cattle crushes/restraining cattle

[Mojojo]

OK. Been a bit busy of late so haven't been around, but that's another post

SO we have a small set of yards that consists of 2 yards and a loading ramp, no race.

I am concerned about not having anywhere to restrict the cows like a crush, if we need to get a vet out for any reason, like when the nearly here calf needs to become a steer or be disbudded, or for AI-ing the cows in a few months time. They are pretty quiet, eat out of my hand and 'Butters' doesn't mind a chin scratch, but none are halter trained.

I was thinking about adding a small race to a section of the yard that could be gated front and back, would this do? At the moment I know if we HAD to I could simply restrain them back behind a gate in the yards.

Of course trying to minimise the expenditure, there's no way I am going to buy some fancy commercial crush for three cows...
All of the existing yards are post and rail, about 6ft high with five 6x1.5 inch boards forming the rails. It looks like most of the timber has been very recently replaced - ie in the last three years - except the loading ramp, so its in reasonable nick.

We have LOT of steel purlins left over from building the shed, I am already thinking of running these around between the two bottom rails as I reckon a dexter calf could just wiggle straight through at the moment.

This is the layout of the yards currently (blue), and my idea (green), if anyone has any suggestions?

[minnie]

Hi Jo,

DH has started doing our yards at the moment, I've drawn so many over the years.

The gate would hold the cattle, but to work on their heads or restrain tightly a head bale... we've got an old head bale and you can pick them up secondhand not that expensive and it would work into your design well and give just a bit more oomf...

My brain a bit tired this afternoon, if I think of something more will post, also Heidi what do you have?

Vicki

[Hayhay]

Plans look good to me Jo - we're in same position with 3 cows and no proper yards! My DH did make a crush recently but we couldn't get the cow in it - need proper yards and fences etc

[minnie]

I may have to do a make shift bale possibly this morning with the movable panels (they're handy to have).

Cinnamon (Fatima's mother) had a calf on Sunday and it seems he's only drinking from one side 'totally', so she's got an empty udder one side and the other is so full she's dripping milk... I'm about to go and check her out, hopefully he's drinking from that side now and I won't have to milk her and try to get him on that side.

BTW he's a beautiful dun coloured bull. I was hoping for a heifer after her losing Fatima to me last year but at least she can raise this one.

Vicki

[Mojojo]

Ooh another dun!
I'm eagerly awaiting the arrival of our first calf and hoping for heifer to keep

Yeah this is exactly the reason I feel I need somewhere to restrain them, for when stuff like that happens! I also think if I get to work and make somewhere, then nothing will happen, but if I leave it, no doubt something will go wrong. Murphy's law.
Just like when I water the garden - it makes it rain
I think I will put in the two posts, get hubby to teach me how to weld to make the end gates (one to be/include a head bale) and buy a single steel panel to attach to the posts as the fence part.
Easy done.

[minnie]

Sounds good Jo, we need to really look at ours in the next days as we have to load the steer and bull calf for the abattoir and we have to get things rigged up for the vet to dehorn the little bloke, I'd hate to miss his dehorning as well!

The beauty of the steel panels is you can move them about to work out the best way then put solid posts in place. Don't know how we'd have loaded at Hogarth Range the entire herd bit by bit as we did without them. And when Cinnamon got lantana poisoning and was down in the paddock, DH drove the panels down put them around her and we put a tarp over the weather protection. They're not cheap at approx 100 per panel but it's not that expensive either when brought one or two at a time, we have 8 now I think.

You know they're clever cattle... we tried to get Cinnamon in yesterday morning and DH ended up changing the panels around to make it wider etc etc, she knew what we wanted and she go within a whisker and push through us. That's where Fatima gets her smarts from I think.

I ended up leaving the feed in where we wanted her and no sooner out and she was in eating the food. So I decided to watch in the afternoon, by the afternoon she was evening up and this morning is even better, so I'll leave her.

I love the duns, and hope Fatima throws to them as she'd carrier the gene with her mother being dun.


Vicki

[Heidi]

Hi,
Catching up on all the comings and goings on this board! Congratulations!
Heidi

[minnie]

Hey Heidi,

I heard McGregor's first calf has been born?

Vicki

[Heidi]

Hi Vicki,
Yes a beautiful, healthy little heifer was born on Wednesday morning. She has a white belly, a white tail (????!!!) and two white stripes on one side of her body. She is not quite a small as a dexter calf, but smaller than an angus. She is nursing well, and Skye, her JerseyxAngus mother is doing wonderfully for a first timer. McGreger her DexterxAngus father is quite interested too.
So, "Anna" the calf, is half Angus, quarter Jersey, quarter dexter. So, you can think of her as half dairy or three quarters beef!

I've never been very good with dates, so sometime between now and new year, I have another three cows due to calve, one being my Jersey girl!

H

[minnie]

Hi Heidi,

Is she poll?

Sounds lovely, what a good mix of breeds for all things beefy and milky.

Vicki

[Heidi]

Hi,
As to if she's polled I'm unsure. McGregor has scurs, his mum was dehorned (I think) and his father was Angus (polled dominant). Skye the mother of the new calf is polled, but obviously, her mother (jersey) wasn't, but her Angus father, again was naturally polled! The genetics at play are phenomenal and people have tried to explain it to me!

As an update, this morning, Raisin, Skye's full sister had a big healthy bull calf, named "Bot" by my 2yo son (it was his turn to name).

Bull calf born today 15/11 "Bot"


Heifer calf born 9/11 "Anna"


Family photo of dams and calves


Notice the edema on Raisin (RHS) in front of her udder. Sort of like the equivalent of jelly belly! This will dissipate naturally over the next week I'm sure. I did successfully milk Raisin in the paddock free standing. A great result for a cow that's not been handled for the last year, and never been milked at all (both are first calvers).

H

[minnie]

Hi Heidi,

Anna is sooo cute with her white bits, I have a leaning to holstein looks at times... very interesting patterns.

Well without a 'double poll' gene in one or the other it could go either way...

Bot (don't you love how kids name things), I remember my brother naming a dog when very young 'Metal'.

He looks a little stripey?

Lovely calves...

Vicki

[dggoatlover]

I know in goats you can tell if you have a polly by the direction the hair swirls - not sure if it is that same with cattle??

[minnie]

I think you can feel them from the very beginning just under the skin and the polls seem to have a more rounded head... won't take long to find out though.

Vicki