Shackles on a suckler cow

[biggles]

Got a first calver that will not take to her calf. Three weeks old now and it’s getting a bit of a bind getting her in the crush twice a day. At first she kicked out with aggression now it’s more leg lifting to knock the calf off with the odd swift kick. Calf is strong and doing great but won’t go near her unless she is in the crush now. I’m running out of ideas and it was suggest to fit shackles to her back legs. This is something I’ve never done and would be a bit worried about her falling on the calf or not being able to get up. The cow is fit. She is in a 15ft pen with locking Barriers although she will not settle in them to feed the calf. Any ideas? Cheers

 

[MJT]

Got a first calver that will not take to her calf. Three weeks old now and it’s getting a bit of a bind getting her in the crush twice a day. At first she kicked out with aggression now it’s more leg lifting to knock the calf off with the odd swift kick. Calf is strong and doing great but won’t go near her unless she is in the crush now. I’m running out of ideas and it was suggest to fit shackles to her back legs. This is something I’ve never done and would be a bit worried about her falling on the calf or not being able to get up. The cow is fit. She is in a 15ft pen with locking Barriers although she will not settle in them to feed the calf. Any ideas? Cheers

Have tried it once in past as a last resort and worked great ! Doesn’t take long at all for then to learn not to kick. Putting shackles on was most fun part

 

[Werzle]

I suppose/hope the op is giving the cow some meal/cake while suckling the calf, it helps alot and they usually learn not to kick until the buckets empty.

 

[egbert]

Got a first calver that will not take to her calf. Three weeks old now and it’s getting a bit of a bind getting her in the crush twice a day. At first she kicked out with aggression now it’s more leg lifting to knock the calf off with the odd swift kick. Calf is strong and doing great but won’t go near her unless she is in the crush now. I’m running out of ideas and it was suggest to fit shackles to her back legs. This is something I’ve never done and would be a bit worried about her falling on the calf or not being able to get up. The cow is fit. She is in a 15ft pen with locking Barriers although she will not settle in them to feed the calf. Any ideas? Cheers

Both to market, through their respective ring.
How much is your time worth?

 

[Agri Spec Solicitor]

We had a cow in circumstances described. Advice was shackles on, cow and calf alone in a pen. Needed SLY to be locked and fed cow to distract it. Belted galloway calves don’t give up easily. Cow soon got with programme. We put cow in full access crush to get shackles on whilst not being injured!
Just did the locking at start of chores and released at the end so no trouble. Never happened since.

 

[ImLost]

Using baby powder to adopt calves onto foster cows

Farming hacks/tips: A farmer across the waters in California swears by using baby powder to help adopt calves onto foster cows.

thatsfarming.com

I used this trick (as an unbeliever I will add) when I had a cow taking to one twin, but trying to kill the other.

Got them all into a pen and separated them off. Had to wait a while for some talcum powder to turn up, which I think the time separated helped.

Then covered both calves in it and gave the cow a good few squeezes up the nose.

Got the calf that had been rejected sucking a bit, then let them both in with her, while she was still tied up. Gave it 5 mins and she was happy as Larry with both of them.

I didn't think it would last or really work, but clearly has.

Might be worth adding that the calves were a day or two old before I discovered she wasn't keen on one.

 

[BRB John]

3 weeks! Get her in the cull group asap

 

[Dave6170]

I did it to a cow who took a dislike to 1 of her twin calves. I had to shorten the chain with a caribineer because she could still kick.

 

[YELROM]

Are you sure she isn’t wrong on a quarter or got a sore tear, seems a bit strange if it won’t let it suck after 3weeks

 

[M-J-G]

Have tried it once in past as a last resort and worked great ! Doesn’t take long at all for then to learn not to kick. Putting shackles on was most fun part

If worrying about getting kicked whilst attaching them, put her in a crush and lift a front foot off the ground, the can't stand on 2 legs

 

[biggles]

Thanks for the ideas, milk and bag is perfect. When leg it tied back in the crush the calf will spend 20minutes going round all teats and cow has learnt to just stay there, without tying her leg back she lifts it to stop the calf. When locked in the barrier she kicks a bit more aggressively and moves from side to side so the calf gets worried. Can’t bring myself to get rid of them as she is young and hopefully it’s a one off for her, cheers

 

[YELROM]

Is she a heifer?
It might be worth creaming here bay even if it doesn’t look sore

 

[Anymulewilldo]

We shackled a heifer this summer. It stopped her kicking but she never did take to the calf. In the end she stood on it and buggered the calf that way. She’s now being enjoyed as a burger somewhere.

 

[Sharpy]

Thanks for the ideas, milk and bag is perfect. When leg it tied back in the crush the calf will spend 20minutes going round all teats and cow has learnt to just stay there, without tying her leg back she lifts it to stop the calf. When locked in the barrier she kicks a bit more aggressively and moves from side to side so the calf gets worried. Can’t bring myself to get rid of them as she is young and hopefully it’s a one off for her, cheers

Speaking from experience get rid of the vermin as soon as the opportunity occurs. Best gloss I can put on the situation is that you have a calf ready to twin on and a cow ready to go cull!

 

[Treecreeper]

I've posted this before regarding kick restraint.
Take a length of rope long enough to go around the girth plus a bit to spare, create a loop in one end and knot the other, drop knotted end over the back of the cow behind the far pin and make sure its in front of the udder. Retrieve the knotted end slide through the loop in front of the near pin, tighten down, the cow will start to rock a bit but will be unable to kick. Make sure the rope is diagonally across the pins.

 

[Jasper]

Have you tried a kick bar she might jump about to start but it usually does the trick

 

[puppet]

Had 2 weeks of a heifer kicking a calf recently. Just about stood while eating and threatened with a stick if she kicked. After it was finally knocked into the muck twice, dried her off and into the cast ring.
Calf doing fine in a nice pen on a bottle.

 

[glasshouse]

Using baby powder to adopt calves onto foster cows

Farming hacks/tips: A farmer across the waters in California swears by using baby powder to help adopt calves onto foster cows.

thatsfarming.com

I used this trick (as an unbeliever I will add) when I had a cow taking to one twin, but trying to kill the other.

Got them all into a pen and separated them off. Had to wait a while for some talcum powder to turn up, which I think the time separated helped.

Then covered both calves in it and gave the cow a good few squeezes up the nose.

Got the calf that had been rejected sucking a bit, then let them both in with her, while she was still tied up. Gave it 5 mins and she was happy as Larry with both of them.

I didn't think it would last or really work, but clearly has.

Might be worth adding that the calves were a day or two old before I discovered she wasn't keen on one.

Lamb twinning on spray does the same job. Spray the lambs and up the ewes nose.
An old bottle of old spice also works

 

[livestock 1]

Iodine?

 

[Jackov Altraids]

Iodine?

I think Yves Saint Laurent is cheaper.