if I am not mistaken. I don't have papers for him but I am not into raising registered stock anyway. The cow seems just fine. She has perked right up and is gaining weight and getting slick and shiney, LOL. I guess I won't know for sure till she calves again. If she has that much trouble again next spring then I may have to sell her.
I had just bought her about a week before she calved, I wonder if the calf could have been injured in transit or moved out of position?
Baa: Are cattle in the UK expensive? Cow/calf pairs are at $900 here in Virginia. Not sure what the exchange rate is but if it is $2/Brit pound then that would put cow/calf pairs there at 450 pounds?
Keith
I did think he was Angus-like but the other countries types of British Breeds are sometimes different, most usually in size but sometimes they differ in general bodyshape too. Angus cattle here are rather small in comparison to the Continental breeds although we consider the Angus heifer is arguably the best tasting beef.
Price wise I don't know much these days, store cattle are cheaper than breeding stock of course, stores are approx. 450GBP/head so far this year. (the average USD to GBP conversion rate hangs at around $1.75/£1.00).
I'm surprised that someone sold you cattle that close to calving. Sometimes when the calf is stuck or the cow is inexperienced the calf can die from suffocation either from a lung full of fluid or because the contractions are too strong or she's given up and the muscles restrict the calf's breathing. Sometimes the big calves are 'lazy' or have restricted movement in the uterus and don't move into the right position however now you know she has calving problems you can be ready with your dates and be on hand to supervise the whole thing next time, it might be worth putting her to a bull that throws smaller calves.
Baa:
Yes, thats why I bought this bull; he has a small head and his calves are not too large. Small birth weight calves are a desired thing here in America.
Angus beef is thought to have a better taste here too. Some of the resturant and fast food chains even emphasize in their adds that they use only 100% Angus beef. How they verify this I don't know.
Keith
Keith, I finally came to see your bull!! The kids wanted to see him and I had to explain about him being a man cow. LOL He is a nice looking guy! I hope the girlie cows treat him right. :)
I've read this whole thread with much excitement for ya Virginian! Nothing like having your own cows. ;) Could be the calf you had to pull was her first calf? If so she may do ok next time. Anyway you know what to do now since you've experienced it.
We have 65 head right now. That's cows and calves. A lot to take care of with dh still working his day job. We always sell off the bull calves and keep most if not all the heifers. Nearly all of our herd now is home grown. Makes it nice not to have to worry about diseases.
We are in a drought right now and have been for a long time. We had a dry winter last year and that makes it hard. We feed right on through the summer. Have to. I hope we have a more rainy winter this year so we will have more spring grasses for the cows.
It's much cheaper to buy hay than to grow it and bale it on our own place. We buy from the same rancher every year. Most of our cows are crossbred cattle. We have an angus bull. Did have a Charlois(sp) but he kept getting out and into the neighbors pasture so dh took him to the sale. I think our other bull is Brangus.
Some of our cows do have 'names'. lol Couldn't help it I guess. Dh works five days a week with weekends off. I've never figured out how these cows know when it's the weekend but they do. lol
Good luck with your new herd. I'll be anxious to hear how things are going for ya. ;)
Lin
