Horn Weights

[Blaithin]

Anyone use them? Advice? Experiences? Photos of before and after.

Got a couple heifers I never got around to disbudding when they were younger. Now I’m thinking about horn weights instead of dehorning.

 

[borderterribles]

I have used them, but not in the last thirty five years! In the UK, what with 'elf n safety, farm assurance, appeasing dips**t dog walkers, and the like, cattle with horns are fast becoming a thing of the past! We used to put weights on and wire the tips of the horns together, putting a couple more twists in the wire each week, iirc!

 

[primmiemoo]

Googling Horn Weights mightn't be that advisable, so may I ask here what they are, please?

 

[Agrispeed]

If you are worried about them doing damage, the Swiss, and others make little wooden or metal balls that push or are glued on the horn, or grub screwed in place. What I've found works, if to trim the tip off any cows that are aggressive and it stops them doing damage and they quickly quiet down. Easily done with a saw or loppers, you only need to take an Inch off, so no where near any nerves or blood and file any corners off.

I don't bother doing anything unless they are being a pain in the arse. My biggest bullies are are actually dehorned and seem to quite enjoy pushing the horned ones around.

 

[delilah]

I don't bother doing anything unless they are being a pain in the arse

you got Dexters then ?

 

[Lili]

Googling Horn Weights mightn't be that advisable, so may I ask here what they are, please?

A bit like a teeth braces for cattle horns

 

[primmiemoo]

A bit like a teeth braces for cattle horns

Heavier duty trainers than for sheep, then - not that I've seen them used, either.
Thanks, I've learned something.

 

[borderterribles]

Googling Horn Weights mightn't be that advisable, so may I ask here what they are, please?

The idea being that it is possible to train the horns to grow in a way that makes them less effective as weapons. Some breeds used to use them to try and ensure that their breeds horns conformed to breed standards.

 

[Blaithin]

If you are worried about them doing damage, the Swiss, and others make little wooden or metal balls that push or are glued on the horn, or grub screwed in place. What I've found works, if to trim the tip off any cows that are aggressive and it stops them doing damage and they quickly quiet down. Easily done with a saw or loppers, you only need to take an Inch off, so no where near any nerves or blood and file any corners off.

I don't bother doing anything unless they are being a pain in the arse. My biggest bullies are are actually dehorned and seem to quite enjoy pushing the horned ones around.

It’s more about them eating out of the rings and feeders. And to a lesser extent transport and handling.

While I’ve never seen an eye injury, watching then eat at the same Bale makes me cringe at how close they get sometimes. Weights also lessen the width of their horn spread which makes life easier for them in head gates and alleys.

These are also future nurse cows I’m hoping to just tie to stick fosters on and I’d rather not have pokey horns they can easily hook me with, even accidentally.

That and I like the tips so don’t want to cut them off ? I could try sloping them to curve if that was the case.

 

[Bury the Trash]

Tennis balls.

Slit 2 tennis balls and put over the ends .

 

[cows sh#t me to tears]

It’s more about them eating out of the rings and feeders. And to a lesser extent transport and handling.

While I’ve never seen an eye injury, watching then eat at the same Bale makes me cringe at how close they get sometimes. Weights also lessen the width of their horn spread which makes life easier for them in head gates and alleys.

These are also future nurse cows I’m hoping to just tie to stick fosters on and I’d rather not have pokey horns they can easily hook me with, even accidentally.

That and I like the tips so don’t want to cut them off ? I could try sloping them to curve if that was the case.

Why not just cut them off? Any that slip through here get them chopped off.

 

[Cvx1170]

I've never seen it done, but from I understand we only did bull calves, and fitted them around weaning-yearling age. The weights need removing at a certain stage or its possible the adult growth will be too close to their heads

 

[Blaithin]

Why not just cut them off? Any that slip through here get them chopped off.

I don’t like the look then and it’d be a vet trip now.

 

[som farmer]

never heard of them, learn't something. Looks a lot of fiddling, can't you just get them in a crush, whip 2 plastic pull ties tight to stop bleeding, and wire them off ? As a very young farmer, a lot of our dairy was horned, some of the old bitches knew how to use them, good hoik in the f###y used to make sure they got where they wanted, mother took us kids on holiday, when we came back - no horns, the pile stank,

 

[Blaithin]

I could do it any way I’d like.

I’d like to try horn weights so that I have some nice curved horns around instead of stubby, blunt ends.

 

[Bury the Trash]

I could do it any way I’d like.

I’d like to try horn weights so that I have some nice curved horns around instead of stubby, blunt ends.

Well get a set and give em a try then, they look readily available your side of the Atlantic....dont look that expensive, just might need to re.tighten the bolted on ones after a day or 2 it seems...apart from that..

 

[Blaithin]

I figure the worst that happens is I suck at it and they end up dehorned eventually anyway